McLaren star 'willing to leave the team' and makes come-and-get-me plea to F1 squad

sensation Pato O'Ward would be willing to leave 's racing family for an opportunity to drive with the new F1 squad next season. The Mexican starlet is eagerly anticipating a call from Dan Towriss' organisation as they decide their first driver line-up. Cadillac's entry onto the F1 grid has now been confirmed, and team principal Graeme Lowdon faces the daunting task of deciding on a driver pairing.

Andretti IndyCar starlet Colton Herta has been touted as the early frontrunner, but some of his rivals have also been mentioned as candidates. One such candidate is O'Ward, who has established himself as the leading man within McLaren's IndyCar operation, dominating team-mates Alexander Rossi and Nolan Siegal last year. The 25-year-old has also impressed in his free practice sessions with Zak Brown's squad, proving himself a capable pair of hands in an F1 cockpit.

"I would still love to be in F1, and it doesn't have to be with McLaren," O'Ward told ahead of the IndyCar race at Long Beach. "Zak knows it's always been my dream, and it's something I'd love to check off my list and just give a try.

"It's never been a doubt of if I can do it. It's just, like, is that opportunity going to come about at the right time? I don't have forever. There's always going to be younger guys."

Despite his desire to secure a seat on the F1 grid, O'Ward has heard nothing thus far from the Cadillac squad. "They haven't reached out, but if they do, I'm definitely answering their call," he continued.

"That interest hasn't really been shown from their side, but I'm sure it probably will be a conversation that will be had. But I'd love to, man. And I'm [driving a Chevrolet-powered car] right now. Same family. I'd love to win an Indy 500 with Chevy.

"I'd love to win an IndyCar championship with Chevy and McLaren, and then I'd love to tackle F1 with McLaren or Cadillac. Having a good opportunity there, if the car is somewhat decent, hopefully I'd be able to show some good things. Maybe I can show everybody what they've been missing out on."

While O'Ward is set on swapping IndyCar for F1 if the opportunity arises, Herta isn't so sure. "I'd have to give it real, serious thought," he revealed. "For me, it's not like, 'Oh, F1!' I'd be leaving a great group of people that I really like working with here. It's not an easy decision to say, 'Oh, yeah, see you guys later.'"