Formula One fans have been left shocked after McLaren boss Zak Brown went on an unhinged rant and appeared to make a domestic violence joke in his end-of-season speech. 

McLaren had plenty to celebrate after Brit Lando Norris claimed the driver's championship while Piastri finished third after leading for the first half of the season.

Brown was celebrating the campaign at the team's headquarters in Woking when a video showed him appear to joke about domestic violence in remarks that went down like a lead balloon.  

Brown went to 'thank' families of the team in his speech, 'starting with mine', when he attempted humour with remarks about his wife, Tracy. 

'We've been married 26 years, see the black eye? Like I said, we've been married 26 years,' Brown said.

'No, I am joking, the dog hit her this morning.'

Oscar and Lando were politely smiling through the speech, but the apparent domestic violence joke appeared too much for the Aussie as he looked down at his feet, the smile leaving his face. 

Viewers online were left stunned by Brown's comments.  

'Oh, Zak made a DV joke about his own wife in front of the entire company? Okay,' one posted with the video.

Another posted: 'There are 100 red flags for this guy and somehow people look past it'.

'There are definitely ways to be funny without saying these outlandish things,' said another. 

McLaren declined to comment to Daily Mail when contacted.  

The speech came after McLaren's season ended with Norris winning the drivers' championship, but accusations of favouritism followed the team throughout the year. 

Piastri finished third after matching Norris for wins and pace, yet key decisions increasingly leaned one way as the title fight tightened. 

The clearest example came at the Singapore Grand Prix, where Piastri was told to hold position behind Norris despite having fresher tyres and closing fast. 

The call protected Norris's championship points rather than allowing a genuine fight. 

Those moments fuelled claims that McLaren's so-called Papaya rules were applied differently when Norris's title was at stake. 

And Brown did little to smother those flames, with a series of pointed digs at Piastri. 

'We took big risks on both of you,' he said. 

'And don't pretend you had better options, [Oscar] you had f***ing Alpine and you [Lando] just had to be faster than [former McLaren driver] Stoffel [Vandoorne]' 

'What I really wanna do is mess up Lando's hair right now but I'm gonna dare Oscar and see how big his balls really are.' 

Brown then praised the drivers before going on to say they called him 'Big Daddy'. 

'Couldn't dream of having a better driver lineup on and off the track. Two fastest guys in the world and the nicest. 

'That's the McLaren way. Proper racers like us, which stands for how we race. You guys are almost a unicorn combo. 

'Then again, maybe we'll be up here next year saying, 'f*** that guy.' 

'Anyways. Won't come to that. Both drivers love me, idolise me, call me Big Daddy behind my back. 

'Reality is they'll mess with me, but they won't mess with [Team Principal] Andrea [Stella] 'cause deep down inside they're scared shitless of Andrea.' 

Furious Aussie F1 fans hit back at Brown over his digs at Piastri, as speculation mounts that he could leave McLaren in the coming seasons.  

'Karma will come for you, Zak Brown,' one commented. 

'Your power over Oscar only lasts while you have the fastest car.

'When you no longer do, he'll drop you faster than he dropped Alpine.

'So laugh it up while you can, you won't be the one laughing in the end.'