Even though its performance in F1 has been pitiful of late, everybody wants a piece of McLaren. In addition to Audi wanting a slice of the pie, BMW now also wants in on the action.

Earlier this week, we reported on the rumors regarding Audi wanting to buy a stake in the Formula 1 team. McLaren denied this within hours the first time we reported on it last year, though we have yet to receive an e-mail from them this time.

McLaren's CEO, Zak Brown, has admitted that there were talks between the British brand and Audi, but that's the only concrete evidence we have to suggest this deal might happen at some point.

BMW appears to be more interested in the road car side of things. According to the German publication, Automobilwoche, McLaren and BMW signed a memorandum of understanding.

This understanding has nothing to do with the papaya-colored MCL36 but rather a new sports car.

The rumors suggest that BMW and McLaren will be working together to create an EV platform. Both companies have experience with hybrid cars but have yet to make the next big step. BMW's i8 was an engineering triumph that somehow failed, but McLaren's P1 hypercar quickly reached iconic status. McLaren used what it learned to create the 671-hp Artura.

Neither company has made the move over to a fully-electric sports car unless you count the terrible-to-look-at-but-lovely-to-drive BMW iX.

Since both companies have such a rich history of producing some of the best driving machines in existence, it makes complete sense that they'd want to team up to possibly create the benchmark performance EV. Teaming up would lessen the production cost, and BMW is now known for partnering up with other manufacturers for this very reason. The Toyota Supra is a prime example.

Where does this leave the Audi deal? Audi could opt out of the F1 side if McLaren decides to go with BMW, or it simply couldn't care. Since the Audi deal includes the possibility of later buying a stake in the road car side of the business, we reckon Audi would drop the deal altogether.