🔗 Share this article

McLaren along with Formula One could do with anything decisive in the title fight involving Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri getting resolved through on-track action and without resorting to the pit wall with the championship finale kicks off this weekend at COTA on Friday.

Marina Bay race fallout prompts internal strain

After the Singapore Grand Prix’s doubtless extensive and tense debriefs dealt with, the Woking-based squad will be hoping for a fresh start. Norris was likely more than aware about the historical parallels regarding his retort toward his upset colleague during the previous race weekend. During an intense championship duel with the Australian, his reference to a famous Senna most famous sentiments did not go unnoticed yet the occurrence which triggered his statement was of an entirely different nature to those that defined Senna's great rivalries.

“Should you criticize me for just going an inside move through an opening then you should not be in F1,” stated Norris of his opening-lap attempt to overtake that led to their vehicles making contact.

His comment seemed to echo the Brazilian legend's “Should you stop attempting an available gap which is there then you cease to be a true racer” justification he gave to the racing knight following his collision with Alain Prost at Suzuka in 1990, securing him the title.

Similar spirit but different circumstances

While the spirit remains comparable, the phrasing marks where parallels stop. The late champion confessed he had no intent of letting Prost to defeat him through the first corner while Norris attempted to make his pass cleanly at the Marina Bay circuit. In fact, his maneuver was legitimate that went unpenalised despite the minor contact he made against his team colleague as he went through. That itself was a result of him touching the Red Bull driven by Verstappen ahead of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, notably, instantly stated that Norris gaining the place seemed unjust; the implication being their collision was forbidden under McLaren’s rules of engagement and Norris ought to be told to return the place he had made. The team refused, yet it demonstrated that during disputes of contention, both will promptly appeal to the team to intervene in their favor.

Squad management and fairness under scrutiny

This is part and parcel of McLaren’s laudable efforts to allow their racers compete one another and strive to be as scrupulously fair. Aside from tying some torturous knots in setting precedents over what constitutes fair or unfair – which, under these auspices, now covers bad luck, strategy and racing incidents such as in Singapore – there is the question of perception.

Of most import to the title race, with six meetings remaining, Piastri leads Norris by 22 points, each racer's view exists on fairness and when their opinion may diverge from the team's stance. That is when the amicable relationship among them could eventually – become a little bit more the iconic rivalry.

“It’s going to come to a situation where a few points will matter,” commented Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff post-race. “Then calculations will begin and re-calculations and I guess the elbows are going to come out further. That’s when it starts to become thrilling.”

Viewer desires and championship implications

For spectators, in what is a two-horse race, getting interesting will likely be appreciated as an on-track confrontation instead of a data-driven decision of circumstances. Not least because in Formula One the other impression from these events is not particularly rousing.

Honestly speaking, McLaren is taking the correct decisions for themselves with successful results. They clinched their tenth team championship in Singapore (albeit a brilliant success diminished by the controversy from the Norris-Piastri moment) and in Andrea Stella as team principal they possess a moral and principled leader who genuinely wants to act correctly.

Racing purity against team management

Yet having drivers in a championship fight appealing to the team for resolutions appears unsightly. Their competition ought to be determined through racing. Luck and destiny will have roles, but better to let them just battle freely and observe outcomes naturally, rather than the sense that each contentious incident will be analyzed intensely by the squad to ascertain whether they need to intervene and subsequently resolved later in private.

The scrutiny will increase and each time it happens it is in danger of possibly affecting outcomes that could be critical. Already, following the team's decision for position swaps in Italy due to Norris experiencing a slow pit stop and Piastri believing he had been hard done by regarding tactics at Hungary, where Norris won, the spectre of a fear of favouritism also emerges.

Squad viewpoint and future challenges

Nobody desires to see a title endlessly debated over perceived that the efforts to be fair were unequal. Questioned whether he felt the team had acted correctly by both drivers, Piastri responded he believed they had, but mentioned that it was an ever-evolving approach.

“There’s been some difficult situations and we discussed various aspects,” he stated after Singapore. “However finally it's educational for the entire squad.”

Six races stay. The team has minimal wriggle room left to do their cramming, thus perhaps wiser now to simply close the books and step back from the fray.