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McLaren along with Formula One could do with anything decisive in the title fight involving Norris & Piastri being decided on the track rather than without resorting to team orders as the championship finale begins this weekend at COTA starting Friday.

Singapore Grand Prix aftermath prompts internal strain

With the Marina Bay event’s doubtless extensive and tense post-race analyses dealt with, the Woking-based squad will be hoping for a fresh start. Norris was likely fully conscious of the historical context of his riposte to his aggrieved teammate at the last race weekend. In a fiercely contested championship duel against Piastri, that Norris invoked one of Ayrton Senna’s most famous sentiments was lost on no one yet the occurrence which triggered his statement was of an entirely different nature to those that defined the Brazilian’s iconic battles.

“Should you criticize me for just going on the inside through an opening then you don't belong in Formula One,” Norris said of his opening-lap attempt to overtake which resulted in the cars colliding.

His comment appeared to paraphrase the Brazilian legend's “Should you stop attempting for a gap that exists you are no longer a true racer” defence he gave to Sir Jackie Stewart following his collision with Alain Prost in Japan in 1990, securing him the title.

Parallel mindset but different circumstances

While the spirit is similar, the phrasing is where the similarities end. Senna later admitted he never intended to allow Prost beat him at turn one while Norris did try to execute a clean overtake in Singapore. Indeed, it was a perfectly valid effort which received no penalty even with the glancing blow he had with his team colleague during the pass. This incident was a result of him touching the Red Bull driven by Verstappen ahead of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, notably, immediately declared that Norris's position gain was “unfair”; the implication being the two teammates clashing was verboten by team protocols for racing and Norris should be instructed to return the position he gained. McLaren did not do so, yet it demonstrated that in any cases of contention, both will promptly appeal the squad to intervene on his behalf.

Squad management and fairness being examined

This is part and parcel of McLaren’s laudable efforts to let their drivers race one another and to try to maintain strict fairness. Aside from creating complex dilemmas in setting precedents over what constitutes fair or unfair – under these conditions, now covers bad luck, strategy and racing incidents like in Marina Bay – there remains the issue regarding opinions.

Most crucially to the title race, with six meetings remaining, Piastri leads Norris by twenty-two points, there is what each driver perceives as fair and when their perspectives might split from the team's stance. Which is when their friendly rapport among them may – finally – become a little bit more the iconic rivalry.

“It’s going to come a point where minor points count,” said Mercedes team principal Wolff post-race. “Then calculations will begin and back-calculate and I suppose aggression will increase a bit more. 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 probably be welcomed as an on-track confrontation rather than a data-driven decision regarding incidents. Not least because in Formula One the alternative perception from all this is not particularly rousing.

To be fair, McLaren are making the correct decisions for themselves and it has paid off. They secured their 10th constructors’ title in Singapore (albeit a brilliant success diminished by the fuss prompted by the Norris-Piastri moment) and in Andrea Stella as squad leader they have an ethical and principled leader who truly aims to do the right thing.

Sporting integrity against team management

However, with racers competing for the title appealing to the team for resolutions appears unsightly. Their competition should be decided through racing. Chance and fate will have roles, yet preferable to allow them simply go at it and observe outcomes naturally, rather than the sense that each contentious incident will be pored over by the squad to determine if intervention is needed and subsequently resolved later in private.

The examination will intensify with every occurrence it risks possibly affecting outcomes that could be critical. Already, after the team made their drivers swap places in Italy due to Norris experiencing a delayed stop and Piastri believing he had been hard done by with the strategy call at Hungary, where Norris won, the shadow of concern of favouritism also looms.

Team perspective and future challenges

Nobody desires to witness a championship constantly disputed over perceived that the efforts to be fair had not been balanced. When asked if he felt the team had acted correctly by both drivers, Piastri responded that they did, but noted it's a developing process.

“There’s been some difficult situations and we discussed various aspects,” he stated post-race. “But ultimately it’s a learning process with the whole team.”

Six races stay. The team has minimal room for error for last-minute adjustments, thus perhaps wiser to just close the books and step back from the conflict.