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McLaren and F1 would benefit from anything decisive in the championship battle between Lando Norris & Oscar Piastri being decided on the track and without resorting to the pit wall as the title run-in kicks off at the Circuit of the Americas starting Friday.

Singapore Grand Prix aftermath leads to internal strain

After the Singapore Grand Prix’s doubtless extensive and stressful post-race analyses dealt with, McLaren will be hoping for a fresh start. The British driver was almost certainly fully conscious of the historical context regarding his retort to his aggrieved teammate at the last race weekend. During an intense championship duel with the Australian, his reference to a famous Senna well-known quotes did not go unnoticed but the incident that provoked his comment was of an entirely different nature from incidents characterizing the Brazilian’s iconic battles.

“Should you criticize me for just going on the inside through an opening then you should not be in Formula One,” stated Norris of his opening-lap attempt to overtake that led to the cars colliding.

The remark appeared to paraphrase Senna’s “Should you stop attempting for a gap that exists then you cease to be a true racer” defence he provided to Sir Jackie Stewart following his collision with the French champion at Suzuka back in 1990, ensuring he took the title.

Parallel mindset yet distinct situations

Although the attitude remains comparable, the phrasing marks where parallels stop. The late champion confessed he never intended to allow Prost beat him at turn one whereas Norris did try to make his pass cleanly in Singapore. Indeed, his maneuver was legitimate that went unpenalised despite the minor contact he made against his team colleague as he went through. This incident stemmed from him touching the car driven by Verstappen in front of him.

Piastri reacted furiously and, significantly, immediately declared that Norris gaining the place was “unfair”; the implication being their collision was verboten by team protocols of engagement and Norris should be instructed to give back the place he had made. McLaren did not do so, yet it demonstrated that during disputes between them, each would quickly ask to the team to step in in their favor.

Team dynamics and fairness being examined

This comes naturally of McLaren’s laudable efforts to allow their racers compete against each other and to try to maintain strict fairness. Quite apart from creating complex dilemmas in setting precedents about what defines fair or unfair – which, under these auspices, now covers misfortune, strategy and racing incidents such as in Singapore – there is the question regarding opinions.

Most crucially to the title race, six races left, Piastri leads Norris by twenty-two points, each racer's view exists as fair and at what point their perspectives might split with that of the McLaren pitwall. That is when the amicable relationship between the two could eventually – turn somewhat into Senna-Prost.

“It’s going to come to a situation where minor points count,” said Mercedes team principal Wolff post-race. “Then they’ll start to calculate and back-calculate and I suppose aggression will increase further. That's when it begins to become thrilling.”

Viewer desires and championship implications

For spectators, in what is a two-horse race, getting interesting will likely be appreciated as a track duel rather than a spreadsheet-based arbitration regarding incidents. Not least because for F1 the alternative perception from these events isn't very inspiring.

Honestly speaking, McLaren is taking appropriate choices for their interests and it has paid off. They secured their 10th constructors’ title at Marina Bay (though a great achievement overshadowed by the fuss prompted by the Norris-Piastri moment) and with Stella as team principal they have an ethical and principled leader who genuinely wants to act correctly.

Sporting integrity against team management

Yet having drivers in a championship fight looking to the pitwall for resolutions is unedifying. Their competition ought to be determined through racing. Chance and fate will have roles, but better to let them simply go at it and see how fortune falls, than the impression that every disputed moment will be analyzed intensely by the team to determine if they need to intervene and subsequently resolved later in private.

The scrutiny will increase with every occurrence it risks possibly affecting outcomes that could be critical. Previously, following the team's decision their drivers swap places in Italy due to Norris experiencing a delayed stop and Piastri feeling he was treated unfairly with the strategy call at Hungary, where Norris triumphed, the shadow of concern of favouritism also emerges.

Team perspective and upcoming tests

Nobody desires to see a title endlessly debated over perceived that the efforts to be fair were unequal. When asked if he felt the team had acted correctly toward both racers, Piastri responded that they did, but mentioned that it was an ever-evolving approach.

“There’s been some challenging moments and we’ve spoken about various aspects,” he stated after Singapore. “But ultimately it's educational for the entire squad.”

Six meetings remain. The team has minimal room for error for last-minute adjustments, thus perhaps wiser now to simply close the books and withdraw from the fray.