Oscar Piastri’s instinct was right – have McLaren’s F1 team orders gone too far?

Another race, another twist in this fascinating intra-team title battle for the F1 world championship between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris. Only this time, amid a disorderly few minutes for McLaren in the Monza pit-lane, the yardstick has shifted somewhat.

The finale to Sunday’s Italian Grand Prix, as Max Verstappen coasted to victory in a Red Bull car unexpectedly superior to this year’s runaway leaders, took a surprising turn with a few laps to go. Piastri and Norris were holding out for a late safety car, having not pitted at all in the 53-lap race. With no incident forthcoming, third-placed Piastri pitted first; second-placed Norris followed a lap later.

Yet the Brit, who like 12 months ago is playing catch-up in the drivers’ title race, experienced another dose of bad luck, one week on from his mechanical retirement from the Dutch Grand Prix. A slow stop of 5.9 seconds, due to a pedestrian front-left tyre change, meant he emerged on the racetrack behind his teammate and championship leader Piastri. Suddenly, McLaren had a decision to make.

Piastri’s engineer Tom Stallard, a former Olympic rower well-versed in the fine margins of elite sport, had quickly been informed of the way in which McLaren team principal Andrea Stella wanted it to play out.

“This is a bit like Hungary last year,” he said, referencing Piastri’s maiden win in Budapest last year when Norris, eventually, conceded first place to the Australian. “We pitted in this order for team reasons. Please let Lando past, and you’re free to race.”

Piastri, a cool-headed driver who rarely rebukes over team radio, knew the rules of engagement, however. “We said a slow pit stop was part of racing,” he said. “I don’t really get what changed here. But if you really want to do it, then I’ll do it.”

And so Piastri begrudgingly let his rival through, ceding a six-point swing. His lead now stands at 31 points with eight races remaining. Jeers for the much-liked Norris on the podium spoke volumes as to what the thousands in attendance thought of McLaren’s late manipulation of positions.

Verstappen, coasting to a third victory of the season, could not help but chuckle when informed of the development behind him. “Ha! Just because he had a slow stop?” Needless to say, the ruthless Dutchman would not have adhered to such an instruction so willingly.

Piastri admitted post-race that “some talks” needed to be had within the walls of the McLaren motorhome. One suspects, perhaps for the first time this year, the post-race debrief could have been a smidge spicy.

Because, ultimately, the mild-mannered Australian’s selflessness was admirable in a scenario in which he held the upper ground two-fold. Not only was he ahead on track and in the title race, but pit-stop delays are part and parcel of grand prix racing. Norris had done nothing wrong, but his mechanics on this occasion had. Piastri was well within his rights to feel hard done by here.

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Yet, with Stallard’s reference to Hungary 2024 and what amounted essentially to tit for tat, it now seems it could well be “fair game” for the remainder of the season. Here, with a sizeable advantage and with just six points at play, Piastri opted to play the team game. Harmony over disunity.

But what about down the line? What if a grand prix win is at stake, which would amount to a 14-point swing? What if Piastri’s lead drops from 31 points to 20 points – would he feel so inclined to follow team orders? The suspicion, given the curbing of his natural instincts on Sunday, would be no.

McLaren, to their credit, allow their drivers to race. Their advantage in the constructors’ championship means their “papaya rules” instruction – which translates to racing without risk of collision – is a safe bet.

open image in gallery

open image in gallery

Yet after a coming together in Canada in which Norris took full blame, and a close skirmish at the following race in Austria, it does feel as though we are on the verge of a major moment between the two drivers on track.

Norris can be thankful, this time around, for his teammate’s good grace and decorum. The situation backs up the notion that – in stark contrast to Mercedes’ intra-team battle in 2016 between Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton – this year’s title race is one of the nicest championship battles in F1 history.

Both drivers continue to adhere to joint media commitments every Thursday. Both stand side by side and smile, despite the overarching leaderboard. Both are genuinely warm and cordial to one another, despite a first world championship on the line.

Will it last? Can it last? There’s usually no room for sentiment in Formula One, but McLaren, whether you like it or not, are doing their very best to be fair to both men. And they expect compliance in return. But if one of them breaks rank, the gloves will most certainly be off.