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McLaren and Formula One would benefit from any conclusive outcome in the championship battle between Lando Norris and Piastri being decided through on-track action rather than without reference to team orders as the championship finale kicks off this weekend at COTA on Friday.

Marina Bay race aftermath prompts team tensions

With the Singapore Grand Prix’s doubtless extensive and stressful debriefs dealt with, the Woking-based squad will be hoping for a fresh start. The British driver was likely more than aware of the historical context regarding his retort toward his upset colleague during the previous race weekend. In a fiercely contested title fight against Piastri, his reference to one of Ayrton Senna’s well-known quotes was lost on no one but the incident that provoked his comment was of an entirely different nature to those that defined the Brazilian’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 regarding his first-lap move to pass which resulted in the cars colliding.

The remark seemed to echo Senna’s “If you no longer go for a gap which is there then you cease to be a racing driver” justification he gave to the racing knight after he ploughed into Alain Prost in Japan back in 1990, ensuring he took the title.

Parallel mindset but different circumstances

While the spirit remains comparable, the wording is where the similarities end. Senna later admitted he never intended of letting Prost beat him through the first corner whereas Norris did try to execute a clean overtake at the Marina Bay circuit. Indeed, his maneuver was legitimate which received no penalty even with the glancing blow he made against his McLaren teammate during the pass. That itself stemmed from him clipping the car of Max Verstappen ahead of him.

Piastri reacted furiously and, significantly, immediately declared that Norris's position gain was “unfair”; suggesting that the two teammates clashing was verboten under McLaren’s rules of engagement and Norris ought to be told to give back the position he gained. The team refused, but it was indicative that in any cases of contention, both will promptly appeal 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 one another and to try to maintain strict fairness. Aside from tying some torturous knots when establishing rules about what defines fair or unfair – under these conditions, now covers bad luck, strategy and racing incidents like in Marina Bay – there is the question of perception.

Most crucially to the title race, six races left, Piastri leads Norris by 22 points, each racer's view exists as fair and when their opinion may diverge from the team's stance. Which is when the amicable relationship between the two could eventually – become a little bit more Senna-Prost.

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

Audience expectations and title consequences

For the audience, in what is a two-horse race, getting interesting will probably be welcomed as a track duel instead of a data-driven decision regarding incidents. Not least because for F1 the alternative perception from all this is not particularly rousing.

Honestly speaking, McLaren are making the correct decisions for their interests with successful results. They secured their 10th constructors’ title at Marina Bay (albeit a brilliant success diminished by the controversy from the Norris-Piastri moment) and with Stella as squad leader they have an ethical and principled leader who genuinely wants to act correctly.

Racing purity versus team management

However, with racers in a championship fight appealing to the team to decide matters is unedifying. Their contest ought to be determined on track. Luck and destiny will have roles, yet preferable to allow them simply go at it and see how fortune falls, than the impression that each contentious incident will be pored over by the team to ascertain whether they need to intervene and subsequently resolved afterwards behind closed doors.

The scrutiny will intensify and each time it happens it is in danger of potentially making a difference which might prove decisive. Already, after the team made their drivers swap places in Italy because Norris had endured a delayed stop and Piastri believing he was treated unfairly with the strategy call in Budapest, where Norris triumphed, the shadow of concern of favouritism also emerges.

Squad viewpoint and future challenges

No one wants to see a title constantly disputed over perceived that the efforts to be fair were unequal. When asked if he felt the team had acted correctly by both drivers, Piastri said that they did, but noted it's a developing process.

“We've had several difficult situations and we’ve spoken about a number of things,” he stated post-race. “But ultimately it's educational with the whole team.”

Six races stay. The team has minimal wriggle room left for last-minute adjustments, so it may be better now to simply close the books and step back from the fray.