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McLaren along with F1 would benefit from any conclusive outcome during this championship battle involving Lando Norris and Piastri getting resolved on the track rather than without resorting to the pit wall with the title run-in kicks off this weekend at COTA on Friday.

Marina Bay race aftermath prompts team tensions

With the Singapore Grand Prix’s undoubtedly thorough and stressful post-race analyses concluded, McLaren will be hoping for a fresh start. Norris was almost certainly more than aware about the historical parallels of his riposte toward his upset colleague during the previous race weekend. In a fiercely contested championship duel against Piastri, his reference to a famous Senna most famous sentiments did not go unnoticed but the incident which triggered his statement was of an entirely different nature to those that defined Senna's great rivalries.

“Should you criticize me for simply attempting an inside move of a big gap then you don't belong in F1,” stated Norris regarding his first-lap move to overtake that led to the cars colliding.

His comment seemed to echo the Brazilian legend's “If you no longer go an available gap which is there you are no longer a true racer” defence he gave to Sir Jackie Stewart following his collision with Alain Prost at Suzuka back in 1990, ensuring he took the championship.

Similar spirit but different circumstances

While the spirit is similar, the wording is where the similarities end. The late champion confessed he had no intent of letting Prost beat him through the first corner while Norris did try to make his pass cleanly in Singapore. In fact, his maneuver was legitimate that went unpenalised despite the minor contact he had with his team colleague during the pass. This incident was a result of him clipping the Red Bull driven by Verstappen ahead of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, significantly, 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, but it was indicative that in any cases between them, both will promptly appeal the squad to intervene on his behalf.

Team dynamics and fairness under scrutiny

This comes naturally from McLaren's commendable approach to let their drivers race against each other and to try to maintain strict fairness. Quite apart from tying some torturous knots when establishing rules about what defines fair or unfair – under these conditions, now includes misfortune, tactical calls and on-track occurrences such as in Singapore – there is the question of perception.

Of most import for the championship, six races left, Piastri is ahead of Norris by twenty-two points, each racer's view exists as fair and at what point their opinion may diverge from the team's stance. Which is when the amicable relationship between the two may – finally – turn somewhat into Senna-Prost.

“It will reach a point where minor points count,” said Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff after Singapore. “Then they’ll start to calculate and back-calculate and I suppose aggression will increase further. That's when it begins to get interesting.”

Viewer desires and title consequences

For the audience, in what is a two-horse race, getting interesting will likely be appreciated in the form of an on-track confrontation instead of a data-driven decision of circumstances. Especially since in Formula One the other impression from these events isn't very inspiring.

Honestly speaking, McLaren are making the correct decisions for their interests with successful results. They clinched their tenth team championship at Marina Bay (though a great achievement diminished by the controversy from their drivers' clash) and with Stella as team principal they have an ethical and principled leader who truly aims to act correctly.

Sporting integrity versus squad control

However, with racers competing for the title appealing to the team to decide matters appears unsightly. Their contest should be decided through racing. Luck and destiny will play their part, but better to let them simply go at it and observe outcomes naturally, rather than the sense that each contentious incident will be pored over by the team to determine if intervention is needed and then cleared up later in private.

The scrutiny will increase and each time it happens it is in danger of potentially making a difference that could be critical. Already, after the team made for position swaps at Monza because Norris had endured a slow pit stop and Piastri feeling he was treated unfairly regarding tactics in Budapest, where Norris triumphed, the spectre of a fear about bias also emerges.

Squad viewpoint and future challenges

Nobody desires to see a title constantly disputed over perceived that fairness attempts were unequal. Questioned whether he believed the squad had acted correctly toward both racers, Piastri said that they did, but noted that it was an ever-evolving approach.

“There’s been some difficult situations and we’ve spoken about a number of things,” he stated after Singapore. “However finally it’s a learning process with the whole team.”

Six meetings remain. McLaren have little wriggle room left for last-minute adjustments, thus perhaps wiser now to simply stop analyzing and step back from the conflict.