The McLaren Formula 1 team has recently dug itself into a bit of a hole.
It started during the 2024 Hungary Grand Prix when driver Lando Norris passed Oscar Piastri because the team messed up Piastri’s strategy by letting Norris pit first. McLaren then told Norris to let Piastri pass him because it was the team’s fault he gained the lead. Norris was reluctant to let Piastri pass, but he eventually did so with some convincing from the team.
This race would become Piastri’s first win, with Norris finishing second. Norris wasn’t extremely happy about the outcome of the race, but he understood the team thought it was best.
“It’s tough, but I know what Oscar’s done for me in the past,” Norris said. “I think this is a little bit different but, yeah, at the same time I got told to let him pass and I did. It’s always tough when you’re fighting for a win, and a win means so much to me and also to him.”
This controversial strategy would be a thing of the past until the 2025 Italian Grand Prix, when the team told Piastri to let Norris pass him due to a slow pit stop.
Before this race, Piastri was 34 points ahead of Norris in the driver championship and he was looking to extend his lead in Monza. However, Norris qualified ahead of him in second, Piastri in third. Throughout the race, both Norris and Piastri stayed in relatively the same order, until Norris’ slow pit stop, allowing Piastri to gain a position. The team told Piastri to let Norris through, and he did so reluctantly.
“Is a slow pitstop part of racing?” Piastri asked his engineer when he was told to let Norris pass.
This move by the team was also controversial. However, they had set a precedent in Hungary that if the team were to make a mistake, causing one driver to lose a position to the other, they would let the drivers have their positions back. And although slow pitstops are a part of racing, so are poor team strategies. McLaren did not need to let Piastri pass Norris, just as they did not need to let Norris pass Piastri, because now, everytime something similar happens, they will have to do the same. They have shown that this is their team strategy, and now they have to continue it.
The McLaren drama doesn’t end there. Throughout the year, McLaren has been superior, with one of their drivers winning 12 out of 18 races so far. In Singapore, they won the Constructors’ World Championship, and Piastri and Norris have been fighting for the Drivers’ Championship throughout the season, with Piastri currently in the lead.
In the opening lap of the Singapore Grand Prix, Norris tried to pass Piastri and Redbull’s driver Max Verstappen, but ended up bumping into his teammate. Piastri was annoyed by this and didn’t think it was very teamlike.
“So, are we cool with Lando just barging me out of the way?” Piastri asked his race engineer over the radio.
His engineer told him since Norris had to avoid Verstappen, there would be no repercussions at the moment. This made Piastri even more upset.
“If he has to avoid another car by crashing into his teammate, then that’s a pretty shit job of avoiding,” he said.
However, the race continued and Norris did not face any repercussions. Norris and Piastri finished the race third and fourth respectively, and gave McLaren the points they needed to win the Contructors’ Championship. On the radio after the race, McLaren CEO Zak Brown congratulated and thanked Piastri, who then disconnected his radio. Additionally, when the team was celebrating on the podium, Piastri was seen in the back of an interview with Mercedes’ driver George Russel, the race winner.
Both McLaren racers did not finish the sprint race, a shorter race that provides less points, in the U.S. due to a collision. Piastri turned into the Kick Sauber or Nico Hulkenberg, which caused him to then crash into Norris. Norris was immediately knocked out of the race, and while Piastri tried to continue, the damage to his car was too great, and he was forced to retire.
“I tried to cut back on Lando – I mean, we were both very far from the apex and then got a hit, and he obviously sent me into Lando, so (it’s) a shame,” Piastri said after the race.
Many people are comparing this situation to when Norris hit Piastri in Singapore. Both situations were caused by driver error, but the cars were only damaged enough to force a retirement in the United States. However, the sprint race does not offer as many points as regular races.
Neither Piastri nor Norris gained any points from the sprint, keeping their overall standings the same. However, Verstappen closed the gap to Norris to 55 points. It is still mathematically possible for Verstappen to win the Drivers’ Championship, especially if the McLarens continue to get knocked out of the race.
In the actual race on Sunday, both McLarens finished the race, Norris in second and Piastri in fifth. Max Verstappen won the race, with further closed the gap in the divers’ standings. Now, Norris is 14 points away from Piastri and Verstappen is 26 points away from Norris. If it were any other driver, it would be tough to close that gap, but for Verstappen, it might just happen.
McLaren has been favoring Norris throughout the season. It has been especially apparent in the past few races, and although Piastri still has the lead in the Drivers’ standings, Norris is gaining on him. Both Piastri and Norris have been extremely consistent throughout the season, but Piastri has converted more points.
Will McLaren continue to favor Norris or will they realize they have a better chance with Piastri? Either way, if they continue to pit their drivers against each other, they will have much bigger problems to deal with than winning the Drivers’ Championship.
