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McLaren and Formula One could do with any conclusive outcome during this title fight involving Norris & Piastri being decided through on-track action rather than without reference to the pit wall as the title run-in kicks off at the COTA on Friday.

Singapore Grand Prix aftermath prompts internal strain

After the Marina Bay event’s undoubtedly thorough and stressful debriefs dealt with, McLaren is aiming for a fresh start. Norris was likely fully conscious of the historical context regarding his retort to his aggrieved teammate during the previous grand prix weekend. In a fiercely contested championship duel with the Australian, his reference to a famous Senna well-known quotes was lost on no one but the incident which triggered his statement differed completely to those that defined Senna's great rivalries.

“Should you criticize me for just going an inside move through an opening then you don't belong in F1,” Norris said of his opening-lap attempt to overtake that led to their vehicles making contact.

His comment seemed to echo the Brazilian legend's “Should you stop attempting for a gap which is there then you cease to be a true racer” justification he provided to the racing knight following his collision with the French champion at Suzuka back in 1990, securing him the title.

Parallel mindset but different circumstances

While the spirit is similar, the wording is where the similarities end. Senna later admitted he never intended to allow Prost beat him through the first corner whereas Norris did try to execute a clean overtake in Singapore. Indeed, it was a perfectly valid effort which received no penalty even with the glancing blow he made against his team colleague during the pass. That itself was a result of him touching the Red Bull of Max Verstappen ahead of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, notably, instantly stated that Norris gaining the place seemed unjust; suggesting that their collision was verboten under McLaren’s rules for racing and Norris ought to be told to give back 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 step in on his behalf.

Team dynamics and fairness being examined

This comes naturally of McLaren’s laudable efforts to allow their racers compete one another and strive to maintain strict fairness. Quite apart from tying some torturous knots when establishing rules over what constitutes just or unjust – which, under these auspices, now includes misfortune, tactical calls and on-track occurrences such as in Singapore – there is the question regarding opinions.

Most crucially for the championship, six races left, Piastri leads Norris by 22 points, there is what each driver perceives as fair and at what point their perspectives might split with that of the McLaren pitwall. Which is when their friendly rapport among them may – finally – become a little bit more Senna-Prost.

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

Viewer desires and championship implications

For spectators, in what is a two-horse race, getting interesting will likely be appreciated as an on-track confrontation instead of a spreadsheet-based arbitration regarding incidents. Not least because in Formula One the other impression from all this isn't very inspiring.

Honestly speaking, McLaren is taking appropriate choices for themselves with successful results. They secured their tenth team championship at Marina Bay (albeit a brilliant success diminished by the controversy from the Norris-Piastri moment) and with Stella as team principal they have an ethical and upright commander who truly aims to do the right thing.

Sporting integrity against squad control

However, with racers in a championship fight looking to the pitwall for resolutions is unedifying. Their contest ought to be determined through racing. Luck and destiny will play their part, but better to let them simply go at it and see how fortune falls, rather than the sense that every disputed moment will be analyzed intensely by the squad to determine if they need to intervene and subsequently resolved later in private.

The scrutiny will increase and each time it happens it risks possibly affecting outcomes which might prove decisive. Already, after the team made for position swaps in Italy because Norris had endured a delayed stop and Piastri believing he had been hard done by with the strategy call in Budapest, where Norris triumphed, the spectre of a fear of favouritism also emerges.

Team perspective and future challenges

Nobody desires to see a title endlessly debated over perceived that the efforts to be fair had not been balanced. Questioned whether he believed the squad had managed to do right toward both racers, Piastri said that they did, but mentioned it's a developing process.

“There’s been some difficult situations and we’ve spoken about various aspects,” he said post-race. “However finally 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 conflict.