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The British racing team and Formula One would benefit from any conclusive outcome during this title fight between Lando Norris & Piastri being decided through on-track action and without resorting to team orders as the championship finale kicks off this weekend at COTA on Friday.

Singapore Grand Prix fallout prompts internal strain

After the Marina Bay event’s undoubtedly thorough and tense debriefs dealt with, the Woking-based squad is aiming for a fresh start. Norris was almost certainly fully conscious about the historical parallels of his riposte to his aggrieved teammate at the last race weekend. In a fiercely contested title fight against Piastri, that Norris invoked one of Ayrton Senna’s most famous sentiments was lost on no one yet the occurrence that provoked his comment was of an entirely different nature to those that defined Senna's great rivalries.

“Should you criticize me for simply attempting on the inside through an opening then you should not be in F1,” stated Norris regarding his first-lap move to pass which resulted in their vehicles making contact.

His comment appeared to paraphrase Senna’s “Should you stop attempting for a gap which is there then you cease to be a racing driver” justification he provided to the racing knight following his collision with the French champion in Japan back in 1990, securing him the championship.

Similar spirit but different circumstances

While the spirit remains comparable, the wording marks where parallels stop. The late champion confessed he had no intent of letting Prost beat him through the first corner while Norris attempted to execute a clean overtake in Singapore. In fact, his maneuver was legitimate that went unpenalised despite the minor contact he had with his McLaren teammate as he went through. This incident stemmed from him clipping the car of Max Verstappen in front of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, notably, immediately declared that Norris's position gain seemed unjust; the implication being their collision was forbidden by team protocols of engagement and Norris should be instructed to give back the place he had made. McLaren did not do so, yet it demonstrated that during disputes of contention, both will promptly appeal to the team to intervene on his behalf.

Squad management and fairness under scrutiny

This is part and parcel of McLaren’s laudable efforts to let their drivers race one another and strive to maintain strict fairness. Quite apart from creating complex dilemmas when establishing rules about what defines fair or unfair – under these conditions, now includes bad luck, tactical calls and racing incidents like in Marina Bay – there is the question of perception.

Of most import to the title race, with six meetings remaining, 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. That is when the amicable relationship among them may – finally – turn somewhat into Senna-Prost.

“It’s going to come a point where minor points count,” commented Mercedes boss Wolff after Singapore. “Then they’ll start to calculate and re-calculations and I suppose the elbows are going to come out further. That’s when it starts to become thrilling.”

Viewer desires and title consequences

For the audience, during this dual battle, increased excitement will likely be appreciated as an on-track confrontation instead of a data-driven decision regarding incidents. Especially since in Formula One the other impression from all this is not particularly rousing.

To be fair, McLaren is taking the correct decisions for their interests with successful results. They clinched their tenth team championship at Marina Bay (albeit a brilliant success overshadowed by the controversy from the Norris-Piastri moment) and with Stella as team principal they have an ethical and principled leader who truly aims to act correctly.

Racing purity against team management

Yet having drivers competing for the title appealing to the team to decide matters is unedifying. Their contest should be decided on track. Chance and fate will play their part, yet preferable to allow them just battle freely and see how fortune falls, rather than the sense that each contentious incident will be analyzed intensely by the squad to ascertain whether they need to intervene and subsequently resolved later in private.

The examination will increase with every occurrence it is in danger of possibly affecting outcomes that could be critical. Previously, after the team made their drivers swap places at Monza because Norris had endured a slow pit stop and Piastri feeling he had been hard done by regarding tactics in Budapest, where Norris won, the spectre of a fear of favouritism also looms.

Squad viewpoint and upcoming tests

No one wants to witness a championship endlessly debated over perceived that fairness attempts had not been balanced. When asked if he believed the squad had acted correctly toward both racers, Piastri said he believed they had, but mentioned that it was an ever-evolving approach.

“We've had several difficult situations and we’ve spoken about a number of things,” he said after Singapore. “However finally it's educational with the whole team.”

Six races stay. McLaren have little wriggle room left for last-minute adjustments, so it may be better to just close the books and step back from the conflict.