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The British racing team and F1 could do with anything decisive in the title fight between Lando Norris & Oscar Piastri getting resolved on the track and without reference to the pit wall as the championship finale kicks off at the COTA on Friday.

Singapore Grand Prix fallout prompts internal strain

With the Singapore Grand Prix’s doubtless extensive and tense debriefs concluded, the Woking-based squad will be hoping for a fresh start. Norris was almost certainly fully conscious about the historical parallels regarding his retort to his aggrieved teammate 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 yet the occurrence 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 should not be in Formula One,” Norris said regarding his first-lap move to pass which resulted in their vehicles making contact.

His comment 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 provided to the racing knight after he ploughed into the French champion at Suzuka back in 1990, securing him the title.

Similar spirit yet distinct situations

Although the attitude is similar, the phrasing is where the similarities end. Senna later admitted he had no intent of letting Prost to defeat him through the first corner while Norris did try to make his pass cleanly at the Marina Bay circuit. In fact, his maneuver was legitimate that went unpenalised even with the glancing blow he had with his McLaren teammate as he went through. This incident was a result of him touching the Red Bull of Max Verstappen ahead of him.

Piastri reacted furiously and, significantly, instantly stated that Norris gaining the place was “unfair”; the implication being the two teammates clashing was verboten under McLaren’s rules for racing and Norris should be instructed to return the place he had made. The team refused, yet it demonstrated that during disputes between them, both will promptly appeal the squad to intervene on his behalf.

Squad management and impartiality being examined

This comes naturally of McLaren’s laudable efforts to let their drivers race one another and to try to maintain strict fairness. Aside from creating complex dilemmas when establishing rules about what defines just or unjust – which, under these auspices, now covers bad luck, tactical calls and racing incidents such as in Singapore – there remains the issue of perception.

Of most import to the title race, with six meetings remaining, Piastri leads Norris by 22 points, each racer's view exists on fairness and when their perspectives might split with that of the McLaren pitwall. That is when their friendly rapport among them could eventually – become a little bit more Senna-Prost.

“It will reach to a situation where a few points will matter,” commented Mercedes boss Toto Wolff after Singapore. “Then calculations will begin and re-calculations and I guess the elbows are going to come out a bit more. That's when it begins to get interesting.”

Viewer desires and title consequences

For the audience, during this dual battle, getting interesting will likely be appreciated as an on-track confrontation instead of a spreadsheet-based arbitration of circumstances. Especially since for F1 the other impression from all this is not particularly rousing.

Honestly speaking, McLaren are making the correct decisions for their interests with successful results. They clinched their 10th constructors’ title in Singapore (though a great achievement overshadowed by the controversy from their drivers' clash) and in Andrea Stella as team principal they have an ethical and principled leader who genuinely wants to act correctly.

Racing purity against team management

Yet having drivers competing for the title appealing to the team to decide matters appears unsightly. Their competition ought to be determined through racing. Luck and destiny will play their part, yet preferable to allow them simply go at it and see how fortune falls, rather than the sense that each contentious incident will be pored over by the team to ascertain whether they need to intervene and subsequently resolved later in private.

The scrutiny will intensify and each time it happens it risks possibly affecting outcomes which might prove decisive. Already, after the team made their drivers swap places in Italy due to Norris experiencing a slow pit stop and Piastri feeling he was treated unfairly with the strategy call at Hungary, where Norris won, the shadow of concern about bias also emerges.

Squad viewpoint and upcoming tests

Nobody desires to see a title constantly disputed over perceived that fairness attempts were unequal. Questioned whether he believed the squad had managed to do right by both drivers, Piastri responded that they did, but mentioned it's a developing process.

“We've had several difficult situations and we’ve spoken about various aspects,” he said after Singapore. “However finally it’s a learning process for the entire squad.”

Six meetings remain. The team has minimal room for error to do their cramming, so it may be better to just close the books and withdraw from the conflict.