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The British racing team along with F1 would benefit from anything decisive during this championship battle between Norris & Oscar Piastri being decided through on-track action rather than without reference to the pit wall with the championship finale kicks off this weekend at Circuit of the Americas starting Friday.

Singapore Grand Prix fallout prompts team tensions

With the Marina Bay event’s doubtless extensive and stressful debriefs concluded, the Woking-based squad will be hoping for a reset. The British driver was likely fully conscious of the historical context of his riposte toward his upset colleague during the previous grand prix weekend. In a fiercely contested championship duel with the Australian, his reference to a famous Senna well-known quotes did not go unnoticed yet the occurrence which triggered his statement was of an entirely different nature from incidents characterizing the Brazilian’s iconic battles.

“Should you criticize me for just going on the inside through an opening then you should not be in Formula One,” stated Norris regarding his first-lap move to pass which resulted in the cars colliding.

His comment appeared to paraphrase the Brazilian legend's “Should you stop attempting for a gap which is there you are no longer a racing driver” justification he provided to the racing knight after he ploughed into the French champion at Suzuka back in 1990, ensuring he took the championship.

Similar spirit yet distinct situations

Although the attitude remains comparable, the wording marks where parallels stop. The late champion confessed he never intended to allow Prost to defeat him through the first corner while Norris did try to make his pass cleanly in Singapore. Indeed, it was a perfectly valid effort which received no penalty despite the minor contact he had with his McLaren teammate during the pass. That itself was a result of him clipping the car driven by Verstappen ahead of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, notably, instantly stated that Norris gaining the place seemed unjust; the implication being their collision was forbidden under McLaren’s rules of engagement and Norris should be instructed to give back the place he had made. McLaren did not do so, yet it demonstrated that in any cases between them, each would quickly ask to the team 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 strive to maintain strict fairness. Quite apart from tying some torturous knots when establishing rules about what defines fair or unfair – under these conditions, now covers misfortune, strategy and racing incidents like in Marina Bay – there remains the issue of perception.

Of most import for the championship, with six meetings remaining, 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. That is when their friendly rapport between the two could eventually – become a little bit more Senna-Prost.

“It’s going to come a point where a few points will matter,” commented Mercedes boss Toto Wolff after Singapore. “Then calculations will begin and re-calculations and I guess aggression will increase further. That's when it begins to become thrilling.”

Audience expectations and championship implications

For spectators, in what is a two-horse race, getting interesting will likely be appreciated in the form of an on-track confrontation instead of a spreadsheet-based arbitration regarding incidents. Especially since for F1 the alternative perception from these events is not particularly rousing.

To be fair, McLaren are making the correct decisions for themselves and it has paid off. They secured their 10th constructors’ title at Marina Bay (albeit a brilliant success diminished by the fuss prompted by their drivers' clash) and with Stella as team principal they possess a moral and principled leader who truly aims to do the right thing.

Racing purity against team management

However, with racers in a championship fight appealing to the team to decide matters appears unsightly. Their contest should be decided on track. Luck and destiny will play their part, yet preferable to allow them just battle freely and see how fortune falls, than the impression that every disputed moment will be analyzed intensely by the squad to determine if they need to intervene and subsequently resolved afterwards behind closed doors.

The examination will increase with every occurrence it risks possibly affecting outcomes which might prove decisive. Previously, following the team's decision 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 at Hungary, where Norris won, the shadow of concern about bias also looms.

Team perspective and upcoming tests

No one wants to witness a championship endlessly debated because it may be considered that the efforts to be fair had not been balanced. When asked if he felt the team had managed to do right toward both racers, Piastri responded he believed they had, but noted it's a developing process.

“There’s been some difficult situations and we discussed various aspects,” he said after Singapore. “But ultimately it's educational for the entire squad.”

Six races stay. McLaren have little room for error to do their cramming, so it may be better now to simply close the books and step back from the fray.