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McLaren along with F1 would benefit from anything decisive during this championship battle involving Norris & Piastri getting resolved on the track rather than without reference to the pit wall with the title run-in kicks off this weekend at Circuit of the Americas starting Friday.

Marina Bay race aftermath prompts internal strain

After the Singapore Grand Prix’s doubtless extensive and tense post-race analyses concluded, McLaren will be hoping for a reset. Norris was likely fully conscious about the historical parallels regarding his retort toward his upset colleague during the previous grand prix weekend. In a fiercely contested title fight with the Australian, his reference to a famous Senna well-known quotes was lost on no one but the incident that provoked his comment differed completely from incidents characterizing the Brazilian’s great rivalries.

“Should you criticize me for just going on the inside through an opening then you don't belong in F1,” Norris said regarding his first-lap move to overtake which resulted in the cars colliding.

His comment appeared to paraphrase the Brazilian legend's “If you no longer go for a gap which is there you are no longer a racing driver” justification he gave to Sir Jackie Stewart following his collision with the French champion at Suzuka back in 1990, securing him the title.

Similar spirit but different circumstances

Although the attitude is similar, the phrasing marks where parallels stop. Senna later admitted he had no intent of letting Prost to defeat him through the first corner whereas Norris attempted to make his pass cleanly at the Marina Bay circuit. Indeed, his maneuver was legitimate which received no penalty despite the minor contact he made against his McLaren teammate during the pass. That itself stemmed from him touching the car of Max Verstappen in front of him.

Piastri reacted furiously and, significantly, immediately declared that Norris's position gain was “unfair”; the implication being their collision was forbidden by team protocols of engagement and Norris ought to be told to return the place he had made. McLaren did not do so, but it was indicative that during disputes between them, each would quickly ask to the team to step in on his behalf.

Squad management and fairness being examined

This comes naturally from McLaren's commendable approach to allow their racers compete one another and strive to be as scrupulously fair. Quite apart from tying some torturous knots when establishing rules about what defines just or unjust – which, under these auspices, now covers bad luck, strategy and on-track occurrences like in Marina Bay – there remains the issue regarding opinions.

Of most import 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 opinion may diverge from the team's stance. Which is when the amicable relationship between the two could eventually – become a little bit more the iconic rivalry.

“It will reach to a situation where minor points count,” said Mercedes boss Toto Wolff after Singapore. “Then they’ll start to calculate and back-calculate and I guess aggression will increase a bit more. That’s when it starts to become thrilling.”

Viewer desires and title consequences

For spectators, during this dual battle, getting interesting will probably be welcomed in the form of an on-track confrontation instead of a data-driven decision regarding incidents. Not least because for F1 the alternative perception from these events isn't very inspiring.

Honestly speaking, McLaren are making appropriate choices for themselves and it has paid off. They clinched their 10th constructors’ title at Marina Bay (albeit a brilliant success overshadowed by the controversy from the Norris-Piastri moment) and in Andrea Stella as squad leader they have an ethical and principled leader who truly aims to do the right thing.

Racing purity versus team management

However, with racers in a championship fight looking to the pitwall for resolutions appears unsightly. Their competition should be decided through racing. Luck and destiny 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 determine if they need to intervene and subsequently resolved afterwards behind closed doors.

The scrutiny will increase with every occurrence it risks possibly affecting outcomes which might prove decisive. Previously, following the team's decision for position swaps in Italy because Norris had endured a delayed stop and Piastri feeling he had been hard done by with the strategy call in Budapest, where Norris triumphed, the shadow of concern of favouritism also emerges.

Team perspective and future challenges

Nobody desires to see a title constantly disputed because it may be considered that fairness attempts were unequal. When asked if he believed the squad had acted correctly by both drivers, Piastri said that they did, but mentioned that it was an ever-evolving approach.

“We've had several difficult situations and we’ve spoken about various aspects,” he said after Singapore. “But ultimately it’s a learning process with the whole team.”

Six races stay. The team has minimal wriggle room left to do their cramming, thus perhaps wiser to just close the books and withdraw from the conflict.