Norris as Ayrton Senna versus Piastri likened to Prost? No, but McLaren needs to pray championship is settled on track

The British racing team and Formula One would benefit from anything decisive in the title fight involving Norris and Piastri being decided on the track and without reference to the pit wall with the championship finale kicks off at the COTA starting Friday.

Marina Bay race fallout prompts internal strain

After the Singapore Grand Prix’s doubtless extensive and stressful debriefs concluded, the Woking-based squad is aiming for a reset. The British driver was almost certainly more than aware of the historical context of his riposte toward his upset colleague during the previous race weekend. During an intense title fight with the Australian, that Norris invoked a famous Senna well-known quotes was lost on no one yet the occurrence that provoked his comment was of an entirely different nature from incidents characterizing Senna's iconic battles.

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

The remark seemed to echo the Brazilian legend's “If you no longer go for a gap which is there you are no longer a true racer” defence he gave to the racing knight after he ploughed into the French champion in Japan in 1990, ensuring he took the championship.

Parallel mindset yet distinct situations

While the spirit is similar, the phrasing marks where parallels stop. The late champion confessed he never intended to allow Prost to defeat him at turn one whereas Norris did try to make his pass cleanly at the Marina Bay circuit. In fact, 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 Red Bull of Max Verstappen ahead of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, significantly, immediately declared that Norris's position gain was “unfair”; suggesting that their collision was verboten by team protocols of engagement and Norris should be instructed to give back the position he gained. The team refused, but it was indicative that during disputes of contention, both will promptly appeal to the team to intervene in their favor.

Squad management and impartiality being examined

This comes naturally from McLaren's commendable approach to let their drivers race against each other and strive to be as scrupulously fair. Aside from tying some torturous knots in setting precedents about what defines fair or unfair – under these conditions, now includes misfortune, strategy and racing incidents such as in Singapore – there remains the issue of perception.

Of most import to the title race, six races left, Piastri leads Norris by twenty-two points, there is what each driver perceives on fairness and when their opinion may diverge 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 a point where a few points will matter,” commented Mercedes team principal Wolff post-race. “Then calculations will begin and re-calculations and I suppose the elbows are going to come out further. That’s when it starts to get interesting.”

Viewer desires and championship implications

For spectators, during this dual battle, getting interesting will likely be appreciated as a track duel rather than a data-driven decision of circumstances. Not least because for F1 the alternative perception from all this is not particularly rousing.

Honestly speaking, McLaren is taking the correct decisions for their interests with successful results. They secured their 10th constructors’ title in Singapore (albeit a brilliant success diminished by the controversy from their drivers' clash) and with Stella as squad leader they possess a moral and principled leader who genuinely wants to do the right thing.

Sporting integrity against squad control

Yet having drivers competing for the title appealing to the team for resolutions 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 observe outcomes naturally, than the impression that each contentious incident will be pored over by the squad to ascertain whether intervention is needed and subsequently resolved afterwards behind closed doors.

The examination will intensify with every occurrence it risks possibly affecting outcomes which might prove decisive. Already, following the team's decision for position swaps in Italy because Norris had endured a delayed stop and Piastri believing he had been hard done by regarding tactics in Budapest, where Norris won, the spectre of a fear about bias also emerges.

Squad viewpoint and future challenges

No one wants to witness a championship constantly disputed because it may be considered that the efforts to be fair had not been balanced. Questioned whether he believed the squad had acted correctly 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 a number of things,” he stated after Singapore. “However finally it's educational with the whole team.”

Six meetings remain. McLaren have little room for error to do their cramming, so it may be better to just close the books and step back from the fray.