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McLaren and Formula One could do with anything decisive during this title fight involving Norris & Oscar Piastri being decided on the track and without resorting to team orders as the title run-in begins at the Circuit of the Americas on Friday.

Marina Bay race aftermath leads to team tensions

After the Marina Bay event’s undoubtedly thorough and stressful debriefs dealt with, McLaren is aiming for a fresh start. The British driver was almost certainly fully conscious of the historical context regarding his retort to his aggrieved teammate during the previous grand prix weekend. During an intense championship duel against Piastri, that Norris invoked 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 the Brazilian’s great rivalries.

“Should you criticize me for simply attempting on the inside through an opening then you don't belong in Formula One,” stated Norris of his opening-lap attempt to pass that led to their vehicles making contact.

The remark seemed to echo the Brazilian legend's “Should you stop attempting for a gap that exists you are no longer a true racer” defence he provided to the racing knight after he ploughed into the French champion in Japan back in 1990, securing him the title.

Parallel mindset yet distinct situations

While the spirit remains comparable, the phrasing is where the similarities end. Senna later admitted he never intended to allow Prost to defeat him at turn one while Norris did try to execute a clean overtake at the Marina Bay circuit. Indeed, his maneuver was legitimate that went unpenalised even with the glancing blow he made against his team colleague as he went through. This incident was a result of him touching the Red Bull driven by Verstappen in front of him.

Piastri reacted furiously and, significantly, immediately declared that Norris's position gain seemed unjust; the implication being the two teammates clashing was verboten by team protocols of engagement and Norris should be instructed to return the place he had made. The team refused, yet it demonstrated that in any cases of contention, both will promptly appeal the squad to step in on his behalf.

Team dynamics and impartiality being examined

This comes naturally from McLaren's commendable approach to let their drivers race against each other and to try 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, strategy and on-track occurrences such as in Singapore – there is the question regarding opinions.

Most crucially for the championship, six races left, Piastri is ahead of Norris by 22 points, each racer's view exists on fairness and when their perspectives might split from the team's stance. That is when the amicable relationship among them could eventually – become a little bit more Senna-Prost.

“It’s going to come to a situation where minor points count,” said Mercedes team principal Wolff post-race. “Then calculations will begin and re-calculations and I guess the elbows are going to come out further. That's when it begins to get interesting.”

Audience expectations and title consequences

For the audience, in what is a two-horse race, getting interesting will likely be appreciated in the form of an on-track confrontation rather than a spreadsheet-based arbitration regarding incidents. Not least because for F1 the alternative perception from these events is not particularly rousing.

To be fair, McLaren are making the correct decisions for their interests with successful results. They clinched their tenth team championship in Singapore (though a great achievement overshadowed by the controversy from the Norris-Piastri moment) and in Andrea Stella as team principal they possess a moral and principled leader who truly aims to act correctly.

Racing purity versus squad control

Yet having drivers competing for the title looking to the pitwall to decide matters is unedifying. Their contest should be decided through racing. Luck and destiny will play their part, but better to let them simply go at it and observe outcomes naturally, rather than the sense that each contentious incident will be pored over by the squad to ascertain whether they need to intervene and subsequently resolved later in private.

The scrutiny will increase with every occurrence it risks possibly affecting outcomes which might prove decisive. Previously, after the team made their drivers swap places in Italy due to Norris experiencing a delayed stop and Piastri believing he had been hard done by regarding tactics in Budapest, where Norris triumphed, the spectre of a fear of favouritism also looms.

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. When asked if he felt the team had managed to do right by both drivers, Piastri said that they did, but noted it's a developing process.

“We've had several challenging moments and we’ve spoken about various aspects,” he stated after Singapore. “But ultimately it's educational with the whole team.”

Six meetings remain. McLaren have little wriggle room left to do their cramming, so it may be better now to simply close the books and withdraw from the fray.