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McLaren along with F1 could do with anything decisive during this title fight between Norris & Oscar Piastri being decided on the track and without resorting to team orders as the title run-in kicks off this weekend at Circuit of the Americas on Friday.

Marina Bay race fallout leads to internal strain

After the Marina Bay event’s undoubtedly thorough and stressful post-race analyses dealt with, McLaren will be hoping for a reset. Norris was almost certainly fully conscious of the historical context of his riposte to his aggrieved teammate at the last grand prix weekend. During an intense championship duel against Piastri, that Norris invoked a famous Senna most famous sentiments did not go unnoticed yet the occurrence that provoked his comment was of an entirely different nature from incidents characterizing Senna's great rivalries.

“If you fault me for just going on the inside of a big gap then you don't belong in Formula One,” stated Norris of his opening-lap attempt to overtake that led to the cars colliding.

His comment seemed to echo Senna’s “Should you stop attempting an available gap which is there then you cease to be a true racer” defence he gave to Sir Jackie Stewart following his collision with Alain Prost at Suzuka back in 1990, ensuring he took the title.

Similar spirit but different circumstances

Although the attitude is similar, the wording is where the similarities end. The late champion confessed he had no intent of letting Prost to defeat him at turn one whereas Norris did try to execute a clean overtake at the Marina Bay circuit. Indeed, it was a perfectly valid effort that went unpenalised despite the minor contact he had with his team colleague as he went through. This incident stemmed from him touching the car of Max Verstappen in front of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, notably, immediately declared that Norris's position gain seemed unjust; suggesting that the two teammates clashing was verboten under McLaren’s rules for racing and Norris should be instructed to give back the position he gained. McLaren did not do so, yet it demonstrated that during disputes of contention, both will promptly appeal the squad to intervene in their favor.

Squad management and impartiality under scrutiny

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 tying some torturous knots in setting precedents over what constitutes fair or unfair – under these conditions, now includes bad luck, strategy and racing incidents such as in Singapore – there is the question of perception.

Of most import to the title race, with six meetings remaining, 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 among them could eventually – turn somewhat into the iconic rivalry.

“It will reach to a situation where minor points count,” commented Mercedes boss Toto Wolff post-race. “Then they’ll start to calculate and back-calculate and I guess the elbows are going to come out further. That’s when it starts to become thrilling.”

Audience expectations and championship implications

For spectators, during this dual battle, getting interesting will probably be welcomed as a track duel instead of a data-driven decision of circumstances. Especially since for F1 the other impression from all this is not particularly rousing.

To be fair, McLaren is taking the correct decisions for their interests and it has paid off. They clinched 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 have an ethical and upright commander who truly aims to act correctly.

Racing purity against team management

Yet having drivers in a championship fight appealing to the team to decide matters is unedifying. Their contest ought to be determined on track. Chance and fate will have roles, yet preferable to allow them just battle freely and see how fortune falls, rather than the sense that every disputed moment will be analyzed intensely by the squad to determine if they need to intervene and then cleared up afterwards behind closed doors.

The examination will increase with every occurrence it is in danger of potentially making a difference that could be critical. Already, after the team made for position swaps in Italy because Norris had endured a delayed stop and Piastri believing he had been hard done by with the strategy call in Budapest, where Norris triumphed, the shadow of concern about bias also looms.

Team perspective and upcoming tests

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 believed the squad had managed to do right toward both racers, Piastri said that they did, but mentioned that it was an ever-evolving approach.

“We've had several challenging moments and we discussed various aspects,” he stated after Singapore. “However finally 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.