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McLaren and F1 could do with any conclusive outcome during this championship battle between Norris & Piastri being decided through on-track action and without resorting to the pit wall with the title run-in kicks off at the COTA on Friday.

Singapore Grand Prix fallout leads to 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 almost certainly more than aware of the historical context of his riposte toward his upset colleague during the previous race weekend. In a fiercely contested championship duel against Piastri, his reference to a famous Senna 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 Senna's great rivalries.

“Should you criticize me for simply attempting an inside move through an opening then you should not be in F1,” stated Norris regarding his first-lap move 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 provided to the racing knight following his collision with the French champion at Suzuka in 1990, securing him the championship.

Parallel mindset but different circumstances

Although the attitude is similar, the phrasing marks where parallels stop. Senna later admitted he had no intent to allow Prost beat him at turn one while Norris did try to execute a clean overtake in Singapore. Indeed, his maneuver was legitimate which received no penalty even with the glancing blow he made against his team colleague during the pass. This incident was a result of him clipping the car of Max Verstappen in front of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, notably, instantly stated that Norris gaining the place was “unfair”; the implication being the two teammates clashing was verboten under McLaren’s rules for racing and Norris ought to be told to give back the place he had made. McLaren did not do so, yet it demonstrated that during disputes between them, both will promptly appeal the squad to intervene on his behalf.

Squad management and impartiality being examined

This comes naturally of McLaren’s laudable efforts to allow their racers compete one another and to try to maintain strict fairness. Quite apart from tying some torturous knots when establishing rules over what constitutes just or unjust – under these conditions, now covers misfortune, tactical calls and on-track occurrences like in Marina Bay – there is the question of perception.

Of most import to the title race, six races left, Piastri leads Norris by 22 points, each racer's view exists on fairness and at what point 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’s going to come a point where a few points will matter,” said Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff post-race. “Then they’ll start to calculate and back-calculate and I suppose the elbows are going to come out a bit more. That’s when it starts to get interesting.”

Audience expectations and title consequences

For the audience, during this dual battle, increased excitement will likely be appreciated in the form of an on-track confrontation instead of a spreadsheet-based arbitration regarding incidents. Not least because for F1 the alternative perception from all this isn't very inspiring.

To be fair, McLaren are making the correct decisions for themselves and it has paid off. They clinched their 10th constructors’ title in Singapore (though a great achievement diminished by the controversy from their drivers' clash) and with Stella as squad leader they have an ethical and upright commander who genuinely wants to do the right thing.

Racing purity against team management

Yet having drivers in a championship fight looking to the pitwall to decide matters appears unsightly. Their competition ought to be determined through racing. Luck and destiny will have roles, yet preferable to allow them simply go at it and see how fortune falls, than the impression that every disputed moment will be pored over by the squad to determine if they need to intervene and subsequently resolved later in private.

The examination will increase and each time it happens it is in danger of possibly affecting outcomes that could be critical. Previously, following the team's decision for position swaps at Monza due to Norris experiencing a slow pit stop and Piastri feeling he was treated unfairly regarding tactics in Budapest, where Norris triumphed, the spectre of a fear of favouritism also looms.

Squad viewpoint and upcoming tests

Nobody desires to witness a championship endlessly debated because it may be considered that the efforts to be fair were unequal. Questioned whether he felt the team had acted correctly toward both racers, Piastri said he believed they had, but mentioned it's a developing process.

“We've had several challenging moments and we discussed a number of things,” he said after Singapore. “However finally it’s a learning process with the whole team.”

Six meetings remain. The team has minimal wriggle room left to do their cramming, so it may be better now to simply close the books and step back from the fray.