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McLaren and Formula One could do with anything decisive during this title fight between Norris and Piastri getting resolved through on-track action and without resorting to the pit wall with the championship finale begins at the COTA on Friday.

Singapore Grand Prix fallout prompts internal strain

After the Marina Bay event’s doubtless extensive and stressful debriefs dealt with, McLaren is aiming for a fresh start. The British driver was likely more than aware about the historical parallels of his riposte to his aggrieved teammate at the last race weekend. In a fiercely contested title fight with the Australian, that Norris invoked a famous Senna most famous sentiments did not go unnoticed yet the occurrence that provoked his comment differed completely to those that defined Senna's iconic battles.

“Should you criticize me for just going an inside move of a big gap then you should not be in Formula One,” stated Norris regarding his first-lap move to overtake that led to their vehicles making contact.

His comment seemed to echo Senna’s “If you no longer go for a gap that exists you are no longer a racing driver” justification he provided to the racing knight following his collision with the French champion in Japan in 1990, ensuring he took the title.

Similar spirit yet distinct situations

Although the attitude is similar, the phrasing marks where parallels stop. Senna later admitted he never intended of letting Prost to defeat him through the first corner whereas Norris did try to make his pass cleanly in Singapore. Indeed, it was a perfectly valid effort which received no penalty despite the minor contact he made against his McLaren teammate during the pass. That itself was a result of him touching the car driven by Verstappen ahead of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, notably, immediately declared that Norris gaining the place seemed unjust; suggesting that the two teammates clashing was verboten by team protocols for racing and Norris ought to be told to give back the position he gained. McLaren did not do so, but it was indicative that in any cases between them, each would quickly ask the squad to step in on his behalf.

Team dynamics and impartiality under scrutiny

This is part and parcel from McLaren's commendable approach to allow their racers compete one another and to try to be as scrupulously fair. Aside from tying some torturous knots in setting precedents 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.

Most crucially to the title race, six races left, Piastri leads Norris by twenty-two points, each racer's view exists on fairness and at what point their opinion may diverge from the team's stance. Which is when their friendly rapport between the two could eventually – become a little bit more Senna-Prost.

“It will reach a point where minor points count,” said Mercedes team principal Wolff post-race. “Then calculations will begin and re-calculations and I suppose aggression will increase further. That's when it begins to become thrilling.”

Viewer desires and title consequences

For the audience, during this dual battle, getting interesting will probably be welcomed in the form of a track duel instead of a spreadsheet-based arbitration of circumstances. Not least because for F1 the other impression from these events is not particularly rousing.

To be fair, McLaren are making the correct decisions for themselves with successful results. They secured their 10th constructors’ title in Singapore (though a great achievement diminished by the controversy from their drivers' clash) and in Andrea Stella as team principal they have an ethical and principled leader who truly aims to do the right thing.

Sporting integrity versus team management

However, with racers competing for the title appealing to the team to decide matters is unedifying. Their competition ought to be determined on track. Luck and destiny will have roles, but better to let 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 ascertain whether intervention is needed and then cleared up afterwards behind closed doors.

The scrutiny will intensify with every occurrence it risks potentially making a difference which might prove decisive. Already, following the team's decision for position swaps in Italy because Norris had endured a slow pit stop and Piastri believing he was treated unfairly with the strategy call in Budapest, where Norris triumphed, the spectre of a fear about bias also looms.

Squad viewpoint and upcoming tests

No one wants to witness a championship constantly disputed over perceived that the efforts to be fair were unequal. When asked if he felt the team had acted correctly toward both racers, Piastri responded that they did, but mentioned that it was an ever-evolving approach.

“There’s been some difficult situations and we’ve spoken about a number of things,” he said after Singapore. “However finally it’s a learning process with the whole team.”

Six meetings remain. McLaren have little room for error for last-minute adjustments, thus perhaps wiser now to simply close the books and withdraw from the fray.