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The British racing team along with Formula One would benefit from any conclusive outcome in the title fight between Norris & Oscar Piastri being decided through on-track action and without resorting to team orders as the championship finale kicks off at the COTA on Friday.

Singapore Grand Prix aftermath prompts internal strain

After the Marina Bay event’s undoubtedly thorough and tense debriefs concluded, the Woking-based squad will be hoping for a fresh start. The British driver was almost certainly more than aware about the historical parallels of his riposte toward his upset colleague during the previous race weekend. In a fiercely contested championship duel with the Australian, his reference to one of Ayrton Senna’s most famous sentiments was lost on no one but the incident that provoked his comment was of an entirely different nature to those that defined Senna's iconic battles.

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

His comment seemed to echo the Brazilian legend's “Should you stop attempting an available gap that exists you are no longer a true racer” defence he gave to Sir Jackie Stewart after he ploughed into Alain Prost in Japan back in 1990, ensuring he took the title.

Similar spirit yet distinct situations

While the spirit remains comparable, the phrasing is where the similarities end. The late champion confessed he never intended of letting 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 even with the glancing blow he made against his team colleague during the pass. This incident was a result of him touching the Red Bull of Max Verstappen in front of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, notably, instantly stated that Norris's position gain was “unfair”; the implication being their collision was verboten under McLaren’s rules for racing and Norris ought to be told to give back the place he had made. The team refused, but it was indicative that in any cases between them, both will promptly appeal the squad to intervene on his behalf.

Squad management 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 just or unjust – which, under these auspices, now covers misfortune, strategy and on-track occurrences such as in Singapore – there remains the issue of perception.

Most crucially for the championship, with six meetings remaining, Piastri is ahead of 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. That is when their friendly rapport among them may – finally – turn somewhat into Senna-Prost.

“It’s going to come to a situation where a few points will matter,” said Mercedes boss Wolff post-race. “Then calculations will begin and back-calculate and I guess the elbows are going to come out a bit more. That's when it begins to become thrilling.”

Viewer desires and title consequences

For spectators, in what is a two-horse race, increased excitement will likely be appreciated in the form of an on-track confrontation instead of a spreadsheet-based arbitration of circumstances. Especially since in Formula One the other impression from all this is not particularly rousing.

To be fair, McLaren is taking the correct decisions for themselves and it has paid off. They secured their 10th constructors’ title at Marina Bay (albeit a brilliant success diminished by the fuss prompted by their drivers' clash) and with Stella as squad leader they possess a moral and upright commander who truly aims to act correctly.

Racing purity against squad control

However, with racers competing for the title appealing to the team to decide matters is unedifying. Their contest ought to be determined on track. Luck and destiny will have roles, but better to let them simply go at it and observe outcomes naturally, than the impression that each contentious incident will be pored over by the team to determine if they need to intervene and then cleared up afterwards behind closed doors.

The scrutiny will increase and each time it happens it is in danger of possibly affecting outcomes which might prove decisive. Previously, after the team made for position swaps at Monza due to Norris experiencing a delayed stop and Piastri feeling he had been hard done by with the strategy call at Hungary, where Norris triumphed, the shadow of concern of favouritism also looms.

Squad viewpoint and future challenges

No one wants to witness a championship constantly disputed because it may be considered that fairness attempts were unequal. Questioned whether he felt the team had acted correctly by both drivers, Piastri said he believed they had, but noted it's a developing process.

“There’s been some difficult situations and we’ve spoken about various aspects,” he said after Singapore. “But ultimately it’s a learning process for the entire squad.”

Six meetings remain. McLaren have little wriggle room left for last-minute adjustments, so it may be better now to simply stop analyzing and withdraw from the fray.