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The British racing team and F1 would benefit from any conclusive outcome in the championship battle involving Norris and Piastri getting resolved on the track and without reference to team orders as the championship finale begins this weekend at COTA on Friday.

Marina Bay race aftermath prompts team tensions

With the Marina Bay event’s undoubtedly thorough and stressful debriefs concluded, McLaren is aiming for a fresh start. The British driver was almost certainly more than aware of the historical context of his riposte to his aggrieved teammate during the previous race weekend. During an intense championship duel with the Australian, his reference to one of Ayrton Senna’s well-known quotes did not go unnoticed but the incident which triggered his statement differed completely to those that defined Senna's iconic battles.

“If you fault me for just going on the inside through an opening then you should not be in Formula One,” stated Norris regarding his first-lap move to pass which resulted in their vehicles making contact.

His comment appeared to paraphrase Senna’s “If you no longer go an available gap which is there you are no longer a true racer” defence he provided to Sir Jackie Stewart following his collision with the French champion in Japan back in 1990, securing him the championship.

Parallel mindset yet distinct situations

Although the attitude is similar, the wording marks where parallels stop. The late champion confessed he had no intent of letting Prost beat him through the first corner whereas Norris did try to execute a clean overtake at the Marina Bay circuit. In fact, his maneuver was legitimate that went unpenalised despite the minor contact he had with his team colleague during the pass. That itself stemmed from him clipping the car of Max Verstappen ahead of him.

Piastri reacted furiously and, notably, immediately declared that Norris's position gain seemed unjust; suggesting that their collision was verboten under McLaren’s rules for racing and Norris should be instructed to return the place he had made. McLaren did not do so, yet it demonstrated that in any cases between them, each would quickly ask to the team to intervene on his behalf.

Team dynamics and impartiality being examined

This is part and parcel from McLaren's commendable approach to let their drivers race one another and to try to be as scrupulously fair. Quite apart from creating complex dilemmas when establishing rules about what defines just or unjust – which, under these auspices, now includes misfortune, tactical calls and racing incidents like in Marina Bay – there remains the issue of perception.

Most crucially for the championship, six races left, Piastri leads Norris by twenty-two points, there is what each driver perceives 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 a few points will matter,” said Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff after Singapore. “Then calculations will begin and back-calculate and I guess aggression will increase further. That's when it begins to become thrilling.”

Viewer desires and title consequences

For spectators, in what is a two-horse race, getting interesting will likely be appreciated in the form of a track duel instead of a data-driven decision regarding incidents. Especially since for F1 the other impression from all this isn't very inspiring.

To be fair, McLaren are making appropriate choices for themselves with successful results. They secured their 10th constructors’ title at Marina Bay (though a great achievement overshadowed by the controversy from their drivers' clash) and with Stella as team principal they have an ethical and principled leader who genuinely wants to do the right thing.

Sporting integrity versus team management

Yet having drivers in a championship fight looking to the pitwall to decide matters is unedifying. Their contest ought to be determined through racing. Luck and destiny will have roles, but better to let them just battle freely and observe outcomes naturally, rather than the sense that every disputed moment will be analyzed intensely by the team to ascertain whether intervention is needed and then cleared up afterwards behind closed doors.

The examination will increase with every occurrence it risks possibly affecting outcomes that could be critical. Previously, 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 spectre of a fear about bias also emerges.

Team perspective and future challenges

No one wants to see a title endlessly debated because it may be considered that the efforts to be fair were unequal. When asked if he believed the squad had acted correctly by both drivers, Piastri responded he believed they had, but mentioned that it was an ever-evolving approach.

“We've had several difficult situations and we’ve spoken about various aspects,” he stated after Singapore. “But ultimately it’s a learning process for the entire squad.”

Six meetings remain. The team has minimal wriggle room left for last-minute adjustments, so it may be better to just close the books and withdraw from the conflict.