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The British racing team and F1 would benefit from any conclusive outcome in the championship battle between Lando Norris and Piastri getting resolved on the track and without resorting to the pit wall with the championship finale begins at the COTA on Friday.

Singapore Grand Prix fallout leads to team tensions

After the Singapore Grand Prix’s undoubtedly thorough and tense post-race analyses concluded, McLaren is aiming for a reset. 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. During an intense title fight against Piastri, that Norris invoked a famous Senna well-known quotes was lost on no one but the incident that provoked his comment differed completely to those that defined the Brazilian’s iconic battles.

“If you fault me for just going an inside move through an opening then you don't belong in Formula One,” Norris said regarding his first-lap move to pass that led to the cars colliding.

The remark appeared to paraphrase the Brazilian legend's “If you no longer go an available gap which is there then you cease to be a true racer” defence he gave to the racing knight following his collision with the French champion at Suzuka in 1990, securing him the title.

Similar spirit but different circumstances

While the spirit remains comparable, the phrasing marks where parallels stop. Senna later admitted he had no intent of letting Prost to defeat him through the first corner whereas Norris did try to make his pass cleanly in Singapore. In fact, his maneuver was legitimate which received no penalty even with the glancing blow he made against his McLaren teammate as he went through. That itself was a result of him clipping the Red Bull driven by Verstappen in front of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, significantly, instantly stated that Norris gaining the place seemed unjust; suggesting that 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. The team refused, yet it demonstrated that during disputes of contention, each would quickly ask the squad to intervene in their favor.

Team dynamics and impartiality under scrutiny

This comes naturally from McLaren's commendable approach to allow their racers compete against each other and strive to maintain strict fairness. Quite apart from creating complex dilemmas in setting precedents over what constitutes just or unjust – which, under these auspices, now covers bad luck, strategy and racing incidents such as in Singapore – there is the question of perception.

Of most import to the title race, six races left, Piastri leads Norris by twenty-two points, there is what each driver perceives as fair and at what point their opinion may diverge with that of the McLaren pitwall. That is when the amicable relationship among them may – finally – turn somewhat into Senna-Prost.

“It’s going to come a point where minor points count,” said Mercedes team principal Wolff post-race. “Then calculations will begin and back-calculate and I suppose the elbows are going to come out a bit more. That's when it begins 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 spreadsheet-based arbitration of circumstances. Especially since for F1 the other impression from these events isn't very inspiring.

Honestly speaking, McLaren is taking appropriate choices for themselves with successful results. They secured their tenth team championship at Marina Bay (though a great achievement diminished by the fuss prompted by 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 squad control

Yet having drivers competing for the title looking to the pitwall for resolutions is unedifying. Their contest should be decided on track. Luck and destiny will have roles, yet preferable to allow them simply go at it and see how fortune falls, than the impression that each contentious incident will be analyzed intensely by the squad to determine if they need to intervene and then cleared up later in private.

The examination will increase and each time it happens it is in danger of possibly affecting outcomes which might prove decisive. Previously, following the team's decision for position swaps at Monza because Norris had endured a slow pit stop and Piastri believing he was treated unfairly regarding tactics at Hungary, where Norris won, the spectre of a fear about bias also looms.

Squad viewpoint and upcoming tests

No one wants to see a title constantly disputed because it may be considered that the efforts to be fair had not been balanced. Questioned whether 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 a number of things,” he stated post-race. “But ultimately it’s a learning process with the whole team.”

Six meetings remain. McLaren have little room for error to do their cramming, so it may be better to just close the books and step back from the conflict.