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The British racing team along with Formula One could do with anything decisive during this championship battle between Lando Norris & Piastri getting resolved through on-track action and without reference to team orders with the title run-in kicks off this weekend at Circuit of the Americas starting Friday.

Marina Bay race aftermath leads to internal strain

With the Marina Bay event’s undoubtedly thorough and stressful post-race analyses dealt with, McLaren will be hoping for a reset. The British driver was almost certainly fully conscious about the historical parallels regarding his retort to his aggrieved teammate during the previous grand prix weekend. In a fiercely contested championship duel against Piastri, his reference to one of Ayrton Senna’s most famous sentiments did not go unnoticed but the incident which triggered his statement differed completely from incidents characterizing the Brazilian’s iconic battles.

“If you fault me for just going an inside move of a big gap then you don't belong in F1,” Norris said of his opening-lap attempt to overtake which resulted in their vehicles making contact.

The remark appeared to paraphrase the Brazilian legend's “Should you stop attempting an available gap which is there you are no longer a racing driver” justification he provided to Sir Jackie Stewart after he ploughed into Alain Prost at Suzuka back in 1990, ensuring he took the title.

Similar spirit but different circumstances

While the spirit is similar, the wording is where the similarities end. Senna later admitted he never intended to allow Prost beat him through the first corner while Norris attempted to execute a clean overtake in Singapore. Indeed, it was a perfectly valid effort which received no penalty even with the glancing blow he had with his team colleague as he went through. This incident stemmed from him touching 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 their collision was verboten under McLaren’s rules of engagement and Norris ought to be told to return the place he had made. The team refused, but it was indicative that during disputes between them, both will promptly appeal to the team to intervene on his behalf.

Squad management and fairness under scrutiny

This is part and parcel from McLaren's commendable approach to let their drivers race one another and strive to maintain strict fairness. Quite apart from tying some torturous knots in setting precedents over what constitutes just or unjust – under these conditions, now includes bad luck, strategy and on-track occurrences like in Marina Bay – there is the question regarding opinions.

Of most import to the title race, with six meetings remaining, Piastri leads Norris by 22 points, each racer's view exists as fair and at what point their opinion may diverge from the team's stance. Which is when the amicable relationship between the two could eventually – turn somewhat into the iconic rivalry.

“It’s going to come a point where a few points will matter,” said Mercedes team principal Wolff post-race. “Then calculations will begin and back-calculate and I guess the elbows are going to come out further. That’s when it starts to get interesting.”

Viewer desires and championship implications

For spectators, during this dual battle, increased excitement will likely be appreciated as an on-track confrontation instead of a spreadsheet-based arbitration regarding incidents. Not least because in Formula One the alternative perception from these events is not particularly rousing.

Honestly speaking, McLaren is taking the correct decisions for their interests and it has paid off. They clinched their tenth team championship in Singapore (albeit a brilliant success diminished by the fuss prompted by their drivers' clash) and in Andrea Stella as team principal they have an ethical and upright commander who genuinely wants to do the right thing.

Racing purity versus squad control

Yet having drivers in a championship fight appealing to the team to decide matters is unedifying. Their competition should be decided through racing. 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 analyzed intensely by the team to ascertain whether they need to intervene and subsequently resolved later in private.

The scrutiny will increase with every occurrence it risks potentially making a difference which might prove decisive. Previously, following the team's decision their drivers swap places in Italy due to Norris experiencing a delayed stop and Piastri believing he was treated unfairly regarding tactics in Budapest, where Norris won, the spectre of a fear of favouritism also looms.

Squad viewpoint and upcoming tests

No one wants to witness a championship constantly disputed over perceived that fairness attempts had not been balanced. Questioned whether he believed the squad had acted correctly toward both racers, Piastri responded that they did, but mentioned 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 to just stop analyzing and withdraw from the fray.