McLaren will prioritize Lando Norris in title fight

McLaren has made a decisive move in their pursuit of both Formula 1 championships, scrapping their previous 'papaya rules' in favor of a more focused strategy that prioritizes Lando Norris's title bid.

This shift comes in the wake of a missed opportunity at the Italian Grand Prix, where the team's reluctance to issue team orders cost Norris valuable points in his championship battle against Max Verstappen.

The Monza turning point

The situation at Monza brought McLaren's team dynamics into sharp focus.

Oscar Piastri's overtake on Norris through the second chicane, while impressive, ultimately resulted in the team losing points to their rivals.

Andrea Stella, McLaren's team principal, acknowledged this misstep, stating,

"What we don't want to see any more is a situation like in Monza in which we enter a chicane P1/P2 and we exit P1/P3. Because that is a detriment to the team."

This incident prompted a reevaluation of McLaren's approach, with the team now placing a greater emphasis on maximizing their championship potential.

A collaborative approach

Despite the potential for tension, Stella praised the collaborative spirit within the team.

In a particularly telling moment, he revealed a conversation with Piastri about the possibility of ceding a race win:

"Even when I said to Oscar: 'Would you be available to give up a victory?' He said: 'It's painful, but if it's the right thing to do now, I will do it'."

This willingness to put team interests first demonstrates the maturity and professionalism of McLaren's driver lineup, a fact not lost on Stella.

"Every driver is hard-wired to go for a victory. So I am always very impressed by the level of team spirit and maturity and collaboration that we found in this period,"

he added.

Balancing act

While the team is committed to supporting Norris's title bid, they're mindful of maintaining a fair and respectful racing environment.

Stella emphasized that Norris himself is not interested in winning through artificial means:

"Lando wants to win because he deserved the victory on track. "

It's OK to be occasionally supported by your team-mate, but you don't want to use, systematically, ways of adjusting the race just for the sake of the points when your team-mate is scoring in a way that he deserves."

This sentiment underscores McLaren's desire to achieve success through genuine performance rather than relying solely on team orders.

Looking ahead

As the team heads into the Azerbaijan Grand Prix, their strategy will be under close scrutiny.

McLaren CEO Zak Brown confirmed the team's commitment to their new approach on Dale Earnhardt Jr's podcast, stating,

"Oscar is going to do everything he can to help. "

"You know, I'm fortunate, I got two number one drivers, they're both awesome, but Lando is now in a position where, you know, he can mathematically see it, smell it."

"So we're gonna work as a team to see what we can do to help Lando."

However, Brown also emphasized the fluid nature of their strategy, indicating that they will reassess their approach based on the championship standings after each race.