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The British racing team along with F1 would benefit from any conclusive outcome in the title fight involving Lando Norris & Oscar Piastri being decided on the track and without reference to the pit wall as the title run-in begins at the Circuit of the Americas on Friday.

Singapore Grand Prix aftermath leads to internal strain

After the Marina Bay event’s undoubtedly thorough and stressful debriefs dealt with, McLaren will be hoping for a fresh start. The British driver was almost certainly fully conscious of the historical context regarding his retort to his aggrieved teammate at the last grand prix weekend. During an intense championship duel against Piastri, that Norris invoked a famous Senna well-known quotes was lost on no one yet the occurrence which triggered his statement differed completely to those that defined Senna's iconic battles.

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

The remark seemed to echo Senna’s “Should you stop attempting for a gap which is there you are no longer a racing driver” justification he provided to Sir Jackie Stewart after he ploughed into the French champion in Japan in 1990, securing him the championship.

Similar spirit but different circumstances

While the spirit remains comparable, the wording marks where parallels stop. The late champion confessed he had no intent to allow Prost to defeat him through the first corner whereas Norris did try to execute a clean overtake at the Marina Bay circuit. 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 car of Max Verstappen ahead of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, notably, instantly stated that Norris gaining the place seemed unjust; the implication being their collision was forbidden by team protocols for racing and Norris should be instructed to return the position he gained. The team refused, but it was indicative that in any cases between them, both will promptly appeal to the team to intervene in their favor.

Team dynamics and fairness being examined

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 tying some torturous knots when establishing rules over what constitutes fair or unfair – which, under these auspices, now covers misfortune, tactical calls and racing incidents such as in Singapore – there remains the issue regarding opinions.

Of most import to the title race, six races left, Piastri leads Norris by 22 points, there is what each driver perceives on fairness and at what point their perspectives might split with that of the McLaren pitwall. That is when their friendly rapport between the two may – finally – become a little bit more the iconic rivalry.

“It will reach a point where minor points count,” said Mercedes boss Wolff after Singapore. “Then calculations will begin and back-calculate and I suppose aggression will increase a bit more. That's when it begins to get interesting.”

Audience expectations and championship implications

For the audience, in what is a two-horse race, increased excitement will probably be welcomed in the form of a track duel instead of a spreadsheet-based arbitration of circumstances. Especially since 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 secured their 10th constructors’ title in Singapore (though a great achievement overshadowed by the controversy from their drivers' clash) and with Stella as squad leader they possess a moral and upright commander who genuinely wants to act correctly.

Sporting integrity against squad control

Yet having drivers in a championship fight appealing to the team to decide matters is unedifying. Their contest ought to be determined on track. Luck and destiny will play their part, but better to let them just battle freely and observe outcomes naturally, rather than the sense that each contentious incident will be analyzed intensely by the team to determine if intervention is needed and subsequently resolved later in private.

The examination will increase and each time it happens it risks potentially making a difference which might prove decisive. Previously, after the team made for position swaps at Monza because Norris had endured a delayed stop and Piastri feeling he was treated unfairly with the strategy call in Budapest, where Norris triumphed, the shadow of concern of favouritism also emerges.

Squad viewpoint and future challenges

Nobody desires to witness a championship constantly disputed over perceived that fairness attempts were unequal. Questioned whether he believed the squad had managed to do right by both drivers, Piastri responded that they did, but noted it's a developing process.

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

Six races stay. The team has minimal room for error to do their cramming, thus perhaps wiser now to simply stop analyzing and step back from the fray.