Norris number 1 and Piastri in support? Andrea Stella remains unclear on a possible future hierarchy

It's a problem as old as time. Formula 1. When one driver is well placed to compete for the championship title, should the other be sacrificed in order to maximize his chances of scoring by reducing the sharing of points internally? There are several schools on this subject. The advantage for Red Bull, is that Christian Horner does not have to ask himself the question, Sergio Pérez being rarely invited against Max Verstappen. In the ranks of McLaren However, the question makes more sense given the small gap in pure performance between Lando Norris et Oscar piastri. The Englishman is 2nd in the championship, 78 points behind the Dutchman, while the Australian is 110 points behind.

Until then, we had refused to make these untimely radio calls to the Aussie, as Oscar Piastri's victory in Budapest had proven. The former protégé ofAlpine had even benefited from a boost from his pit wall after a strange strategy made him lose the lead in the race compared to his neighbor in the garage, who let him pass again after a vain attempt at negotiation to stay in front. However, there are only 10 races left, and given the comfortable gap enjoyed by Verstappen at the top of the championship, we should hardly waste any more time before making any strong decisions.

No official number 1, but an open door

Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren, had suggested that the summer would provide an opportunity to take stock of the drivers' accounting situation and the decisions that could result from it. However, he had specified that he had two leading drivers in his ranks, in no way destined to become number 2. Present at a press conference in Zandvoort, team principal Andrea Stella was questioned on the question, delivering a Norman answer. In summary? Well, yes, no, no!

“In terms of having conversations about whether or not to be No. 1, I don't think that's the best possible approach., first assured the Italian. We prefer to approach the race with integrity and justice, seeing what comes from this approach. There are 10 races left until the end of the year. Realistically, if Lando wants to have a chance of going for the title at the end of the season, he must first continue to perform at the highest level, be fast, because that's how you earn your merits on the track. If this is the case, we will re-evaluate, always with integrity and justice, whether or not on certain occasions the team would need to make a decision (…) and whether we want to have a conversation with Oscar to find out if he would be willing to support Lando, depending on the situation, in order to help him be champion. »

Domenicali congratulating Oscar Piastri after his victory in Hungary. © Antonin Vincent / DPPI

Stella assures, however, that he will not force destiny, and that he will especially never do it without the consent of the Melbourne native. “It will always be a prior conversation before the race, so that no one is surprised. Everyone will have to be on the same page, because we are chasing the drivers' title but also the Manufacturers' title. The idea is not to leave anyone behind. This is our style. I don't think we can simply sum things up by saying that we're going to choose a number 1 and then work accordingly. I would prefer to keep our approach more focused on the team and do it more on a case-by-case basis, depending on the situation”.

No official and automatic number 1, therefore, but the door is still open. A laudable approach from a sporting point of view. And undoubtedly good news for the show. With this philosophy, however, McLaren exposes itself to being forced to relive situations similar to those encountered in Hungary, where the radio had continued to crackle for almost a third of the Grand Prix between the low wall and its two drivers, marring almost Oscar Piastri's first career victory. This is the risk to take by starting two exceptional drivers.

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