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The Weekly Question – Papaya rules: McLaren trapped?
© Xavi Bonilla / DPPI
The Weekly Question is back for a new edition. Each week, you have the opportunity to answer a question about an event that took place the previous weekend or that could take place the next. F1, MotoGP, Rally, Endurance, IndyCar, GT… all disciplines will be there. The day after the United States Grand Prix in F1 having seen again Max Verstappen to take it away, McLaren seems to be in a particularly delicate situation. Between Oscar piastri et Lando Norris, the Papayas choose not to choose, and could see the leader of the stable Red Bull literally melt on the head of the championship in the coming weeks.
Simple, but cruel for McLaren, the situation is clearly tilting in favor of a sharp Max Verstappen. Specifically, the Dutchman has scored as many points as Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris combined over the last five rounds. Heading into the Mexican Grand Prix, the four-time world champion is now just 40 points behind the world championship leader, and could well precipitate a state of emergency at Woking.
ALSO READ > Piastri without a solution at the US GP: is the title slipping away from him?
Should McLaren choose its champion?
While during this new Grand Prix weekend, many voices declared that they did not understand the true functioning of these famous "Papaya rules", they actually seem to be detrimental to the team itself as it stands. Presumably based on a form of compensation between the two drivers from one Grand Prix to the next, this principle seemed to work especially well insofar as McLaren was the team still clearly dominant. In view of Max Verstappen's return to the forefront, choosing a number 1 driver does not appear to be the absolute priority for the moment, especially since the task could prove particularly delicate from now on. Indeed, Lando Norris is the driver in the best form at the moment for the British team, while Oscar Piastri was going through his most successful period in the first half of the season.
In short, should McLaren choose a number 1 driver? Can the Papaya Rules still survive? Has the Woking team put itself in a bind heading into the end of the 2025 season? Don't forget to vote to give your opinion, and to develop your arguments in the comments.
Mathieu Chambenoit
Responsible for the single-seater categories (F2, F3, FRECA, Eurocup-3, F4...), I enjoy discussing F1, Endurance, or MotoGP.
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Herve 06
22/10/2025 at 09:36 a.m.
There's very little chance that Verstappen can repeat the last five races in the next five. It only takes one race where he loses 10 points or more to one of the two McLaren drivers for the championship to be virtually over. We shouldn't exaggerate this pseudo-suspense maintained by the media. Stella is right: keep calm!
vincent moyet
21/10/2025 at 12:24 a.m.
McLaren has put itself in checkmate, it can no longer do anything. It is impossible to designate Piastri as leader: asking Norris to let 2 or 3 competitors pass and wait for him to pass to make him gain 2 or 3 points will not change anything (and would be ridiculous) when Verstappen takes 10 or 15 points from him per GP. Count on Norris to go and get Piastri while keeping Verstappen behind? For the moment it is not working, Norris also loses points on Verstappen, and worse, he makes Piastri lose some. The only way out is at least a victory for Piastri to regain some air on Verstappen, but he seems paralyzed by the fear of losing or his blunder in Baku. Easy to say now, but should we have counted on a driver in his 3rd F1 season who had never fought for the title, or should we have given priority to the more experienced (and ultimately more solid) Norris from the start of the season? The problem is that Norris's early practice was messy and didn't support this.
Yves-Henri RANDIER
21/10/2025 at 01:18 a.m.
Very true! A few weeks ago, the Brown / Stella duo said that they had a "rich man's problem" in the conquest of the 2025 titles. The first objective has been achieved with the Constructors' title but for the second, they are in the s... because things are looking bad! That said, things can go quickly and the coming weekend could turn out to be different from the previous ones, especially if it were to rain in Mexico City where the first braking point very often has to be a spectacle
Lucas Paul
21/10/2025 at 09:36 a.m.
And once again, Mac Laren actually wants it to be Lando, so an Englishman who has the title.... "Who embraces too much, badly embraces".....:(:(:( Advice to Oscar, go look elsewhere, because if Lando doesn't have the title, they'll start again in 2026 :(:(:(
Lucas Paul
21/10/2025 at 09:33 a.m.
I agree with you Yves-Henri.... But you know the stupidity of the encore is very (too) often put in place in all competitions :(:(:(
Yves-Henri RANDIER
20/10/2025 at 10:01 a.m.
After the hara-kiri of Interlagos 2007 where Raikkonen was crowned by the skin of his teeth by beating the McLaren duo Alonso / Hamilton, McLaren will repeat the feat by allowing Verstappen to win a 5th consecutive title in Abu Dhabi without Michael Masi and Christian Horner!