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The British racing team and Formula One could do with any conclusive outcome during this title fight involving Lando Norris & Piastri being decided on the track and without resorting to team orders as the championship finale begins this weekend at COTA on Friday.

Marina Bay race aftermath leads to team tensions

With the Marina Bay event’s undoubtedly thorough and tense post-race analyses concluded, McLaren will be hoping for a fresh start. The British driver was almost certainly fully conscious of the historical context of his riposte to his aggrieved teammate during the previous grand prix weekend. During an intense title fight with the Australian, that Norris invoked a famous Senna well-known quotes did not go unnoticed yet the occurrence that provoked his comment differed completely to those that defined Senna's iconic battles.

“Should you criticize me for just going on the inside of a big gap then you should not be in Formula One,” Norris said regarding his first-lap move to pass that led to their vehicles making contact.

His comment seemed to echo the Brazilian legend's “Should you stop attempting for a gap which is there you are no longer a racing driver” defence he gave to the racing knight following his collision with Alain Prost at Suzuka back in 1990, ensuring he took the title.

Similar spirit but different circumstances

Although the attitude remains comparable, the phrasing marks where parallels stop. Senna later admitted he never intended to allow Prost to defeat him through the first corner whereas Norris attempted to execute a clean overtake in Singapore. In fact, it was a perfectly valid effort that went unpenalised even with the glancing blow he made against his McLaren teammate during the pass. That itself was a result of him clipping the Red Bull of Max Verstappen in front of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, notably, immediately declared that Norris gaining the place was “unfair”; suggesting that their collision was verboten under McLaren’s rules for racing and Norris ought to be told to return the place he had made. McLaren did not do so, yet it demonstrated that in any cases of contention, each would quickly ask the squad to intervene in their favor.

Team dynamics and fairness under scrutiny

This comes naturally from McLaren's commendable approach to let their drivers race one another and to try to maintain strict fairness. Quite apart from creating complex dilemmas when establishing rules about what defines fair or unfair – which, under these auspices, now includes bad luck, tactical calls and racing incidents like in Marina Bay – there is the question of perception.

Most crucially to the title race, six races left, Piastri is ahead of Norris by twenty-two points, each racer's view exists on fairness and when their perspectives might split from the team's stance. That is when the amicable relationship between the two may – finally – become a little bit more Senna-Prost.

“It will reach a point where minor points count,” commented Mercedes boss Toto Wolff post-race. “Then calculations will begin and re-calculations and I suppose aggression will increase a bit more. That’s when it starts to get interesting.”

Viewer desires and title consequences

For spectators, in what is a two-horse race, getting interesting will likely be appreciated in the form of an on-track confrontation rather than a spreadsheet-based arbitration regarding incidents. Not least because for F1 the other impression from these events is not particularly rousing.

Honestly speaking, McLaren are making appropriate choices for themselves and it has paid off. They clinched their 10th constructors’ title in Singapore (albeit a brilliant success diminished by the controversy from their drivers' clash) and with Stella as team principal they possess a moral and upright commander who truly aims to do the right thing.

Sporting integrity versus squad control

Yet having drivers competing for the title appealing to the team to decide matters is unedifying. Their contest ought to be determined through racing. Chance and fate will play their part, yet preferable to allow them just battle freely and see how fortune falls, than the impression that every disputed moment will be analyzed intensely by the squad to determine if they need to intervene and then cleared up later in private.

The scrutiny will increase and each time it happens it is in danger of possibly affecting outcomes that could be critical. Already, following the team's decision their drivers swap places at Monza because Norris had endured a slow pit 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.

Team perspective and future challenges

No one wants to see a title constantly disputed because it may be considered that fairness attempts were unequal. When asked if he felt the team had managed to do right toward both racers, Piastri responded he believed they had, but mentioned it's a developing process.

“We've had several challenging moments and we discussed various aspects,” he stated post-race. “However finally it's educational for the entire squad.”

Six meetings remain. McLaren have little wriggle room left to do their cramming, thus perhaps wiser now to simply stop analyzing and step back from the conflict.