Moments of drama and controversy between Formula 1 championship contenders and McLaren teammates, Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, produced an entertaining season. Being separated by 22 points, with Piastri ahead, they battled each other with their absolute best. These battles, however, produced multiple incidents within this championship fight.
In the British Grand Prix, rain poured down heavily, causing multiple crashes. Safety cars would come out, forcing the drivers to slow down and drive safely. After Racing Bulls driver Isack Hadjar crashed out of the race, the field would go into a final safety car period.
As the safety car would head into the pits for the race to go green, Piastri suddenly braked. This forced Red Bull driver, Max Verstappen, to swerve out of the way, almost colliding with him; he would spin out later in the lap. Piastri would get a ten second penalty which was applied during the pit stop.
Piastri later got on team radio, saying, “I don’t think the penalty before was very fair. If you don’t think it was fair either, I think we should swap back and race.” However, the team declined his offer, ending up being a McLaren one-two again with Piastri finishing behind.
Some thought that the penalty was fair. Spanish teacher, Johan Cordero, said, “I’ve seen the film multiple times where I can say that it was on Piastri. That was his error. I don’t think that anyone else should be punished for his error.”
More occurred in the Italian Grand Prix where both the McLarens would pit one after the other to fight off Ferrari driver, Charles Leclerc. Piastri would get a dream 1.9 second pit stop while Norris would get a nightmare 5.9 second pit stop due to a front left tire issue. Norris exited out of the pits behind Piastri.
The pitwall told the drivers to swap positions because of the slow pit stop with Stallard on the radio saying, “Oscar, this is a bit like Hungary last year. We pitted in this order for team reasons. Please let Lando pass and you’re free to race.”
Piastri obliged, letting Norris by at the start of lap 49. He wouldn’t be able to attempt an overtake at all in the final few laps of the race.
Some fans thought that this decision was unfair. Senior, Tara Phapornchai, said, “It was poor strategy and poor execution, I think. And I honestly think that favours and team favoritism intensify the tension between Norris and Piastri. If it were just racing, fewer feelings would be involved, and there wouldn’t be so much tension between the two. “
A big tell occurred during the Singaporean Grand Prix where, in the first lap, both McLarens would race side by side coming into the first three turns. Norris’s front wing hit Verstappen’s tyre, causing him to hit Piastri on his right. He would be ahead of him throughout the rest of the race.
Piastri voiced concern on team radio, saying, “So, are we cool with Lando just barging me out the way or? What’s the go there?” McLaren looked into the incident; Stallard went on radio, saying that there was no further review from the stewards and the team wouldn’t look further into it as Norris had to avoid Verstappen.
“That’s not fair. Sorry that’s not fair,” Piastri said. Stallard told him to focus on the race, but Piastri continued, “Yeah, but if he has to avoid another car by crashing into his teammate, that’s a pretty s— job of avoiding.”
Some fans feel as if Norris was in the wrong for this decision. Cordero said, “Honestly, playing dirty isn’t the best route but sometimes it is the only choice if you want to win. I just felt that it was unnecessary for Norris to make that maneuver. Plus, it was the first lap.”
As the season comes to a close in the next few weeks, some fans believe that Piastri will finish ahead on top. However, with context of prior races, some believe that there is a favorite among the McLaren team.
Tiffany Banh, chemistry and human anatomy teacher, said, “Considering that Norris has been driving longer than Piastri, it’s surprising that Piastri is currently doing better than his teammate. I would say that it’s looking like Piastri will beat both Norris and Verstappen, but it also looks like McLaren is giving preferential treatment to Norris in some instances. If that’s the case, Piastri might have a harder time beating out Norris.
After three years of dominance in the driver’s championship by Verstappen, it’s a fresh breath of air for some of MECA’s F1 fans with exciting drama that surrounded the two frontrunners at the top of the championship. However, some warn that this could lead to a driver disaster in the future for McLaren.
“At least [Norris is] beating Verstappen, which is nice to see that,” Cordero said, “I don’t mind it. I just feel that McLaren need to get their act better because, if this continues, I believe that both drivers are going to want out.”
