Jul.22 (GMM) A milestone 1-2 victory for McLaren in Hungary ended in high controversy, after Lando Norris admits almost rejecting a repeated team order to let Oscar Piastri take the chequered flag first.
The order came because McLaren had pitted pole-sitter Norris first – even though Piastri, who after the pitstop was behind his teammate, had controlled the race from the start.
“I didn’t want us to fall behind a Mercedes or Ferrari,” team boss Andrea Stella explained earlier. “Like what happened to Max Verstappen.”
Reactions up and down the pitlane and paddock were divided.
“Norris robbed of Hungary victory,” declared Blick newspaper. “McLaren invents a problem,” said the Spanish newspaper AS.
Former Red Bull driver Robert Doornbos even hit out at Norris, who earlier in the weekend had already faced criticism that he is ‘too nice’ to ever be champion.
“I don’t know how far you get by being a gentleman,” Doornbos told Ziggo Sport. “That means you’re not a killer. He doesn’t have that killer instinct.
“The team messes it up and then he had to clean up the mess.”
Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, however, commented: “From what I’ve just been told, they did what had to be done.
“If they give a free undercut to your teammate, you have to give it back. It’s something that, in the past, not all teams have done.”
His boss Frederic Vasseur agrees: “The decision in the first place was a bit harsh on Piastri, then they took a decision that I can understand.”
Before eventually giving the lead back to Piastri, Norris complained on the radio that “I’m fighting for a world championship here”. Emma Kimilainen, a female racing driver, said on Viaplay: “What on earth is McLaren doing?
“Max Verstappen is 76 points ahead of Norris in the world championship, so theoretically the only driver who can beat Verstappen is Norris. Why wouldn’t they maximise his points?
“Secondly, he was the faster driver,” she added.
Mercedes’ Toto Wolff thinks McLaren is simply re-learning on the trot how to manage difficult situations right at the front of the field in the public eye.
“Clarity in the team is important and they are learning it now,” he said. “They’ve moved so quickly into a position where they can win with both cars that they have to stick to the rules they already have.
“Andrea is showing great leadership,” Wolff added, “it’s just something new.”
2016 world champion Nico Rosberg commented: “It was not well managed. They are in a new situation and they are not used to dominating. But they have to get used to it, and very quickly.”
Ralf Schumacher agrees: “We’re talking about seven points. Let’s see what they’re missing at the end of the year.”
From McLaren boss Stella’s point of view, however, even though Norris was highly reluctant to give the place back to Piastri, he ultimately handled it perfectly.
“When you’re leading the race and have such a conflict, you want to show the pace you have,” he said. “That’s good and that’s what racing drivers do. And I want to manage racing drivers.
“So this is the car and the character of the driver that I want to see, but they also have to understand the team’s demands. Lando showed both today – as a racing driver and as a team player.”
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