“I think it was much more amplified than it really was”: Oscar Piastri on team instructions at McLaren
The Australian returned to the subject of the team's instructions during the season at McLaren. In his opinion, he and his team-mate Lando Norris handled the situation perfectly, even though the championship was still at stake against Red Bull and Max Verstappen.
McLaren has returned to the top. Twenty-six years after its last constructors’ title, the Woking team has finally won this trophy following a successful season for the team led by Zak Brown, who could rely on the work of its two drivers, regularly present at the front. Oscar Piastri concluded the season having finished every Grand Prix in the points. Fairly similar performances between the two drivers eventually triggered the application of the Papaya Rules, team instructions stating: He’s your teammate; you can fight with him, but in a controlled way, without collision.
A poorly handled case in Hungary and Italy
These team orders began at the Hungarian Grand Prix. After a satisfying start to the season, the British team seemed, for several weeks, to be the team to beat. Arriving in Budapest, they had just secured eight consecutive podiums, especially as Red Bull appeared to be struggling more. While the race seemed assured for the Australian driver, everything changed at the moment of the last pit stop. Wanting to cover the strategy of a driver behind him, Lando Norris, then in second place, stopped first.
A few laps later, Oscar Piastri did the same but came out behind his British teammate. From that moment, the team informed Lando Norris that they would swap positions before the end of the Grand Prix. After several laps of negotiations, the Briton complied. That day, McLaren secured a double podium but faced numerous criticisms, particularly for their inability to choose a driver to favor, even though Lando Norris was ahead in the championship.
During the following Grand Prix, Oscar Piastri finished second, one place ahead of his teammate, after overtaking him in the Roggia chicane on the first lap, which heightened skepticism about McLaren’s management of the situation. The team’s director, Andrea Stella, had indicated not wanting to introduce team orders, believing that it wasn’t a healthy way to manage a Formula 1 team. Nevertheless, after this Italian episode, the former race engineer of Fernando Alonso at Ferrari changed his mind, considering that the form displayed by Red Bull could allow McLaren, but especially Norris, to win the driver’s title.
A priority given to Lando Norris after Monza
The two drivers are mathematically in the running to do it [win the drivers’ championship], but Lando is obviously in the best position from a numbers standpoint. We are fighting against Max Verstappen, so if we want to support a driver, we absolutely have to choose the one in the best position. Already in our conversations before the race, we recognized that Lando is in the best position from the drivers’ championship standpoint, so we will have conversations with Oscar, with Lando and together, then we will define our rules of engagement, Andrea Stella had stated.
If some could fear tensions between the drivers after the Hungarian and Italian Grand Prix, it was not the case. Despite several team orders executed by Piastri, Norris couldn’t win the drivers’ championship. Questioned by Autosport about the team orders, the Australian driver was philosophical, explaining that the criticisms about the Papaya Rules were unfounded, as they were not often used during the season, with both drivers managing the situation whenever it arose.
“It’s a bit of a trap. I think that if I had been better positioned, there wouldn’t have been any team orders,” admitted the former F3 and F2 champion. “I think it has been much more amplified than in reality. There hasn’t really been a situation so far where we’ve truly needed to use them, so to speak. I think it has been a much bigger story for everyone outside the team. For us, we know how to do the right thing when necessary. But even without those stricter team orders, we’ve always operated with the idea of doing what’s right for each other, and I don’t think that will ever change.”
Piastri takes a step back
The Australian was also asked about his relationship with Mark Webber and if he had sought advice from his compatriot, who had experienced a similar situation at Red Bull alongside Sebastian Vettel. « Yes and no. Not directly, I would say », Piastri stated. « I think the situation here at McLaren is very different from what Mark went through in his career. There may have been some advice here and there, and help for the team on what he felt were weaknesses in his experience, and what he did, because for many people on the team, it’s also a new scenario. »
« So, I think his advice was useful for everyone, by providing his perspective on what he thought was right or wrong at the time. But he is certainly not leading the team by saying ‘you must do this or that’. Even for me, he doesn’t say ‘don’t accept this or that’. It’s simply his personal experience, and it more or less stops there. »
Despite everything, Oscar Piastri hopes to have enough pace next season to avoid team orders being applied. If 2024 is the year of confirmation for the Australian, 2025 might be the year of consecration.
