The latest battle between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri in Hungary shows McLaren isn’t going to play it safe in the Formula 1 title race.
After losing ground at the start, Norris was given the freedom to go onto an ambitious one-stop strategy, which turned out to be the race-winning move. One week prior, the roles were reversed in Spa when Norris’ decision to go onto a harder tyre compound didn’t pay off.
But the underlying message to both sides of the McLaren garage is clear: take whatever strategy you think is best. Not to guarantee an easy 1-2 victory, but to win the race.
It is an approach that is inherently risky and that may well cost it results in the future. In a previous iteration, McLaren learned this the hard way when Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton went toe to toe in 2007, and their acrimonious fight spilled over and left the door open for Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen to swoop in and snatch the world championship.
Some will argue McLaren has it easy, and that its car is so much better and more consistent than the competition – with the status of second-best team changing week to week – that the papaya squad can afford the luxury of its drivers racing each other hard.
“We know the risk of not throwing our weight behind one driver, but we will give Oscar and Lando equal opportunity to fight it out on track to win the drivers’ world championship,” Zak Brown said. “That’s exciting for us, and for the sport.”
But letting its drivers race isn’t just being done as a ploy to garner positive PR or for the good of the series. There are also internal reasons why it will benefit McLaren in the long run, as having two equal number ones will prevent either Norris or Piastri from growing disillusioned with their opportunities at the team.
They know that in December, the best man will take home a maiden world title, and that the score is reset to zero again next March.
“We believe the benefits of racing this way far outweigh the consequences – despite the fact we know incidents can happen,” Brown added.
Team principal Andrea Stella echoed Brown’s sentiments, warning that McLaren’s approach didn’t “make my life or Zak’s life any simpler”.
“We are also racing in a certain way, which is open and gives our drivers the opportunity to express their talents, their aspirations, their quality, their constant development,” Stella said.
“That’s what we are here for, and we are very privileged to be in this position. Not only with the team we have, but with Oscar and Lando, who are two great drivers, but above all, two great individuals.”