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The British racing team and F1 could do with anything decisive during this title fight between Norris and Oscar Piastri getting resolved on the track and without resorting to team orders with the championship finale kicks off at the Circuit of the Americas on Friday.

Marina Bay race fallout leads to team tensions

With the Singapore Grand Prix’s doubtless extensive and tense debriefs concluded, the Woking-based squad is aiming for a reset. The British driver was almost certainly fully conscious about the historical parallels of his riposte toward his upset colleague during the previous grand prix weekend. During an intense championship duel with the Australian, his reference to a famous Senna well-known quotes was lost on no one yet the occurrence that provoked his comment differed completely from incidents characterizing Senna's great rivalries.

“Should you criticize me for simply attempting an inside move of a big gap then you don't belong in F1,” Norris said regarding his first-lap move to overtake which resulted in their vehicles making contact.

The remark seemed to echo Senna’s “If you no longer go for a gap that exists you are no longer a true racer” justification he provided to the racing knight following his collision with Alain Prost at Suzuka back in 1990, securing him the championship.

Similar spirit yet distinct situations

While the spirit remains comparable, the wording is where the similarities end. Senna later admitted he had no intent to allow Prost beat him at turn one while Norris attempted to make his pass cleanly at the Marina Bay circuit. In fact, his maneuver was legitimate which received no penalty despite the minor contact he had with his team colleague as he went through. That itself stemmed from him clipping the car driven by Verstappen ahead of him.

The Australian responded angrily and, significantly, immediately declared that Norris's position gain seemed unjust; suggesting that their collision was verboten by team protocols for racing and Norris ought to be told to return the place he had made. McLaren did not do so, but it was indicative that in any cases between them, each would quickly ask the squad to step in on his behalf.

Team dynamics and impartiality being examined

This is part and parcel of McLaren’s laudable efforts to allow their racers compete against each other and to try to maintain strict fairness. Quite apart from tying some torturous knots when establishing rules about what defines just or unjust – under these conditions, now includes bad luck, tactical calls and racing incidents like in Marina Bay – there remains the issue regarding opinions.

Most crucially for the championship, with six meetings remaining, Piastri is ahead of Norris by twenty-two points, there is what each driver perceives as fair and when their perspectives might split from the team's stance. That is when their friendly rapport among them may – finally – become a little bit more the iconic rivalry.

“It’s going to come to a situation where a few points will matter,” said Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff after Singapore. “Then they’ll start to calculate and re-calculations and I suppose the elbows are going to come out a bit more. That’s when it starts to get interesting.”

Viewer desires and championship implications

For the audience, in what is a two-horse race, getting interesting will likely be appreciated as a track duel instead of a data-driven decision regarding incidents. Not least because in Formula One the other impression from these events isn't very inspiring.

Honestly speaking, McLaren is taking appropriate choices for themselves with successful results. They secured their tenth team championship in Singapore (though a great achievement diminished by the controversy from their drivers' clash) and with Stella as squad leader they have an ethical and upright commander who truly aims to act correctly.

Sporting integrity against team management

Yet having drivers competing for the title appealing to the team for resolutions appears unsightly. Their contest should be decided through racing. Chance and fate will have roles, but better to let them just battle freely and see how fortune falls, than the impression that each contentious incident will be analyzed intensely by the squad to determine if intervention is needed and subsequently resolved afterwards behind closed doors.

The scrutiny will increase and each time it happens it risks possibly affecting outcomes which might prove decisive. Previously, after the team made for position swaps in Italy because Norris had endured a slow pit stop and Piastri believing he had been hard done by regarding tactics in Budapest, where Norris triumphed, the shadow of concern of favouritism also looms.

Team perspective and future challenges

No one wants to witness a championship endlessly debated over perceived that fairness attempts were unequal. When asked if he felt the team had acted correctly by both drivers, Piastri responded that they did, but noted that it was an ever-evolving approach.

“We've had several difficult situations and we’ve spoken about a number of things,” he stated after Singapore. “However finally it's educational for the entire squad.”

Six races stay. The team has minimal room for error for last-minute adjustments, thus perhaps wiser to just close the books and step back from the fray.