Wolff warns that managing drivers may get trickier
Piastri: ‘Protecting the people around us is important’
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri have both insisted that protecting their teammates was central to McLaren’s use of team orders at the Italian Grand Prix and that they were focused on long-term success that would be fostered by doing the right thing, despite criticism after they were instructed to switch places at Monza.
The Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff, however, also noted McLaren’s adherence to such strongly held principles of fairness for their drivers may yet cause them serious headaches later in the season if Norris and Piastri end up toe-to-toe for the title.
Max Verstappen won at Monza but McLaren’s use of team orders, having Piastri return second place to Norris after the British driver lost the position due to a slow pit stop caused by a faulty wheel gun, prompted no little controversy given the pair are in a two-horse race for the title, with Piastri now leading by 31 points.
