Do McLaren have a number one driver? 'Don't need to decide'
F1 News
- Jeroen Immink
Last weekend, Lando Norris got to P1 because his own team McLaren and thanks to their undercut. At the Hungarian Grand Prix, the Briton, who started from pole position, once again took the lead after the pit stops, but had to cede first place to his teammate Oscar Piastri. A remarkable move by the Woking-based team, as Norris could theoretically come close to Max Verstappen in the standings.
Temperatures ran high not only in terms of track temperature, but also among the drivers. Norris, who lost the lead at the start, clawed his way back through an undercut at the Hungaroring. But after much radio traffic, the Briton had to cede his first place and second F1 win to Piastri, who in turn took his first victory.
Which driver is the preferred first driver at McLaren?
"I think when you have Oscar and Lando, we are in the lucky enough position that we don't really need to decide who is a number one driver," team principal Andrea Stella revealed. "Maybe if it's the last couple of races and there's a strong championship interest for one of the two drivers, we may revise this. But what I'm expecting is the other driver coming to me and say, 'if you need my help with the other driver because he is in the championship competition, I'm available'," the Italian said. Currently, Norris is 76 points behind Verstappen.
In addition, Stella hopes McLaren fans can understand the decision. "To be honest, I enjoyed this thing as a spectator or as a fan when these things were happening, even when I was not in Formula One. But please acknowledge that we just did what was fair today. This is what I want the entire team at McLaren to realise and hopefully our fans as well."