Jenson Button Advocates for McLaren to Back Norris in Championship Pursuit: ‘You Need to Favour One Driver

Jenson Button shares his thoughts on the discussion surrounding McLaren's team orders: "To secure a world championship, prioritizing one driver eventually becomes necessary."

Jenson Button, who won the Formula 1 world championship in 2009, thinks that his old team must prioritize Lando Norris if they want to defeat Max Verstappen for the world title this year.

Before the upcoming United States Grand Prix this weekend, Norris trails Verstappen by 52 points, with six races remaining in the season.

Due to the current lead in points, Verstappen is in a position where he can consistently secure second place in all upcoming races, including sprint events, and still achieve his fourth F1 world championship title.

Should Verstappen clinch the championship this year, Norris might regret several inadequate strategic decisions by McLaren and the absence of directives from the team.

In Hungary, Norris had to let Oscar Piastri secure the victory following the pit stop stage.

During the race at Monza, Piastri's bold move to pass at the second chicane exposed Norris to an attack from Leclerc.

In a discussion about the current state of McLaren, Button shared his thoughts on the Sky F1 podcast, expressing his approval of the absence of team orders. He noted that racing drivers generally dislike such orders. However, he acknowledged that to secure a world championship, it eventually becomes necessary to support one driver over the others.

"At this critical stage of the championship, each point is crucial. If Lando aims to contend for the world championship in 2024, securing every point is essential. This strategy could involve leveraging Oscar to snatch the fastest lap if Max holds it during a race."

"It's quite a challenging scenario for both individual drivers and the team as a whole. However, it's a necessary part of the sport. This is how Ferrari achieved numerous world championships with Michael Schumacher and why Sebastian Vettel also secured multiple world titles."

"At times, it's necessary to make tough decisions and prioritize one driver, particularly at this stage in the season. Oscar has performed exceptionally well this year, but Lando holds a significant lead in points. If the team aims to secure victories in both the constructors' and drivers' championships this year, they'll need to consider this strategy."

McLaren holds a significant advantage over Red Bull in the constructors' championship, leading by 41 points.

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