McLaren Defends Controversial Team Orders: Stella Acknowledges Need for Clearer Communication

McLaren addresses the backlash regarding the ambiguous team directive given to Lando Norris.

"Lando, being in a more advantageous position, will require backing from Oscar and the rest of the team."

The head of the McLaren F1 team, Andrea Stella, has acknowledged that better clarity in communication with their drivers is necessary following the controversy over team orders at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

McLaren secured a dominant 1-2 finish at the Hungaroring, with Oscar Piastri ahead of Lando Norris.

To keep a competitive edge over Lewis Hamilton, McLaren opted to have Norris make a pit stop before Piastri, allowing Norris to gain an important position on the track.

As a result, Piastri ended up in second place instead of leading, because he was brought in after Norris.

Norris increased his lead over Piastri to approximately six seconds, even though McLaren advised him to slow down and give up the first position.

In the end, Norris followed the team's instructions, but the entire debacle, which was initiated by McLaren, overshadowed the significance of Piastri's first victory.

In an interview with Sky following the race, Nico Rosberg, the 2016 F1 world champion, offered some guidance to Stella and McLaren.

Rosberg advised, “To handle the rivalry between teammates effectively, it's crucial to be very explicit and decisive. The phrase used was ‘at your convenience, Lando’.”

"For drivers, this creates a lot of uncertainty. It's ambiguous. Therefore, I strongly advise clear and firm directives from the pitwall to the drivers, or else you could face numerous challenges. I'm speaking from personal experience."

Stella said, "I appreciate your suggestion. We will put it to good use."

Stella emphasized the importance of teamwork, noting that Norris will require Piastri’s support in his quest to defeat Max Verstappen in this year’s championship.

"There were likely more comments or messages from Will than just one. Our team and drivers share a common philosophy towards racing, and we are all progressing on this path together," he clarified.

“None of us—the team, Lando, Oscar—can achieve success on our own. This was the key point of our discussion on Sunday morning. It's important to remind the drivers of this message regularly. This is the reason for our weekly Sunday meetings. We are very happy with the way our drivers are contributing to McLaren's progress, which is remarkable. In my opinion, that's the main takeaway today.

"We can discuss Lando and Oscar further, but the key point is that they secured the first and second positions in both qualifying and the race. That's unbelievable. I've never met a race driver who would willingly give up their leading position in a race by saying, 'Sure, let's switch back!' That's simply not in a driver's nature. I would be extremely worried if Lando ever suggested that. That's why we had to reassert our core values."

"For a driver to stay competitive in the championship, especially Lando who is currently in a better position, he will require the backing of Oscar and the entire team. This is the approach we are taking moving forward."

McLaren is currently 51 points behind Red Bull in the Formula 1 constructors' championship as they approach the Belgian Grand Prix next weekend.

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