Time for Team Orders? Toto Wolff Urges McLaren to Prioritize Lando Norris in F1 Title Fight

Toto Wolff: McLaren should prioritize Lando Norris with team orders

Mercedes chief comments on McLaren's team orders discussion

Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff believes that McLaren now needs to make a tough decision regarding team orders as the F1 championship battle approaches its final stages.

McLaren seemed poised to take full advantage of Red Bull's Max Verstappen's tough weekend by securing both top spots on the Italian Grand Prix starting grid. However, pole position holder Lando Norris dropped from first to third place during the initial lap following a tussle with his teammate Oscar Piastri.

Piastri overtook his teammate with a bold maneuver on the outside of the Della Roggia chicane. Shortly after, Norris was overtaken again, this time by Ferrari's Charles Leclerc at the next turn.

Norris secured third place, trailing Piastri and Leclerc, and managed to reduce Verstappen's lead in the drivers' championship to 62 points with eight races left, as the Dutchman finished in sixth position.

"When questioned about his reaction to McLaren letting their drivers compete, Wolff commented, 'As a team now fighting at the forefront, we're in a difficult position. On one hand, they are racers just like us.'"

"Our goal is to ensure that the most deserving person succeeds, but if the process starts to cause problems and negatively affect the team's performance, what should be our response?"

"The team consistently ends up losing because implementing fixed positions and team orders conflicts with our racing spirit, even though it may be the more logical choice."

"In the end, you don't want to miss out on a championship because of three or five points that were within your reach. Balancing this is extremely challenging, and there's no one-size-fits-all approach to managing it."

Wolff suggested that McLaren's team leader, Andrea Stella, might need to reconsider their 'Papaya Rules' and shift from his current "racer's spirit" strategy.

Toto Wolff commented, "Andrea Stella and Zak Brown have an unparalleled understanding of the sport. Andrea, in particular, has witnessed numerous events unfold firsthand during his time at Ferrari."

"He possesses the spirit of a true racer who prefers to let the competition play out, but I believe a decision will be made post-race regarding our approach to this situation."

"At this point, we began outlining guidelines for engagement and later altered the terminology to 'racing intent' because the term 'rules' felt too strict for the drivers."

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