**”Toto Wolff Urges McLaren to Implement Team Orders in Critical F1 Title Push”**

Toto Wolff suggests that McLaren might want to implement team orders to support Lando Norris

The head of Mercedes shares his opinion on the discussion about team orders at McLaren

Mercedes head Toto Wolff has implied that McLaren now faces a tough decision on whether to use team orders, as the battle for the F1 championship nears its end.

McLaren seemed to have an ideal chance to take advantage of Red Bull's Max Verstappen's underwhelming performance this weekend by securing the top two spots on the grid for the Italian Grand Prix. However, Lando Norris, who started in pole position, 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, after which Norris surrendered another spot to Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc at the next turn.

Norris secured third place, trailing Piastri and Leclerc, and reduced Verstappen’s lead in the drivers’ championship to 62 points with eight races left, as the Dutchman managed only a sixth-place finish.

Toto Wolff commented that being a leading racing team puts them in a tough situation. He explained that on the one hand, McLaren's drivers are competitive racers just like his own team. Wolff made these remarks when questioned about his thoughts on McLaren permitting their drivers to compete against each other.

"Our goal is to ensure the most deserving individual succeeds, but when the situation becomes disruptive and starts negatively affecting the team's performance, what steps should be taken in response?"

"The team consistently faces defeat because if you lock positions and implement team orders, you might not fulfill the spirit of racing, but logic must take precedence."

Ultimately, you don't want to miss winning a championship by a small margin, such as three or five points, that could have been easily gained. Balancing this is extremely challenging, and there isn't a one-size-fits-all approach to manage it.

Wolff suggested that McLaren team boss Andrea Stella might need to re-evaluate their ‘Papaya Rules’ and adopt a different strategy instead of his current “racers’ soul” method.

Toto Wolff mentioned that Andrea Stella and Zak Brown have an unparalleled understanding of the sport. He noted that Andrea has witnessed many events unfold firsthand during his time at Ferrari.

"He possesses the spirit of a true racer who is reluctant to intervene and prefers to let the competitors race. However, I believe they will reach a decision after this event… what is our approach to managing this situation?"

“At this point, we began implementing guidelines for engagement and later altered the terminology to 'racing intent' since the term ‘rules’ felt too severe for the drivers.”

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