Red Bull driver Max Verstappen labelled McLaren’s commitment to avoiding team orders “perfect” as the three-way fight for the Formula 1 championship heads into the penultimate round.
Lando Norris leads team-mate Oscar Piastri and Verstappen by 24 points with two rounds - and a sprint race this weekend in Qatar - to go.
McLaren has stuck by its desire to let its drivers race each for the championship all season and will not change that in Qatar despite the team’s double disqualification in Las Vegas last weekend allowing Verstappen to get so much closer.
While Norris is still in control, the threat of Verstappen stealing the drivers’ championship at the very end is greater than at any point in the second half of the season – and with Piastri 24 points behind it could be tempting to have ordered him to back the Norris bid.
Verstappen has questioned McLaren’s philosophy at times this year but said in Qatar on Thursday it was right to stand by it now with 58 points still up for grabs.
Asked if it complicated McLaren’s situation, Verstappen said: “No, it's perfect.
“I think you can't do a better job than allowing them to race as well because why would you suddenly now say that Oscar wouldn't be allowed anymore?
“I mean if that was said to me I would have not rocked up! I would have told them to f off.
“If you're a real winner and a racer as a driver then you go for it. Even if you are behind, what's the point otherwise to turning up?
“Otherwise you can easily just label yourself as a number two driver which I think he doesn't want to be.
“I know that I'm equal in points with Oscar. A lot still needs to go right [for Piastri or Verstappen] but I think it should be like that, that they are free to race and hopefully we can make it a great battle till the end.”
Verstappen’s title hopes got a huge assist with the McLaren disqualification in Las Vegas but he still requires assistance to snatch a fifth consecutive world championship.
Him winning the sprint and the grand prix in Qatar would cut Norris’s lead to 16 points at most – meaning another Verstappen victory in Abu Dhabi would still not be sufficient.
Verstappen acknowledged “it's definitely a better chance than what it was before that, so we take it” but added: “You need to also be aware that even if you win everything, you still need a bit of luck.
“So we'll see how that goes. For us, nothing changes. We go all in. We have nothing to lose.”
A brief discussion
Piastri revealed on Thursday in Qatar that the subject had briefly come up prior to the weekend.
“We've had a very brief discussion on it and the answer is no,” Piastri said. “I'm still equal on points with Max and got a decent shot of still winning it if things go my way. So, yeah, that's how we play it.”
Piastri's hopeful that a return to higher grip circuits in Qatar and Abu Dhabi will swing the momentum back in his favour after seven consecutive grands prix behind Norris.
That's why Norris has refused to choose between Verstappen and Piastri when picking his biggest title rival.
“They're both just as good as one another," Norris explained.
“I know what Max is capable of and I think Oscar's capable of exactly the same as what Max can do.”
