Horner highlights McLaren F1’s communication issues, stating unclear guidance hinders driver performance.
Christian Horner, Team Principal of Red Bull, believes it will be “impossible” for McLaren F1 to prioritize a single driver if they continue to be free to compete against each other on the track.
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri went wheel to wheel in the first lap of the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday, with Piastri overtaking pole holder Norris in the first lap.
Norris is currently the closest challenger to Max Verstappen in the drivers’ championship and narrowed the gap to 62 points with a third place at Monza, while Verstappen finished in sixth place.
Throughout the race day, McLaren referred to the “Papaya Rules,” with both drivers instructed to be particularly cautious when fighting each other.
However, Piastri’s overtake allowed Charles Leclerc to take second place from Norris—and eventually the race victory—which aided Red Bull and Verstappen in their quest to retain their titles.
“I don’t know what the exact Papaya Rules are, but they nearly retired from the race at the second chicane,” Horner remarked.
“From the perspective of the drivers’ championship, it helped us today that they fought and held their positions.”
Under media and fan pressure, McLaren is starting to shift its philosophy and is considering favoring Norris in the future with the drivers’ title in mind.
“It’s always a difficult position for a team,” says Horner.
“But inevitably at some point you have to do your best. And it’s impossible to do that in a situation like this if things are not clear. And they really have not been clear in the media but certainly with their drivers as well when you see what happened at the start.”
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Horner: Unclear Strategy Impairs McLaren F1 Drivers Horner: Unclear Strategy Impairs McLaren F1 Drivers
