McLaren sealed the Constructors’ Championship in Singapore, but the night didn’t end without a sharp intake of breath on the pit wall. Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri traded paint on lap one, a flashpoint between two drivers who are now fighting each other as much as anyone else.
From fifth on the grid, Norris launched like a shot and threaded his way between Max Verstappen and Piastri into Turn 3. He clipped the back of the Red Bull, then banged wheels with his teammate as he dived for the inside. Piastri immediately bristled on the radio, calling it “not fair” and hinting that McLaren should consider reversing the cars after what he viewed as a clumsy move.
Norris wasn’t buying any notion of malice. Speaking to the BBC’s Chequered Flag podcast, he admitted he hadn’t seen the replays yet but made his stance crystal clear: anyone suggesting intent is “silly.”
“I don’t want to make contact with anyone,” Norris said. “There’s just as much chance I ruin my own race. Especially with my teammate — it’s the last thing I want. It was slippery, we were even debating inters before the start, and there was a big gap on the left. I put the car there. Any driver would.”
Race control agreed. No investigation, no penalty, just two title contenders trading blows in a greasy opening lap. Uncomfortable for the team? Of course. Unacceptable? The stewards didn’t think so, and neither did Norris.
The touch left Piastri frustrated in the moment — he called Norris’s avoidance “not good enough” over the radio — but the Australian softened his tone post‑race. He insisted there’s no sense of favoritism at McLaren, pointing to Monza as the counterexample. Back there, after a slow stop shuffled the order, he’d been asked to yield to Norris and did so. Different circumstances, same principle: do what’s fair.
“Tensions are high on lap one,” Piastri said. “We’re encouraged to share our views in the moment and I did that. We’ll talk it through. There have been a few tough situations this year, and this is another one, but I’m very happy the team’s intentions are well-meaning. No concerns from my side.”
That last line will be music to McLaren’s ears. The Constructors’ title is banked, but the sharper, daily battle is balancing two drivers with a legitimate shot at the big one. The team has largely let them race, and barring clear strategy swings or misfortune, that looks set to continue. That’s how you keep racing drivers happy — until they collide.
What matters for the standings is that Piastri’s lead over Norris in the Drivers’ Championship tightened to 22 points with six rounds left. It’s a margin that can vanish with a single messy weekend, and both know it. Singapore added spice but not scars, and that’s important. This is a rivalry without theatrics — just enough edge to keep everyone honest.
There’s also context that shouldn’t be lost in the highlight reels: Norris’s start was aggressive because it had to be. Track evolution was patchy, the risk of a compromised first lap was high, and there was a lane to exploit. Piastri’s complaint was as much about execution as intent. Those are the sort of arguments teams can actually solve on a Monday, away from the microphones.
For now, the scoreboard keeps humming in Woking orange. The constructors’ crown is locked in; the drivers’ fight is very much not. McLaren found out the hard way that managing success can be just as fraught as chasing it. But if the cost of two drivers in the hunt is the occasional clatter of carbon at Turn 3, that’s a bill they’ll pay.
No hard feelings, just hard racing. And six more chances for this to boil over — or deliver something special.
