24/08/2025 06:30
McLaren boss Andrea Stella has told his two drivers that they must
maintain "respect for one another" as they battle for the F1 world
championship. Oscar Piastri currently leads Lando Norris by nine
points in the all-McLaren fight to land the team's first drivers'
crown since Lewis Hamilton's 2008 success. Across the first 14
races, there has only been one major flashpoint when Norris
collided with Piastri in Canada, ending his race and costing him at
least 10 points in the title race. The team has been firm
throughout that its so-called 'Papaya Rules' will be in force
throughout the season, with both drivers holding the line thus far
that the team comes first, with McLaren currently able to win the
constructors' in Azerbaijan, in just three races' time. But team
principal Stella has instructed the pair that to pursue their
personal ambitions, the team must come first. "We are McLaren
Racing, we [know] the value of racing to Formula 1, and we want to
give great racing to Formula 1," Stella told media , including
RacingNews365. "We want to give our two drivers the possibility to
utilise and express their talent, pursue their aspirations and
their personal success. "This needs to happen within our boundaries
of the team interest, fairness, sportsmanship and respect for one
another. "For me, this is what I see when we have a deviating
strategy, when we have different options, and this is part of
racing. "We want to make sure that no driver is surprised, and no
driver has been surprised so far, and I can only be grateful for
the way Lando and Oscar have interpreted the way we go racing as a
team, as a group. "This is going to be the same until the end of
the season."
