McLaren have made it clear they will not hesitate to impose team orders in the decisive moments of Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix if it prevents the drivers’ title from slipping to Max Verstappen.
Zak Brown, the team’s chief executive, confirmed that the team will intervene should the final laps require Lando Norris or Oscar Piastri to assist the other - a stance that reflects both the rarity of the opportunity and the high stakes involved.
Norris enters the finale as the title favourite, holding a 16-point advantage over Piastri and a 12-point cushion over defending champion Verstappen.
In practical terms, any team order is likely to involve Piastri yielding track position, given Norris’ stronger mathematical chance.
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But Brown insisted the principle applies equally should the standings flip during the race.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Brown was asked specifically whether McLaren would swap their drivers if Verstappen were leading, Piastri running third and Norris fourth - a scenario in which a podium would seal Norris’ title.
His response was unequivocal: “We want to win the drivers’ championship.
The F1 drivers with the most World Championships | PA/GETTY/REUTERS“We are coming into this knowing we have two horses in the race, and they start with equal opportunities, but if the scenario develops in a way where we have to do something because one guy is not going to win, and one driver can help the other… well, we want to win the drivers’ championship.
“It would be at that late stage and up until then we would let the race play out.
"You can have safety cars and reliability so it wouldn’t be until it is clear one can win it and one can’t, then we would not cost ourselves the drivers’ championship by not being in the right position relative to Max.
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Lando Norris is the favourite to win the F1 title going into Sunday's Abu Dhabi Grand Prix
| REUTERS"We won’t be stubborn. There is a lot at stake.”
Brown stressed that such calls would be made jointly with team principal Andrea Stella.
“This is the decision of Andrea and me,” he said. “We are so aligned on how we go racing that we never need to challenge ourselves. We almost don’t need to talk about it.”
With practice beginning today, Brown confirmed that both Norris and Piastri have been briefed on the team’s position.
“The drivers are now aware that we want to win the drivers’ championship,” he said.
“They are great teammates.”
Max Verstappen boosted his hopes of F1 title glory with his triumph in Qatar last time out
| REUTERSMcLaren’s approach marks a sharp contrast with their recent history - the team has traditionally been reluctant to use team orders except in exceptional circumstances.
But the calculus is different this weekend.
McLaren have not produced a drivers’ world champion since Lewis Hamilton in 2008; they have not entered a final race with two title contenders since Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard in the early 2000s.
With Verstappen still capable of overturning the deficit, McLaren believe they cannot afford to leave the outcome to chance.
The plan, Brown insisted, is simple: the race will run naturally for as long as possible, strategy will remain open for both drivers, and only when the picture becomes unmistakably clear will the call come.
Should it be required, it will likely be one of the most scrutinised radio messages of the modern Formula One era - and the moment that determines whether McLaren’s long wait for another world champion finally comes to an end.