McLaren has refused time and again to introduce any kind of team orders between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri even though Norris has a better shot at winning the drivers’ championship in 2024. This has led to speculations that there’s a clause in Piastri’s contract that prevents McLaren from forcing him to be the #2 driver.
However, former Haas team principal Guenther Steiner has a solution for the Woking squad. According to the Italian, McLaren needs to negotiate with Piastri’s manager, Mark Webber, that if he allows them to prioritize Norris in 2024, the team would then return the favor and prioritize Piastri in 2025 if there’s another opportunity to fight for the title.
Steiner also stressed that McLaren must get approval from all parties involved before doing so because if indeed there is a clause that says both drivers must be treated equally all the time, they could end up with a lawsuit for breaking said clause.
When asked on ‘The Red Flags Podcast’ what McLaren’s best bet is in case there is a clause holding them back, Steiner explained that they need to convince Webber to understand the situation.
“You change the clause“, Steiner asserted. “If it says it’s equal drivers, it’s equal drivers. And for sure Mark is pointing at that one but then you need to speak with Mark and say, ‘Hey dude, we have got a chance [to win both titles] and we don’t want to waste it.”, he added.
“Next year, if you have got another chance we turn it around [in Piastri’s favor]… You try to make a compromise because for sure, if it is a clause you cannot go against the clause otherwise you get a lawsuit.”
There is no denying that Webber himself suffered from being in the role of a second driver at Red Bull, however, Steiner believes that Webber is a grown-up and he will understand the situation.
Steiner warns Zak Brown against giving up the drivers’ championship
As a former team principal of an often backmarker team, Steiner knows how hard it is to be competitive in F1. And so, to get the opportunity to win both championships in a single season is an extremely rare opportunity for McLaren, which they shouldn’t let go.
He even compared the situation to knowing that you could win a lottery, however, he urged Zak Brown to act quickly upon it while he could before the chance is gone.
As of now, Piastri has shown no signs of willingly conceding to his teammate but has maintained his stance that he would think about helping Norris if the team asks him to do so. Some reports suggest how Piastri’s camp feels that the #81 driver is also mathematically in contention for the championship and may fight until he can’t win it.
But it could be too late till the time that happens. Piastri is currently 106 points behind Max Verstappen compared to the 62-point deficit of Norris. With only eight races to go in 2024, Piastri has little chance of realistically catching Verstappen even if he were to win all the races with the Dutchman finishing a modest third behind him.
