McLaren has declared that Formula 1 is not a “coalition championship” as RB nicked Lando Norris‘ fastest lap in the Singapore Grand Prix to help sister team Red Bull.
Norris produced a dominant showing at the Marina Bay Street Circuit to convert pole position into a commanding 20-second race win over Red Bull’s Max Verstappen.
The Briton, who headed all 62 race laps, was on track to register a maiden grand slam as he also harboured the fastest lap until Daniel Ricciardo claimed it at the end.
Verstappen, who came home in second, was told on the radio on the cooldown lap that Ricciardo had boosted his title hopes, to which he replied: “Thank you, Daniel”.
The Dutchman squandered another seven points to Norris, but he possesses a seismic 52-point advantage over the McLaren driver with seven rounds now remaining.
McLaren boss Andrea Stella has admitted that he was “surprised” that RB opted to demote Daniel Ricciardo to the back to have a successful crack at the quickest lap.
“I did not see it coming,” Stella admitted to media including Motorsport Week.
“I was a little surprised that the highest priority of racing in Singapore was to go and score the fastest lap of the race.
“At the same time I have so much sympathy, support and friendship with Daniel that I’m just happy that he may add this fastest lap to his track record.”
Stella wants discussions on Red Bull/RB partnership
McLaren CEO Zak Brown has been unresolved in his stance earlier this season that one organisation should not be permitted to operate two teams in the same sport.
But while he wouldn’t be drawn on whether RB intended to help Red Bull, Stella believes it has provided the chance to reopen the conversation on two-team ownership.
“Look, this is a big matter. As soon as you invoke the sportsmanship, I think you need to approach this with a sense of responsibility that I want to have.
“I don’t know the facts, I just saw that Racing Bulls went for the fastest lap and they achieved it.
“But for me here to talk about sportsmanship and so on, I think it would be out of place.
“So I think we have to take it at face value, they scored the fastest lap and potentially as part of a longer-term conversation we need to put the sport in a position in which at any stage, being it trackside or being it factory side, teams behave in a totally autonomous manner because this is a Constructors’ Championship, a Drivers’ Championship.
“It’s not a coalition championship. Therefore this needs to be definitely addressed.
“But at no point I have elements now to say Racing Bulls went for the fastest lap to support Red Bull. I just find it a little, how to say, peculiar.”
Stella has implied that McLaren can now use the lost point as added motivation to ensure that Norris missing out is rendered inconsequential come the season’s end.
“If the championship comes down to a point, it could prove quite significant,” he admitted.
“I think we just have to work hard to make sure that this doesn’t come down to a point.”
