McLaren’s Martin Whitmarsh doesn’t believe the use of team orders is doing Formula One any favours in terms of its public image.
Recent media coverage of the sport has centered around its use of team orders in the wake of the controversial Malaysian Grand Prix after both Red Bull and Mercedes deployed such tactics.
Whitmarsh says the sport would be better off without them and, despite the loss of a title in 2007 because McLaren refused to favour one driver over another, he will continue to allow his drivers to race fairly.
“No, I don’t think the team order headlines are good for F1 personally,” he told the Press Association.
“But it is very easy for me to get very pious and say ‘well, we don’t do it’, and condemn others. I don’t want to do that.
“Anyone can turn around to us and say ‘In 2007 you threw away a Championship. You could have favoured either driver and they would have been World Champion’, which everyone knows is true.
“It doesn’t feel right. Of course, there’s a bit of me that says ‘B*****, we should have had the Championship’, but in the same situation I hope we would do the same thing again.”
