"We are taking minutes": This is how McLaren wants to guarantee fairness in the World Championship duel
(Motorsport-Total.com) - McLaren boss Zak Brown wants to ensure that the world championship title fight between his drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri does not get out of hand in the 2025 Formula 1 season with "balance, fairness and transparency."
McLaren team boss Zak Brown with his drivers Lando Norris (left) and Oscar Piastri (right) Zoom Download
Brown said on the podcast "How Leaders Lead with David Novak" : "If we have technical updates for the car and they are only available to one driver because two cars are not ready yet, we explain to our drivers why that is."
Because McLaren wants to avoid a scandal at all costs, where, for example, a driver learns from the media that his teammate is getting new parts - but he himself is not.
"That's why we give our drivers a reason," Brown explained. "We record it. If one driver has the advantage and the other doesn't, we record it. And next time, the other driver gets the new part."
Why Brown doesn't expect escalationBrown hopes to prevent tensions within the team and ensure a harmonious atmosphere. The fact that Norris and Piastri get along well helps enormously.
"We're very lucky," said Brown. "Because we definitely have the best driver duo. Not only are they among the fastest drivers in the world, but they're also very good guys. They're extremely competitive, but at the same time respectful and well-behaved."
The crash with his teammate Oscar Piastri in Canada is the negative highlight of a season in which Lando Norris actually entered the World Championship favorite. But if the Briton truly wants to win the title at the end of the year, he'll have to reduce his error rate. We provide an overview of his mishaps so far. Photo gallery
Whenever problems arise, "we resolve them directly." According to Brown, this prevents an escalating rivalry—as McLaren knows from the duels between Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna .
That's not the case with Norris and Piastri so far, Brown emphasized: "We have a good sense of when there's a bit of tension in the room. But I can honestly say: There hasn't been any so far."
But it doesn't have to stay that way. Norris and Piastri will likely fight it out for the 2025 World Championship title . Brown agrees: "If everything goes normally, it will stay between the two."
"Such duels often end in drama – not with us. We address tensions openly. They're not an elephant in the room for us."
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