McLaren team orders U-turn “too late”, contract clauses tipped to play a role

McLaren’s new policy to implement team orders is “too late”, Jacques Villeneuve insists.

McLaren arrived at this weekend’s F1 Azerbaijan Grand Prix with a U-turn on their previous ‘Papaya rules’ which favoured hard-but-fair racing between both of their drivers.

Lando Norris will now be supported in certain scenarios above Oscar Piastri, McLaren confirmed.

“It’s fair. Had it been Piastri ahead in the championship, it would’ve been the other way around,” 1997 F1 champion Villeneuve told Sky Sports.

“Too bad for him, he didn’t manage to beat Lando earlier in the season. Now, it goes Lando’s way.”

Villeneuve continued: “You pay the price for your lack of pace early in the season.

“The following season it might be the other way around.

“But, if you don’t play the game now, you can bet that the team and the other driver won’t play the game in the following season.”

Karun Chandhok said: “You have to back one. You never know - next year, McLaren might not be in the championship fight.

“This might be Lando’s only chance to be in the championship fight.

“If they want to win the drivers’, they have to put everything behind one driver.”

But Villeneuve is not impressed by the timing of McLaren’s new thinking.

“No, it’s too late,” he insisted. “And they haven’t even made the decision yet…”

Norris is 62 points behind championship leader Max Verstappen ahead of the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

McLaren are only eight points adrift of Red Bull who top the constructors’.

Piastri has clarified about McLaren’s new team orders: “It’s not purely going to be me pulling over for Lando every single race.”

Norris insisted he doesn’t want favours to claim the F1 title: “That's not how I want to win a championship. I want to win it by fighting against Max, by beating Max, beating my competitors.”

Contract clause tipped to play a role

Last time out in Monza, without team orders, Piastri finished P2 ahead of Norris.

Piastri overtook Norris on Lap 1 to give his teammate a difficult start.

“It was a good move only because Lando did not defend aggressively, because he didn’t expect the move,” Villeneuve said.

“They should have come out of that corner 1-2 with Lando in front.

“Piastri did not follow that, and it damaged the team.

“I didn’t like their interviews. It was overly political and you can tell the drivers cannot say what they really feel inside.

“It’s only the contract. They cannot stop Piastri going for a personal win but they can force him to help the team to win the constructors’.”

Villeneuve claimed that Piastri’s attitude will be: “‘I do not have to give up the win, and I won’t, because I am protected in the contract’.

“[Mark Webber, Piastri’s manager] did an amazing job. As a first-year driver to have a contract as a No1 - amazing! It has never happened in the past. Good for him.”