When a team is nailed on to claim the constructors’ Formula One championship and its drivers are 1-2 in the drivers’ title race, there’s usually some kind of rules to ensure fairness to ensure one is not deemed favoured over the other.
Mercedes handled the issues very differently from McLaren when Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton were title contenders. The reason there was often lap one drama between the two silver arrows drivers was because by the end of the first lap, the instruction to hold station was the de facto norm.
McLaren’s ‘papaya rules’ were first evident at the 2024 Italian Grand Prix. Pole sitter Lando Norris saw his team mate muscle past him at the chicane on lap one, which opened the door for rival Charles Leclerc to also squeezer past the British driver, costing McLaren a probably 1-2 as the monegasque driver claimed victory in front of the adoring tifosi.
Papaya rules get more complex
Over the past year, the explanation of papaya rules from Zak Brown and Andrea Stella has varied from time to time but the principals are clear. Number one: The interests of the team come first. Number two: Don’t crash into one another.
Clearly Oscar’s move in Monza was in breach of these rules given the challenge on his team mate allowed a rival into contention and cost the team ten points. Yet the team chose not to act.
Roll the clock forward a year and matters in Woking have become far more convoluted. At the British Grand Prix this year, the Australian was penalised ten seconds by the stewards for his erratic driving ahead of a safety car restart.
Over the radio, the team threw their weight behind Piastri bemoaning the penalty as unfair, yet when challenged by Piastri to instruct Norris to yield his position given their opinion of the stewards decision, McLaren refused Oscar’s request leaving him stony faced and monosyllablistic at the post race interviews.
Piastri’s nose out of joint
Next time out in Hungary Piastri felt he was double dealt again as having pitted the Aussie early in the race for tactical reasons, Norris extended his first stint meaning he was in range of completing the Grand Prix on just two sets of tyres.
Piastri of course couldn’t make that strategy work due to the McLaren strategy call on his first stop and was forced to make a second change of tyres, leaving Lando with track position which he turned into a the race win.
Oscar was dominant in Zandvoort, but since then he has failed to finish ahead of either Verstappen or Norris nor even make a podium finish across the four weekends. As McLaren again meddled in Monza, Piastri was forced to relinquish his position on track to Norris because the team hampered the British driver with an extended five second pit stop.
Piastri questioned whether that was just a racing incident at the time, but the response from McLaren was firm. ‘Hand back the place to Lando.’ Next time out in Baku was a shocker for Piastri as he put his McLaren into the wall in qualifying in Q1, his start was deemed false by the stewards and his race was done before the end of lap one as he tangled again with the unforgiving barriers.
Aston Martin breaches F1 budget cap
Norris suffers “consequences”
A ‘reset’ for Oscar was declared for Singapore and he qualified ahead of his team mate in P3. At the start Piastri attempted to go around the outside of Verstappen ahead, opening the door on the inside toe his team mate.
Lando duly accepted the challenge and was alongside his team mate going into turn three. Yet Verstappen ahead dawdled through the corner, causing Norris to clip the back end of the RB21. This bounced him sideways, making mild contact with his team mate, who9 again immediately demanded the team instruct Lando to hand back the place.
The stewards declared the matter a ‘racing incident’ and McLaren told Piastri they would accept their decision and conduct an internal review after the race. Their decision became evident in Austin Texas at the following Grand Prix when Zak Brown and Andrea Stella both spoke of unspecified “consequences” Lando would face for the remainder of the season. Back in Monza ’24 this didn’t happen to Piastri; clearly papaya rules have changed.
It became clear that the punishment was that Piastri wold be allowed the choice of where he ran in qualifying. Previously the team on alternative weekends gave each driver that privilege. Yet at the start of the Sprint on Saturday morning, Piastri took out himself, his team mate and Fernando Alonso in a chaotic moment universally credited to be the Aussie’s fault by each F1 analyst in the paddock.
Paddock “head scratching”
McLaren clearly had to act, but it would be the proportionality of their response to which everyone waited with baited breath. Piastri’s ill conceived move in the Austin Sprint had a significantly bigger on the team than had Lando’s move in Singapore.
Having lost all the data from running in the Sprint, McLaren were way off the pace when it came to qualifying and Max Verstappen. Further the setup for the Grand Prix was compromised and the paddock waited for the guillotine to fall on the Australian driver.
Yet once again McLaren’s strange decision has left many paddock observers scratching their collective heads. The punishment for Piastri is the removal of the sanction placed on Norris after Singapore, but it feels like the punishment really does not fit the crime. German F1 stalwart, BILD, is reporting many in the paddock a suffering from a bout of “head shaking.”
Power units & aerodynamics at altitude; Who is favourite in Mexico?
Low grip Mexico, bad news for Piastri
It maybe the bizarre goings on in Woking are due to the fact the team has not had to handle two drivers fighting for the championship since Fernando Alonso and Lewis Hamilton’s bitter duel back in 2007. The naivety with which the team has dealt with the internal tensions has made them a laughing stock even to many long standing supporters of McLaren.
Worst of all, Red Bull have got their act together and the RB21 is now a completely different racing machine. Vertsappen has won three of the last four races (including the sprint) and in just four weekends has slashed his 104 point deficit to just 40 on the championship leader.
Even more bad news for McLaren is the fact that the Mexico City circuit is low grip, a condition where Piastri in particular is often slow. Low grip in Austin saw him qualify just P6 and in Mexico he has never finished higher then eighth.
A win this weekend for Max and another average outing for Piastri and the current world champion must become favourite to retain his title. Should it come down to Abu Dhabi, McLaren have messed up the strategy for their junior drivers taking a seat in FP1. It is most likely Oscar will have to relinquish his seat for the second mandatory FP1 occasion this season at the season finale.
Why Red Bull continue the RB21 development whilst rivals have stopped
Much has been written about the huge car and power unit design regulation changes coming in 2026 with Alpine first deciding to focus all their attention and resources on the project back in March this year. Williams were not far behind in April but Carlos Sainz complained about the decision arguing the car had so much potential they should continue. Yet nothing more has come from Grove with the exception of a few tweaks here and there.
With the team’s now being under a cost cap limit set by the FIA’s financial regulations along with limits for wind tunnel usage and hours of computer fluid design, gone are the days when they can develop their current car to the end of the year due to the resource restrictions….. READ MORE
With over 30 years of experience in Formula 1 as an insider journalist, I have built trusted connections across the paddock, from race engineers and mechanics to senior team figures. At The Judge 13, I and a handful of trusted colleagues share exclusive Formula 1 news, expert analysis and behind-the-scenes stories you will not find in mainstream motorsport media.
A.J. Hunt is Senior Editor at TJ13, where Andrew oversees editorial standards and contributes to the site’s Formula 1 coverage. A career journalist with experience in both print and digital sports media, Andrew trained in investigative journalism and has written for a range of European sports outlets.
At TJ13, Andrew plays a central role in shaping the site’s output, working across breaking news, analysis, and long-form features. Andrew’s responsibilities include fact-checking, refining editorial structure, and ensuring consistency in reporting across a fast-moving news cycle.
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