The Woking-based team hinted after the Italian Grand Prix that they were fully ready to back Lando Norris in his bid to win the drivers’ championship. McLaren have come under fire after recent performances which have seen them rapidly catch Red Bull in the constructors’ title fight but not as much in the drivers’ title, with Norris closing in on Verstappen in the drivers’ battle but missing out on some potentially crucial points due to their reluctance to enforce team orders.
The team initially seemed happy to treat their drivers equally, however with Norris now 62 points behind the leading Dutchman having trailed by 84 just five races ago, McLaren is looking to change strategy. Team principal Andrea Stella said that the time has come to ensure McLaren maximise point-scoring chances for Norris, adding: “We need to be better at capitalising the opportunities that Red Bull at the moment seem to offer by not being in the usual possibility of competing for podiums.”
This situation has, however, now changed, with Stella stating that Piastri had now agreed to back Norris in his championship quest.
All eyes are now on the Papaya team and whether they can take both titles off of Red Bull before the end of the year. While an 84-point deficit would be a big one to come back from, Norris would not be the first driver to take the championship after a big title challenge though, as other drivers have also mounted unlikely comebacks under different points systems.
Sebastian Vettel – 2012 – 39 points with eight races to go
Point system: 25 – 18 – 15 – 12 – 10 – 8 – 6 – 4 – 2 – 1
Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing, Christian Horner, Team Principal, Red Bull Racing, Adrian Newey, Chief Technical Officer, Red Bull Racing and the Red Bull Racing team celebrate Championship victory
Photo by: Andrew Ferraro / Motorsport Images
Sebastian Vettel was sitting fourth in the drivers’ title fight 13 races into the 2012 season, with Fernando Alonso on the road to his third championship with a 39-point lead. After Vettel’s retirement at the Italian GP, the German was sat behind Alonso, Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen, however, there was just a two-point gap between fourth and second place.
At the 14th race of the season – the Singapore GP – pole-sitter Hamilton suffered a gearbox failure on lap 22, giving Vettel the win and catapulting him into second in the championship and 31 points behind Alonso. The…
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