Nov.18 (GMM) With the Las Vegas weekend carrying the real possibility of Max Verstappen falling mathematically out of the world championship race, scrutiny is intensifying on the three-way title fight – and on McLaren’s handling of its drivers.
If Verstappen drops 9 more points to Lando Norris, the Dutchman’s title defence is over. Norris and Oscar Piastri’s intra-team battle, however, would continue.
Against that backdrop, McLaren boss Zak Brown has spoken openly about growing pressure inside the papaya team. But in conversation with The Telegraph, he also raised the temperature on the topic of Red Bull’s Verstappen.
“I don’t want to disparage Max . He’s a four-time world champion,” Brown said. “He can be a bruiser, too aggressive on track. His arrogance comes out.”
Verstappen, meanwhile, had just days ago suggested McLaren’s insistence on maintaining two number 1 drivers is a structural error he would never allow.
“When a Formula 1 team has two top drivers, they’re bound to get in each other’s way. And if that team dominates the championship, it’s bound to split and cause problems,” he told Pelas Pistas.
“If I were the team principal, I’d never take that risk. Also, when both are fighting for the title, the atmosphere in such a team will become increasingly tense – I think we will soon see this in Formula 1, given the current situation.”
McLaren’s internal ‘papaya rules’ have already produced friction this season – a dynamic Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur cheekily mocked.
“I prefer mango for breakfast,” he laughed to Blick newspaper. “So we have the Mango Rules here!”
But 1980 world champion Alan Jones has rubbished suggestions fellow Australian Piastri – currently in a performance slump – is being disadvantaged.
“I think it’s the greatest load of nonsense of all time,” he told ABC’s Summer Grandstand podcast. “Every single season we come across this bulls**t. Every time.
“These teams don’t spend absolute fortunes travelling halfway around the world to stymie one car or give preference to the other. I know Zak Brown very well, he’s a good racer, and he’d be giving both these blokes equal chances.”
Ralf Schumacher shares that view, telling Sky Deutschland that Norris is simply operating at a higher level right now.
“Norris gets in the car and everything just works. The car is on rails, he can brake, steer, accelerate… it’s pure joy.”
Not everyone is convinced. Russian commentator Alexey Popov believes subtle patterns are visible.
“Look, Oscar – zero retirements, zero from Mexico City 2023 to Monza 2025. Two years! Since then, just a few races, from Baku to Brazil – three retirements,” he noted, showing a graphic on his program charting the sudden swing in form.
“There’s no need to comment directly. You can immediately see where the suspension was customised for Lando, you can see where they broke Oscar’s morale with these ‘papaya rules’.”
Brown insists such interpretations are misplaced – acknowledging that some optics have looked bad, but denying any intent.
He admitted the post-constructors’ championship celebration in Singapore, where only Norris made it to the team podium moment, fuelled suspicion.
Piastri was delayed with media duties.
“The first thing Lando and I said when we got there was, ‘Damn, Oscar isn’t here. This is going to look terrible.'”
Another moment circulated when Piastri appeared to ignore Brown’s congratulations over team radio, ‘hanging up’ before responding. Brown says that perception is wrong.
“It looked like he hung up, but he didn’t. I didn’t even notice, but Oscar did and immediately said, ‘Make sure Zak knows I didn’t hear him.'”
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