'Papaya rules' will rule cautious McLaren

MCLAREN will continue to allow Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to race freely despite their late-race collision at the Canadian Grand Prix, with team principal Andrea Stella making it clear that the team’s core philosophy of driver independence remains intact.

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The incident occurred when Norris clipped the back of Piastri’s car during a DRS-fuelled battle for fourth place, prompting speculation over whether McLaren would tighten team orders. However, the team has firmly backed its drivers to continue racing on merit — albeit with heightened caution.

“Being free to race and being clear as to how we go racing is a value of racing,” Stella was quoted as saying by Sky Sports.

“We want to try and exercise and respect that value as much as we can, rather than, every time we have proximity between the two cars, having control from the pit wall.”