During the Italian GP, McLaren gave Oscar Piastri the order to let his teammate pass after Lando Norris suffered from a botched pit stop. The McLaren pair planned to go long and switch to the soft tyre late on to hunt down race leader Max Verstappen. However, with Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc slowly closing in on Piastri, Norris suggested Piastri stop first.
The championship leader had a good stop, but when it was Norris’s time to box, he was delayed by an extra few seconds. McLaren ordered that Piastri was to let his teammate back through. This order from the Woking-based team has caused fury from F1 fans.
F1 fans hit back at McLaren following team orders at the Italian GP
F1 fans have taken to social media to voice their opinions on the team orders issued by McLaren in Monza. While few agree that it was right for the Papaya team to swap the positions, many have disagreed with the decision.
One fan said: “Bad stops are part of racing. Good/Bad luck is what makes a Driver’s championship. McLaren should accept that and let their drivers race.”
Bad stops are part of racing. Good/Bad luck is what makes a Driver’s championship. McLaren should accept that and let their drivers race.
— Leeah (@leeahsformula) September 8, 2025
Another commented, “If they continue to meddle with the drivers too much they will diminish the drivers championship. The constructors is 99% wrapped up. Wall the garage, and let them at it! Like Rossi and Lorenzo back in Yamaha.”
If they continue to meddle with the drivers too much they will diminish the drivers championship. The constructors is 99% wrapped up. Wall the garage, and let them at it! Like Rossi and Lorenzo back in Yamaha.
— StayOffTheMarbles (@stayoffmarbles) September 8, 2025
However, some fans backed McLaren’s decision, as one fan wrote, “After what happened at Zandvoort it was the right thing to do.”
After what happened at Zandvoort it was the right thing to do.
— MegaWeapon (@mega1480) September 8, 2025
The decision left the McLaren duo to fight it out for second place. Norris used his one-lap tyre advantage to pull out a small gap and cross the line as the runner-up. This means the Brit closed in on Piastri by three points, leaving him with a 31-point deficit.
McLaren team principal defends the team order decision
McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has defended the decision to swap the drivers after Norris’ slow pit stop. The Italian told F1TV that the decision had nothing to do with the race in Zandvoort, where Norris suffered a mechanical DNF.
He then explained, “Today, when we started the pit stop sequencing, we started the sequencing pitting Oscar first, but with the clear intent that we would have not swapped the positions. Unfortunately, this compounded with the fact that we had a slow pit stop [for Norris].
McLaren Set a Dangerous Precedent With Controversial Team Orders at Monza
“Because we had the sequence with Oscar first and then the slow pit stop, we thought that the fair thing to do was to go back to the positions that we had before the pit stops. I’m sure Oscar will be very comfortable with this; he already was comfortable during the race.”
The situation is reminiscent of last season at the Hungarian GP, where after leading the race, Piastri found himself behind Norris after the pit stop phase. Eventually, an unhappy Norris let his teammate through, costing him seven points in his title fight with Verstappen.
What would you have done if you were sitting on the McLaren pit wall? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section.
