Brown fails to rule out McLaren Italian GP team orders

McLaren boss Zak Brown has not ruled out the potential use of team orders in the Italian Grand Prix, if Oscar Piastri jumps Lando Norris. 

Norris qualified on pole with Piastri second for the second all-McLaren front-row lockout of the season, but given the long run to Turn 1 at Monza and the fact that Norris has never led Lap 1 from a pole, the possibility of Piastri leap-frogging his team-mate, as in Hungary, cannot be discounted.

There was a McLaren team orders flare up in the race in Budapest, with Norris seemingly refusing to allow Piastri back through after team strategy allowed Norris to undercut the Australian. 

Norris eventually allowed Piastri through for the win, but on a difficult day for championship leader Max Verstappen, there was questions as to whether McLaren was wise to tell Norris to give up the extra seven points for the win. 

At Monza, Verstappen will be only seventh on the grid, and in a considerably faster car, Norris has the chance to eat into the 70-point deficit as Verstappen could struggle, and as such Brown did not rule out team orders being used if Piastri gets ahead at the start.

"That is a discussion that we will have with Andrea [Stella, team principal]," Brown told Nico Rosberg on Sky Sports F1. 

"First we needed to see how we would qualify, and now we know where we are, we can start talking through various strategies. 

"We have a constructors' championship, we've got a drivers' championship and two number one drivers, so we will see how things play out and keep everyone on their toes.

"Oscar has very clear, he's happy to support the team as Lando is happy to support the team."

Talks for team orders

Stella had previously hinted after Hungary that any driver who did not follow team orders would not buy into the McLaren ethos and could even leave the team. 

Brown described the problem as a "luxury" as talks would take place before the race.

"Now that we saw how it played out today, it will be a conversation we will have behind closed doors," he said. 

"How we want to play the race strategy, we will share that when we know the decision ourselves.

"It is a good luxury problem to have."