McLaren fear loss of trust as contentious Lando Norris move faces detailed review

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has vowed there will be "a detailed, analytical review" of Lando Norris' contentious move on Oscar Piastri in the Singapore Grand Prix to ensure the trust between them remains intact.

Following a superb launch from fifth on the grid, with Piastri and Max Verstappen in third and second respectively, Norris dived down the inside of Piastri through the first two corners.

In Turn 3, Norris clipped Verstappen's Red Bull, slightly damaging the left front-wing endplate in the process. The jolt sent Norris into Piastri, who was forced to check his progress, allowing the Briton to claim third position.

Piastri bemoaned the move over the team radio, initially stating, "That wasn't very team-like", before asking soon after, "Are we cool with Lando just barging me out of the way?"

Despite an FIA review and a check by McLaren, no action was taken. Engineer Tom Stallard said: "As a team, we can see Lando has to avoid Verstappen, so we won't take any action during the race. We can review further afterwards."

The normally cool, calm, and collected Piastri then made his feelings clear about McLaren's decision.

"That's not fair," retorted Piastri. "I am sorry, that’s not fair. If he has to avoid another car by crashing into his team-mate, then that is a pretty **** job of avoiding."

Addressing the media post-race, Stella was asked by RacingNews365 whether Norris' move should be applauded for its bravery in going for a gap he felt was there at the time.

In response, Stella said: "Our review needs to be very detailed, very analytical.

"It needs to take into account the point of view of our two drivers, and then we will form a common opinion, based on which we will see whether we can confirm our initial interpretation, or there's something else we should conclude.

"In terms of going for the gap, I think it's just a bit too much of a coarse approach.

"Let me say we need to retain a higher degree of sophistication and detail, because there are so many elements that you need to take into account, and we need to make sure we don't conclude too quickly.

"We need to be accurate because there's a lot at stake, and a lot at stake is not only the championship points, but also the trust of our drivers in the way we operate as a team.

"This is, if anything, even more foundational than the points themselves. So we will apply all the accuracy that is required in this case and all the conversations that are needed."