McLaren handed brutal explanation for why rivals 'make fun of' papaya rules

Jacques Villeneuve has explained why McLaren's papaya rules are the subject of ridicule within the F1 paddock, blaming the team for giving a "nickname" to its driver standards.

The 1997 F1 drivers' champion highlighted that such parameters are "the norm" in F1, but that they are not usually made "fun of" by others.

Papaya rules is actually remarkably simple. It is merely the requirement for Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to race each other cleanly and fairly and to, crucially, not run into each other — an ironclad expectation across all teams in F1.

However, they have become synonymous with and emblematic of the Woking-based squad's insistence on parity between its two drivers, which seeks to maintain equal treatment and attempts to keep a controlling hand on the scales of fairness, something that is difficult, if not impossible, to achieve in motorsport.

The most explicit example of this over the 2025 campaign came at Monza, when McLaren instructed Piastri to let Norris by after the team bungled the British driver's pit stop.

The 26-year-old had been running ahead of his team-mate before the constructors' champion made the unconventional move of pitting the Australian first. When the 11-time grand prix winner came in after, a slow stop left him behind.

The enacting of team orders to correct the error in the middle of a close intra-team F1 drivers' championship battle proved contentious and polarising, with the decision dividing opinion throughout the paddock.

Whilst Villeneuve is not entirely clear on the specifics of papaya rules, he is certain on the misstep he feels McLaren has made by giving them a name.

"We don’t even know what the papaya rules are! It’s just a name which goes with the colour of the car," the Canadian told PokerScout. "Ultimately, every team has rules that drivers who are team-mates should not run into each other.

"It’s the norm. They just don’t give it a special name, a nickname like McLaren did. That’s all.

"Without a nickname, you cannot make fun of it! It’s that simple. And ultimately, it’s not just team rules, it’s whatever the drivers have in that contract. It’s that simple."

'It would have been very embarrassing'

In extension of papaya rules, McLaren opted not to back either Norris or Piastri in the title fight, despite the looming and increasing threat of Max Verstappen as the season grew to a crescendo.

This, coupled with late mistakes, such as its double disqualification in Las Vegas and its strategic blunder in Qatar, opened the door for the Red Bull driver, who ultimately finished the year between the two McLaren drivers — and just two points behind Norris, who took his maiden crown.

"I think the one thing they have realised is that you always need to stay on your toes," Villeneuve added. "You can’t go to sleep because you will get caught out. And they almost were.

"It doesn’t matter how superior you are; there’s always someone hiding there to come and get you."

Despite easing to the constructors' championship, the drivers' title proved more difficult to secure — in large part because of its two number one drivers stance — despite the dominance of the MCL39 for much of the campaign.

"They had the car to win it," the former Williams, BAR, Sauber and Renault driver said.

"It was a championship where if they had not won it, it would have been a big disappointment. It would have been very embarrassing if they had not won it this year.

"They recovered at the end with Lando. But Max really gave them a hard time, and I think that caught them by surprise."