Haas team principal Guenther Steiner has called on McLaren to back Oscar Piastri in the F1 drivers' title fight.
Piastri currently holds a 22-point lead over Lando Norris with six rounds remaining.
While the McLaren duo have largely been seen as the main contenders in the fight, Max Verstappen is posing an outside threat, 66 points adrift of Piastri.
McLaren no longer appears to have the advantage over the rest of the field it possessed earlier in the campaign, as it is now winless at the last three events.
Last time out in Singapore, Piastri and Norris clinched the constructors' championship for McLaren - but only after the pair collided on the opening lap.
"I would say first of all, a fantastic job," Steiner told the Red Flags podcast, reflecting on McLaren's title win.
"But what they put on in Singapore was not a world championship show.
“The car performance was good, but with the drivers at some stage, either you have rules or you don't have rules.
“Papaya rules, which nobody knows what they are, if they even exist, but you change them around and one day it’s like this.”
Verstappen has out-scored both McLaren drivers at the last three races, sealing victories in Italy and Azerbaijan respectively.
As the Dutchman seeks to make an almighty run at sealing his fifth title, Steiner has stated the time has come for McLaren to favour one driver.
"Either you let them race or if you're getting worried to lose the world championship, you have to make the call,” he said.
“You have to tell one guy, and obviously that one guy is Oscar in the moment because he has got more points than Lando.
“I’m sorry, and it's nothing against Lando. Oscar put himself in the first two-thirds of the races in a better position.
"Now it's ‘you go and win the world championship’ because if they lose the drivers' world championship now, I wouldn't be happy.
“And then you have got two unhappy drivers, at least if you favour one, you've got only one unhappy driver."
Also interesting:
Join RacingNews365's Ian Parkes, Sam Coop and Nick Golding, as they look back at last weekend's Singapore Grand Prix! Lando Norris' move on Oscar Piastri is a major talking point, as is Max Verstappen's title chances now being very much alive.
Rather watch on YouTube? Then click here!
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