"I can't have my own success without the team having success," says Oscar Piastri as Monza debate continues.

While social media and the like is awash with theories and outright accusations, the man most affected by last weekend's controversial radio call appears to have accepted it.

"I think in the moment, obviously, I questioned it on the radio as racing drivers often do and as we get encouraged to do," Piastri tells ESPN when asked about his initial reaction to (engineer) Tom Stallard's 'request' that he give his (second) position back to his teammate following a botched pit stop.

"We said a slow pit stop was part of racing," was the Australian's initial reaction to Stallard's call. "I don't really get what changed here, but if you want me to do it, I'll do it."

When Stallard repeated the call Piastri yielded the position.

"For me, once I had the second request, for me at that point I'm always going to respect that call," insists Piastri.

Many believe that the call makes a mockery of the team's so-called Papaya Rules, a protocol that Lando Norris has since all but denied actually exists.

Though the incident, and the reaction to it, will allow broadcasters, the media and Drive to Survive the opportunity to exploit a potential drama, Piastri is keen to play down talk of a rift within the team, while insisting that he does not feel factions within the Woking outfit are working against him.

"We have had very good discussions this week about what went on and what can be made clearer, what can be improved," he says. "That's always kind of a learning process, I guess.

But yeah, ultimately I know that the team would have my best interests at heart. And ultimately, I want to protect that because I can't have my own success without the team having success. So protecting that is a very important thing for me."

Asked if the events of last weekend might cause him to take a more ruthless approach in the fight for the title, he replies: "Not at the cost of future success. Definitely not."

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by Ricardo_sanchez, 16/09/2025 10:01

"@superbird70 - if Prost’s version is true, Ayrton was the villain here. Suzuka ‘90 was even worse, in terms of poor sportsmanship but at least by then they weren’t team mates. It is incredibly hard to keep relationships friendly when both drivers are in the title fight. What your example highlights for me is how well McLaren has managed the Piastri–Norris pairing, so far. Stella deserves credit for applying principles fairly and keeping that equilibrium, which is vital if he wants the same driver combination to work across multiple seasons."

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2. Posted by Ricardo_sanchez, 16/09/2025 9:52

"@kenji - what exactly is “wrong” in what I wrote? Norris conceding pit stop priority is a matter of record, the no-undercut condition was explicit, the crew error broke it, and team orders are legal. Those are facts. If you disagree, point to which fact you think is untrue. Saying “wrong” without evidence isn’t an argument."

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3. Posted by kenji, 16/09/2025 3:30

"@Ricardo-sanchez...Wrong. Was Piastri told of the arrangement between the team and Norris that there would be no undercut and if he came out ahead that he's have to concede to team orders? If so then I certainly haven't sighted any coms to that effect. Ask yourself this...how could the team give Norris a guarantee prior to the actual pitstop without having any prior understanding. Piastri's reaction confirms that he believed that pitstop events were deemed to be 'racing incidents' and as such non convertible. It's quite obvious that we are never going to agree on this so with that in mind ,we should move on as fellow posters must be getting bored!!!"

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4. Posted by Superbird70, 15/09/2025 20:05

"OMG I quoted wrong decade but here is an interesting discussion from the past;
It was in Imola in '89 that the relationship between us disintegrated. We qualified one-two, and Ayrton suggested we shouldn't fight at the first corner, Tosa, on the opening lap; whoever got there first would have the position. He led away, with me second, but then the race was stopped when Gerhard Berger had a big crash. On the restart, I got ahead—and at Tosa, Ayrton passed me!

Afterward, he argued that it wasn't the start: It was the restart, so the agreement didn't apply! I said I'd continue to work with him on technical matters, but that was it. And the atmosphere in the team became very bad, of course.

At the end of the year, going to Suzuka, I was ahead on points, and I told the team, "There's no way I'm going to open the door anymore." I'd done it too often, and I'd had enough.

All I can say is I hope everyone at McLaren are using the same revision of internal rules.
Otherwise it could be Max as WDC again. I love McLaren...and Ferrari but sometimes I just want to slap someone."

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5. Posted by Ricardo_sanchez, 15/09/2025 18:15

"@kenji - you’re mischaracterising what actually happened. Norris had already conceded pit stop priority on the explicit basis there’d be no undercut, and the crew error broke that agreement. Correcting it wasn’t “fixing” or “manipulation” – team orders have been legal since 2011 – it was simply Team Orders Restoring Fairness."

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6. Posted by Celtic Tiger, 15/09/2025 3:47

"Smart lad to play the politics game. Keep calm and carry on. "

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7. Posted by kenji, 15/09/2025 2:10

"@Editor/Ricardo-sanchez.....your opinion , just for clarity...If a driver finds himself leading his team in ontrack position without having done anything wrong and he is told to relinquish his position to the other side of the garage, what would you call it? Altruism......By agreeing to do this is not Piastri complicit in altering a race result? because that's what occurred IMO,an opinion that's shared by many others also."

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8. Posted by Laps, 14/09/2025 18:32

"In the next couple of Races, McLaren will have confirmed the Constructors Championship and Max will be totally out of contention. Then the unfettered duel can commence.
I’m sure that McLaren Management will still want to retain control, but rationale for ‘butting in’ becomes more difficult.
Bring it on!"

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9. Posted by Superbird70, 14/09/2025 16:59

"It is a public relations issue McLaren really doesn't need. Max is still mathematically in the hunt for the WDC. I really hope we don't see a 1979,1980 Suzuka type incident.
McLaren need to focus, and at least ensure everyone is following the same narrative when giving interviews."

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10. Posted by Editor, 14/09/2025 11:19

"Ricardo_sanchez

"With the full context now clear, maybe the wilder accusations of race-fixing and manipulation will finally start to subside."

Don't bet on it."

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11. Posted by Ricardo_sanchez, 14/09/2025 11:15

"Piastri is far more level-headed and sanguine than many of the F1 followers who’ve been frothing at the mouth after Monza. This calm, logical approach on and off the track will almost certainly be a decisive factor in him becoming WDC. With the full context now clear, maybe the wilder accusations of race-fixing and manipulation will finally start to subside. Then again…"

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Piastri rules out ruthless approach to title fight

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