McLaren F1 chief makes 'train crash' claim over driver tensions

McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri — Photo: © LAT Images

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McLaren F1 chief makes 'train crash' claim over driver tensions

McLaren have a very enviable F1 driver line-up

Matthew Hobkinson Lead Editor

F1 Editor & Journalist

Saturday 23 December 2023 22:57

McLaren CEO Zak Brown has revealed that a 'healthy conversation' between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri helped clear the air after the pair made contact at Monza earlier this season.

McLaren arguably have one of the most exciting driver line-ups on the grid in the form of Norris and Piastri.

The young duo are supremely talented, with the Australian rookie already showing he is not there simply to fill the vacant seat next to Norris.

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Although the pair have a good relationship on and off the track, things could have spilled over earlier in the season when the pair made contact at Monza during the first chicane on lap 24.

Lando Norris (L) and Oscar Piastri (R) will continue to race with McLaren in 2024

The pair proved to be very competitive for McLaren this season

But Zak Brown is not concerned over the level of competition between his drivers

Yet Brown has insisted that getting on top of things early helped defuse tensions, admitting that a little bit of competition is not necessarily a bad thing.

"There's an awareness that anytime you have two drivers that one is going to have to beat the other at some weekends," he said (via Autosport).

"They're super competitive right now, you feel a real energy around them driving for the team. We know there will be a day, probably sooner rather than later, when they're looking after their own interests.

"I feel Andrea's and my strengths are around driver management, so I think we can get ahead of that and manage it to make sure it stays a healthy competitiveness."

Brown: You can see F1 train crashes coming

"We've all seen from our experience in Formula 1, you can see train crashes coming," he added.

"You don't know exactly what the team bosses do, but you kind of sit there and go, 'I'd be kind of getting on that now' and it strikes me from the outside looking in sometimes you've seen things escalate and it doesn't appear the team's jumped in soon enough.

"So after Monza, which is the first and only time they touched, we had a very healthy conversation, and don't wait till it happens a second time or third time.

"I think having once driven - not as fast as either of these two guys - I think helps understand the psychology of the driver and when and where and how to approach because I have seen you can approach drivers at the wrong time and you actually make it worse."

McLaren Lando Norris Oscar Piastri Zak Brown Italian Grand Prix Monza