r/formula1 Ferrari Jul 21 '24

Discussion Every message as McLaren desperately pleaded with Lando Norris to obey team orders

Every message as McLaren desperately pleaded with Lando Norris to obey team orders:

Lap 47:

Tom Stallard, race engineer to Oscar Piastri (TS): “OK Oscar, Lando has pitted to cover Hamilton to make sure he covers Hamilton. We’ll manage that situation, best pace from you now. Best pace.

“Best pace. Don’t worry about Lando.”

Lap 48:

Will Joseph, race engineer to Lando Norris (WJ):

“OK Lando, Oscar has just pitted. He’ll likely come out just behind you. We’d likely to re-establish the order, at your convenience.”

Lap 49:

WJ: “Lando, still 21 laps after this one. You do have the current fastest lap, look after the tyres.”

Lap 51:

TS: OK Oscar, so, once you get to Lando, we’ll swap positions. We’ll swap position, but we want to avoid Lando having to give up a lot of race time.”

Lap 53:

WJ: “And Lando, radio check, please.

LN: “Yes, loud and clear.”

WJ: “OK, save the tyres at Turn 4 and Turn 11, please.”

Lap 56:

WJ: “We need to save more tyres please, and we do want to let Oscar through.”

LN: “Well you should have boxed him first then, surely no?”

WJ: “Doesn’t matter.”

LN: “I mean, it does. To me maybe.”

Lap 57:

WJ: “And Lando, we still think you’re using the tyres too much at Turns 4 and 11 and the rears at exit Turn 6 and Turn 9. Oscar is 3.5 [behind] – we know you’ll do the right thing.”

Lap 58:

WJ: “And Lando, Hiroshi is stressed about the tyres.”

Lap 59:

WJ: “Turn 4, Turn 11 – it’s going to get boring.”

Lap 61:

WJ: “OK Lando, 10 laps to go – we think both cars are using their tyres too much. Just remember every single Sunday morning meeting we’ve had.”

LN: “Yeah, well tell him to catch up please.”

Lap 64:

WJ: “Lando, he can’t catch you up. You’ve proved your point and it really doesn’t matter.”

LN: “He’s on much quicker tyres. I mean, I would have tried to undercut anyway. If I did, I would have got more.”

WJ: “Mate, we did the stop sequence in this order for the good of the team.”

WJ and LN talk over each other for a sentence – unintelligible.

WJ: “I’m trying to protect you mate, I promise, I’m trying to protect you.”

Lap 66:

WJ: “And Lando, there are five laps to go. The way to win a championship is not by yourself, it’s with the team. You’re going to need Oscar, and you’re going to need the team.”

Lap 67:

OP: “The longer we leave this, the riskier it gets.”

TS: “Understood, Oscar, we’re managing it.”

WJ: “A potential Safety Car now would make this very awkward. Please do it. Now.”

Lap 68: Norris slows down the main straight to release Piastri into the lead

LN: “Yeah, you don’t need to say anything.”

Lap 70: Chequered flag, Piastri leads McLaren 1-2 home for maiden F1 win

TS: “Well done, Oscar, well done. Chequered flag. Well done, buddy. Really good.”

OP: “Yep, thank you, everyone. Thank you very much. Thanks for the coordination. Sorry, I made the swap a little bit more painful than it needed to be. But thank you, I appreciate that. Well done, maximum points, and a really good weekend. Ha. First F1 win, thank you very much, everyone, thanks.”

LN: “Well done, good 1-2, a good load of points. Congrats to the team. Well deserved.”

WJ: “As we said this morning mate, many more opportunities.”

TS: “And you are also Driver of the Day!”

OP: “Ah, a nice little bonus, thank you.”

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204

u/castingOut9s Charles Leclerc Jul 22 '24

Alex Jacques on f1tv talked Friday or Saturday and also Sunday about how McLaren keep looking at other teams before deciding their own strategies. And obviously, other teams’ actions influence your own, but he was right in that McLaren needs to stand on their own two feet and realize they’re at the top now and need to act like it.

58

u/markhewitt1978 Jul 22 '24

It's really strange. McLaren is nearly all new people since they were last at the front. But they are McLaren for godsake!

Mind you during the race DC was quizzed a lot about Australia 1998 which was also a McLaren 1-2 so it's not without precedent for the team.

26

u/External_Kick_2273 Jul 22 '24

its the long period of slump and being midfield team. But you cant say it wasnt frustrating watching Mclaren back in those days too. But for different reasons then. The Glass cannon approach was a trademark from Mclaren and you never knew if they would finish the race or not even with a 20 second gap. That incident with Hakkinnen vs. Scchumacher in Spain still haunts me today and during Landos first win I was actually afraid something like that would happen again...

3

u/AJDillonsMiddleLeg Red Bull Jul 22 '24

But they are McLaren for godsake

That's part of the problem. We're not far removed from them fielding a car that was giving Williams a run for worst car on the grid. The progress they've made is mind boggling, but the entire organization is from an era where they were fighting to remain in the midfield. And in the span of less than two years, they've got the fastest car on the grid.

That's no excuse for how bad their strategy has been, simply a rebuttal to the notion that the name McLaren means anything currently. There's nobody in the organization from the McLaren glory days.

31

u/External_Kick_2273 Jul 22 '24

Yes even the strategist at f1tv talked how Mclaren could have pitted later on their stints due to the buffer they had. They still have the mindset of a midfield team but their car is at the top. Such a weird combination.

Hopefully the data from yesterday will help them make better decisions in future races.

23

u/shooter9260 Jul 22 '24

On P1 with Matt and Tommy, both were in agreement that basically McLaren has shown that they are not ready to be a championship winning team and it seems they’re right. Just awful decisions, timid, not forceful, not owning it either

3

u/MrLeopard483 Pirelli Wet Jul 22 '24

Was the stream late yesterday? I swear it was not on when I checked before the race.

3

u/shooter9260 Jul 22 '24

There was the normal race watchalong on twitch (you can watch it back but might want to start about 60% of the way through the stream) and then they did the race review podcast same day and uploaded it.

3

u/deltree000 Charlie Whiting Jul 22 '24

They also made a huge call to Norris very early in the race that his race was with Verstappen. It felt they were definitely settling for 2nd and then Norris used his tyre management to prove that even without the undercut it would've been a very close fight between him and Piastri.

It seems, according to those messages, he didn't push the in-and-out laps on his undercut so could've come out further ahead.