F1, McLaren: Oscar Piastri repays the debt, but the team’s pit wall strategy surprises | Italian GP. Oscar Piastri followed McLaren’s unusual pit wall call at Monza.

F1, McLaren: Piastri pays the debt but the pit wall’s decision was unexpected

For McLaren, the Italian Grand Prix at Monza was a story of taking what was available. The unpredictable dominance of Max Verstappen and Red Bull, particularly the size of the gap, did not unsettle the team led by Andrea Stella. The Italian track was expected to be one of the less favorable rounds for the MCL39. Yet, one detail influenced the outcome: the positioning of the Woking drivers, which was heavily affected by the events at the start.

A deviation from the usual pit stop management

The opening skirmishes between Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc pushed the Australian away from the front of the race. Despite trying to close the gap, the Melbourne-born driver could not make progress, as the lap times of the two McLaren teammates were almost identical. In the final stint, the pit wall kept both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri out for an extended first long run.

The goal was to delay the stop until Verstappen’s gap, after switching to the Hard tyres, was no longer greater than the estimated time loss of a pit stop under a Safety Car or Virtual Safety Car. Switching to Softs at that stage, however, exposed Oscar in theory to the risk of losing the final podium place to Charles Leclerc. Once the chance to challenge Verstappen disappeared, everything changed.

McLaren then called its drivers into the pits in reverse order compared to their track positions. The move was intended to protect Piastri from a potential undercut by Ferrari’s number 16 car. It was a departure from the team’s established pit stop practice, a choice that would have avoided any critical situation only if the mechanics had carried out their job flawlessly. Unfortunately, that was not the case…

Handling the unexpected with a clear goal

Lando Norris’ pit stop was slowed by a left-front wheel issue. Piastri benefitted, jumping ahead of car number four. At that point, McLaren decided to restore the “natural order” and asked Norris, the championship leader, to give second place back to his teammate. The 2001-born driver promptly complied.

The spectacle was far from inspiring, but consistent with the internal rules of engagement the team has long defined. Such dynamics are nothing new in Formula 1. Yet the real question remains: is it right for a team to constantly try to fix situations that are simply unavoidable? Why should a driver pay the price for an error not of his own making? It seems absurd…

Clearly, Andrea Stella’s team intends to postpone any harsh battles between its drivers for as long as possible. The main goal is to maintain a calm and unified atmosphere within the team, ensuring the championship fight is not disrupted by internal conflict. An understandable approach, but one that must have its limits. In this case, Piastri paid for something that was not his fault.

Piastri now even with the team and with Norris

Yet Piastri’s race engineer, Tom Stallard, explained that a slow pit stop—under McLaren’s so-called “papaya rules”—was never supposed to be a reason for pit wall intervention. Oscar accepted the order without hesitation, knowing that the points at stake did not justify an internal argument that could arise from a refusal.

The Australian now considers himself square with the team, especially after being denied a certain victory in Budapest. After sixteen races, he still holds a strong advantage in the championship standings, and in a weekend where he was overall weaker than Norris, he only lost three points. Most importantly, he proved his total respect for the team’s instructions. That “joker card” could prove invaluable in the final stretch of the season.