McLaren play down possible “headache” if Piastri wins before Norris in 2024
McLaren boss Andrea Stella has played down the possible “headache” the team would have if Oscar Piastri claimed his maiden F1 victory before Lando Norris.
Both McLaren drivers have still yet to win in F1 (at least an actual grand prix).
Norris famously went close at the 2021 Russian Grand Prix - and would have won the race had he stopped for intermediates at the right time.
On the other hand, Piastri has only had one season in F1, but he did win the sprint race in Qatar ahead of Max Verstappen.
With McLaren’s upward trajectory expected to continue into 2024, it’s likely Norris and Piastri will have an opportunity to win in F1.
Stella believes if Piastri was to win before Norris, it wouldn’t cause any problems for the team.
“About Oscar getting his first victory, and you talked about a headache, my reaction was ‘A headache?' Wow! I look forward to it,” he said.
“It will be an incredible result considering what we saw last year with Red Bull when there wasn't really much space left for anybody else.
“So if we have a victory from Oscar, that will be an incredible emotion, and an incredible emotion for Lando as well because it would mean we have a car that can win races. And if I project myself for a second into Lando's head, I think I would recognise how fair a competitor he (Piastri) is. He is a very fair person.
“And he would ask himself, ‘What do I need to do better to do the same as Oscar has been able to do?'”
Stella has called on his drivers to take inspiration from Verstappen, stressing the importance of “how much you improve every day”.
“It's ultimately about processing opportunities,” Stella added. “This game is not only about how good you are today, but how much you improve every day.
“If we look at the champions in F1, certainly, Verstappen is not the same driver as he was last year or in 2021, and certainly not the driver he was when he started.
“It's all about continuous improvement, and this is definitely the way I see Lando processing that situation.
“But that's also the way Oscar would process it if we see how grounded is. He would have his own way of reacting to the victory, and he would think, ‘How can I consolidate this?'
“For me, the message to the drivers has always been ‘What can you do to improve every day?'”
