‘That just doesn’t stand up’ – McLaren driver bias theories debunked

Claims, or conspiracies, that McLaren is favouring Lando Norris over Oscar Piastri have been debunked by Ted Kravitz, who insists that if there was any hint of impropriety, the media would be all over it.

Not for the first time this season, Piastri fans were up in arms when the Australian driver seemed, at least to them, to get an unfair call from McLaren.

It’s Oscar Piastri v Lando Norris in the F1 2025 title fight

But while in Monza the order was to move over for Lando Norris, after a slow pit stop cost the Briton track position, in Singapore no order was forthcoming despite Norris barging into Piastri at Turn 3 on the opening lap and coming out ahead of his teammate in that brief battle.

With the teammates involved in the championship fight, McLaren’s decisions – or lack thereof – had points-scoring consequences with Piastri dropping seven points to Norris in Italy and three in Singapore.

Although Piastri left the Marina Bay circuit still leading the Drivers’ standings, his advantage over Norris is down to 22 points.

His fans cried foul, even going as far as to claim had it been the other way around, Piastri would’ve been told to give the position to Norris.

“That’s what Oscar fans will say,” three-time W Series winner Jamie Chadwick told Sky Sports’ The F1 Show podcasts. “Lando fans will say the opposite.

“You know, that’s the nature of the sport. You have your driver that you support, and you fully want everyone else to support that person, whether it be the team, the fans, everyone else.

“And I think that’s part of what makes sport divisive and interesting to watch at the same time.”

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But while Chadwick appreciated the passion felt by both sets of fans, her fellow pundit Ted Kravitz came across as a bit irked by the conspiracies.

Whether it is that McLaren wants Norris to win because it’s a British team and a British driver, or because he’s been there longer than Piastri, the pit lane reporter insists there is no truth to either claim.

“I mean, these theories about whether it’s nationality or anything else that people favour and other things, it just doesn’t stand up over the balance of a season,” Kravitz said.

“Because so much early season was to do with qualifying, wasn’t it? Oscar was just simply out-qualifying Lando, starting ahead of him, and then winning the race and so and so.

“It just doesn’t stand up.

“I mean, the other one I’ve heard is that because Lando has been there longer, [he] is somehow sort of the favoured driver. Because Oscar’s only been there for three years and Lando’s been there for longer, they feel like they’d like Lando to win the championship.

“Just because he’s been there longer? Well, that’s hardly a reason.

“I mean, that just doesn’t stand up either.

“There’s no evidence to suggest, and nothing that we’ve seen – and heavens know if we’d seen it and we’d got a sense that McLaren want one driver to win over the other, we’d be talking about it, because we’re journalists, and that’s a good story.

“We’re just not seeing it. I just don’t see that there is any of this.”

Highlighting his argument, Kravitz pointed out the swings in momentum between the teammates.

“So Melbourne was an interesting one, because Lando won the race, Oscar spun and finished ninth, and so it was looking like ‘oh great for Lando, hHe’s going to be challenging for the championship, and Oscar is going to have a hard time after that’.

“Oscar got his stuff together and then was stronger in qualifying, and then closed that gap down. It was a 23,22 point gap wasn’t it that Oscar closed down and then moved ahead largely because he was getting qualifying right, and Lando was struggling with the handling of the car.

“And so it just doesn’t really stand up, really.”

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