McLaren’s clinching of a second consecutive Constructors’ Championship at the Singapore Grand Prix was dramatically overshadowed by a bitter internal feud and a post-race snub of championship leader Oscar Piastri.
The victory the team won devolved into a mess following a titanic first lap clash involving teammates and title contenders Piastri and Lando Norris. When Norris tried to pass, he touched the back of the Red Bull of Max Verstappen and slid into the car of Piastri, pushing the Australian out of the course and putting Norris in the lead.
An enraged Piastri sent a radio message to his team, declaring the action unfair and asking why Norris was not instructed to surrender the place. The team's decision to do nothing in the race angered Piastri, who disconnected his radio as team principal Zak Brown was talking.
The play was at its climax after the race. As the McLaren team drank champagne on the podium to celebrate the title of constructors, Piastri was noticeably missing. Instead, the social media vision had the championship leader standing isolated in the media pen observing the celebrations on a TV screen.
The snub caps a series of contentious team decisions that Piastri feels have favoured Norris, reviving intense scrutiny over McLaren’s handling of their intra-team title battle.
On the circuit, George Russell won a comfortable race in the Mercedes and repelled an advancing Max Verstappen. Norris also finished third after getting right behind Verstappen but failing to overtake him, with disappointed Piastri getting close to passing him to finish fourth.
The crash has reduced Piastri's championship advantage over Norris to only 22 points, making the most significant success of the McLaren cars an exceptionally controversial event, threatening to characterise the last six races of the season.