McLaren CEO Zak Brown was aggrieved by Red Bull and RB’s alleged ploy to deny Lando Norris a point for fastest lap at the Formula 1 Singapore Grand Prix.
Norris was set for his first Grand Chelem at Singapore, having taken pole, led every lap and set the fastest lap of the GP.
However, RB bolted Soft tyres onto Ricciardo’s car right at the death and the Australian driver duly poached the fastest lap from Norris, costing him a point in the title race.
With RB under Red Bull ownership, Brown felt this move wasn’t in the spirit of sporting fairness, given Norris is chasing Max Verstappen for the F1 title.
“That’s a nice A/B team sporting thing that I didn’t think was allowed,” Brown told SiriusXM.
“But hey, that’s not the first time we’ve seen it, probably won’t be the last.
“I’ll certainly ask some questions. It’s something I’ve spoken about in the past and I think it illustrates that it does happen, because I think you wouldn’t have made that pit stop to go for that.
“It’s not going to get anyone a point, so I think it does illustrate the issue around that topic.”
READ MORE: McLaren ‘frustrated’ not to reduce Max Verstappen’s F1 lead more in Singapore
Stella questions Ricciardo fastest lap
Brown has repeatedly voiced his concerns throughout the season regarding Red Bull’s ownership of two teams on the grid.
The McLaren CEO feels that, in modern F1, all 10 teams should have independence.
McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella also voiced his concerns regarding Ricciardo’s fastest lap attempt, saying F1 is “not a coalition championship”.
Horner defends Red Bull
Red Bull boss Christian Horner, however, has downplayed the significance of Riccairdo’s fastest lap.
“Racing Bulls stopped and did the fastest lap at the end of the race!” Horner told SiriusXM.
“There’s nothing more to it than that. Kevin Magnussen would have had it had he not gone wide earlier in the race and he has a Ferrari engine.
“Every team has its own independence.”
With Magnussen’s late pit stop coming due to a puncture, Horner switched up his defensive tactics.
“It’s always going to get raised because it’s the same ownership, so it’s inevitable that question’s going to get raised,” he argued.
“But Daniel’s lap in a grand prix car… He wanted to… Remember, he gets paid a bonus on a fastest lap.”
Speculation suggests Ricciardo‘s fastest lap could well be his last in F1 with rumours linking Red Bull Reserve Driver Liam Lawson to his seat for the rest of the season.
A parting gift, or championship tactic?
The McLaren, Red Bull war of words no doubt will continue to debate this topic when F1 resumes in Austin, Texas in October.
Verstappen leads Norris by 52 points with six rounds remaining.
READ MORE: McLaren: F1 not a ‘coalition championship’ as RB help Red Bull in Singapore GP
Discussion about this post