Jolyon Palmer thinks Lando Norris was ‘smart’ dealing Oscar Piastri ‘frustrating’ situation before McLaren’s team orders

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McLaren’s controversial team orders dominated the headlines at Monza, yet Jolyon Palmer feels Oscar Piastri may already have been unhappy in the Italian Grand Prix.

The Woking natives were clearly not the team to beat in the Royal Park last weekend, as Red Bull rival Max Verstappen exploited his RB21’s superior straight-line speed. Lando Norris and Piastri had no answers for the Dutchman in the Italian GP after they lost out on pole position.

Norris briefly battled with Verstappen in the Italian GP, but the fight only lasted the first four laps before the four-time defending drivers’ champion claimed control. McLaren then had to look back at Ferrari star Charles Leclerc threatening to undercut Piastri for third on the road.

McLaren gambled on a potential safety car or a red flag jumping Norris and/or Piastri ahead of Verstappen, with the papaya pilots extending their opening stints until Laps 46 and 45 of 53. Norris allowed Piastri to pit first in the Italian GP to cover Leclerc, before he then pitted.

Lando Norris was ‘smart’ to get McLaren’s assurance Oscar Piastri would not undercut him at Monza

A slow stop threw a spanner in the works, though, so McLaren ordered Piastri to give Norris P2 in the Italian GP having inadvertently undercut the Briton. The Australian initially queried the call, believing a slow stop was not a sufficient cause, before letting his title rival through.

READ MORE: McLaren driver Lando Norris’ life outside F1 from parents to celebration

But Palmer feels Piastri may have already been frustrated, as McLaren had assured Norris he would not be undercut if the 25-year-old let his teammate pit first without the 24-year-old’s knowledge. Palmer also feels it was “smart” of Norris to secure his assurance from McLaren.

Palmer told the F1 website: “With the assurance he wouldn’t be undercut, this was a double win for Norris and a no-brainer move. It theoretically guaranteed him the advantage and an outside chance of benefitting from a safety car, too, if there were one after Piastri’s stop.

“Had Norris pitted first, he would have risked that costing him second position. So, it was smart to lean on the team to cover off all bases. From Oscar’s point of view, he wasn’t told about this locked-in pit sequencing until after his stop.

“This might have been frustrating at the time, not to have the chance to attack Lando at a sketchy point of the race. But, also, he’d have had to pit soon anyway to cover Charles. So, it shouldn’t have made much difference… until the position was handed to him on a platter.”

Oscar Piastri may want answers about McLaren assuring Lando Norris he would not be undercut

Norris had little to lose by letting Piastri stop first to cover Leclerc, with the Ferrari driver on the bubble of breaching the F1 drivers’ championship leader’s pit window. Without his slow pit stop, Norris was expected to comfortably retain P2 in the 2025 Italian GP after he pitted.

READ MORE: McLaren driver Oscar Piastri’s life outside F1 from height to girlfriend

But an issue with McLaren’s front-left wheel gun meant Norris lost four seconds to Piastri in the box, which switched their positions on the road. McLaren then imposed team orders to try to treat their drivers fairly amid a title fight, with Norris now trailing Piastri by 31 points.

Yet it may be fair to question whether McLaren would have ordered Piastri to yield P2 after the pit cycle without having given Norris the guarantee that he would not be undercut. The Australian would have been 37 points clear if he had capitalised on the Briton’s misfortune.