McLaren shut ‘Netflix cameras’ out of their ‘difficult conversations’ with Oscar Piastri last year

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McLaren’s controversial 2025 team orders are only a footnote in the upcoming season of Drive to Survive, according to a report. The much-anticipated eighth instalment of the Netflix documentary releases on Friday.

McLaren’s management of the title battle between Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri was one of the biggest talking points of the 2025 season. The team’s goal was to give both drivers the fairest possible opportunity to win the championship.

At times, they were accused of excessive interference. Most notably, Piastri had to give second place back to Norris at the Italian Grand Prix after the latter’s slow pit stop.

But there were moments when the team could have intervened in Piastri’s favour and sat back. Norris made contact with his teammate when overtaking him at the start of the Singapore GP but was allowed to keep the place.

Drive to Survive season eight only covers McLaren team orders at surface level

Piastri has stated that McLaren gave him a fair shot at the title, and there’s no indication that he bought into the external allegations of favouritism towards Norris.

Still, many fans were intrigued to see if behind-the-scenes footage captured by Drive to Survive crews painted a different picture. Unfortunately, there is very little.

According to the New Zealand Herald, the ‘conspiracy theories’ are ignored entirely, a surprise given the series’ penchant to dramatise events.

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The Times add that the episodes focusing on McLaren are ‘surface level in their detail’. It’s clear that the Woking outfit ‘did not invite the Netflix cameras’ to film the ‘difficult conversations’ they had with Piastri.

That, of course, is their prerogative. Drive to Survive is partly a marketing tool for the teams.

They need to find the balance between showcasing personalities, which helps to attract new fans, and revealing secrets that would damage their image.

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Episode three focuses on the competition between Piastri and Norris and how McLaren handled it. Predictably, it features the crash in Canada, for which the British driver took the blame.

Zak Brown also explains why he didn’t accept Piastri’s request to swap the cars at the British GP, where he received a controversial penalty for his driving behind the safety car. That sanction handed Norris the lead and the race win.

But viewers who watched the 2025 season will be shocked by the absence of the Italian GP team orders, one of the most contentious moments of the year. The NZ Herald say they don’t even get a ‘mention’.

Norris eventually won the championship, two points ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and 13 ahead of Piastri.