As the F1 2024 season ticked into its final third, both McLaren drivers remained in mathematical contention for the drivers’ title.
However, Lando Norris was better placed and, therefore, the stronger bet to run down the healthy points advantage Max Verstappen enjoyed.
That sparked a wave of questions surrounding how team principal Andrea Stella would approach the championship.
Ahead of the Italian Grand Prix, the term ‘Papaya Rules’ emerged, McLaren-speak for the principles by which Piastri and Norris went racing.
Short of the specificity of team orders, Papaya Rules offered an overarching guide, underpinned by the message that the team’s interests superseded the drivers’.
There were points that was tested, the latter stages of the Hungarian Grand Prix was a perfect example as Norris, gifted track position to protect from Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen behind, was reluctant to give the lead back to his colleague.
That situation was ultimately resolved in the final laps, and Piastri duly claimed his first race win, one Norris felt he overshadowed with his antics.
It was also the flashpoint that saw talk of team orders begin in earnest.
“There was a lot more talk externally than there was internally,” Piastri insisted in an in-depth interview with Speedcafe for a forthcoming episode of the KTM Summer Grill.
“Of course, we discussed a lot of scenarios, but we had to kind of set the rules and the boundaries.”
For all the talk, team orders only had a material negative impact on Piastri in the Sao Paulo Sprint, when he moved aside to allow Norris victory and the extra championship point that came with it.
But he was on the receiving end of things too, with Norris used to delay Sergio Perez in Azerbaijan at a key moment of the race.
“So there was a lot more talk about it than we had,” he revealed.
“I get that people have got to have something to talk about, but it was a lot. It was made a lot bigger than it was within the team.
“There was a lot of questions about, you know, would I help, would I not help?
“For me, it was obvious from the start that I would.
“After Brazil, yes, the championship then also became much tougher for Lando, but I think it reduced a lot of the noise when I actually let him through.”
While Piastri played the team game there, the favour was repaid in Qatar when he was allowed through on approach to the chequered flag.
It was an act that shed a little light on the culture within the team, something that had been tested in Hungary, but had seemingly only been galvanised in the weeks that followed – no doubt helped by Norris’ title ambitions having been extinguished.
Reflecting on his win in Hungary, and the manner in which it was achieved, the Australian empathised with Norris rather than criticising his teammate.
More importantly however, his words in support of Norris were supported by actions as the pair shared a flight home and a late-night Macca’s run in the hours immediately after the race.
“In that situation, it’s not an easy one,” Piastri said of the Hungarian Grand Prix.
“At that point, I didn’t have a win, Lando only had one, so giving up a win or being in a tricky situation where the team have swapped us around, trying to look at bigger interests than what we can in the car… It’s kind of tough to always understand in the moment.
“Post-race, of course, the adrenaline dies down, you get a much better understanding of what the race picture looked like.
“And I think, for both of us, we got a much better understanding that actually there were threats in our race; [Lewis] Hamilton was quick, and [Max] Verstappen was very quick, and both on different strategies.
“Once we got some understanding of what was happening behind us, that relieved a lot of things.
“And yeah, our relationship has always been good, and that certainly didn’t cause any problems.”
Norris went on to secure second in the drivers’ championship, the best result of his career, while Piastri was fourth in the standings.
Between them, McLaren amassed six race wins and heads into what is expected to be a highly competitive F1 2025 season among the favourites.
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