In a dramatic turn of events that has shaken the Formula 1 world, McLaren’s British driver Lando Norris has taken an unprecedented step by issuing an unequivocal ultimatum to his team during a tense press conference in Austin, Texas, on October 13, 2025. At just 26 years old, Norris, currently leading the World Drivers’ Championship by 31 points over teammate Oscar Piastri, declared firmly: “Either me or him. If the criticism continues, I’ll leave, for good.” These words, spoken the day after a United States Grand Prix marked by yet another internal controversy at McLaren, have plunged the Woking team into an existential crisis. The ultimatum directly targets growing tensions with Piastri, exacerbated by a racing incident in Singapore two weeks earlier, where Norris collided with his teammate at the first corner, damaging the front wing of his MCL39 and costing him a potential victory.
The Singapore incident was no simple collision. Norris, attempting a daring inside pass in Turn 3, touched Piastri’s right-rear wheel, causing the Australian to spin slightly. Over the team radio, a visibly furious Piastri shouted, “Is this how we do things at McLaren? We’re pushing each other like amateurs?” The team called it “hard racing,” but the FIA stewards did not investigate further, leaving the hot potato to McLaren. Zak Brown, the team’s charismatic CEO, publicly defended Norris, saying, “We let our drivers fight. That’s clean racing.” Yet, privately, team sources reveal, Piastri demanded a formal apology and a review of the “papaya rules,” the internal guidelines that prohibit any contact between the two drivers to preserve harmony.
Norris, who won three of the last four races before Austin, has not accepted the internal and media criticism. “I’m tired of being the scapegoat,” he told reporters. “At Monza, I gave up the position to Oscar to respect the team spirit, and what did I get in return? Doubts about my loyalty. If McLaren doesn’t fully support me, I have no reason to stay. I have offers from Red Bull and Ferrari on the table.” These transfer rumors are not new. Last March, at the season launch in Melbourne, Brown had already had to deny approaches from Red Bull for Norris, stating: “There is no exit clause in his contract. Lando is family.” » But this weekend’s ultimatum changes the game, forcing McLaren to choose between its charismatic leader and the Australian prodigy, who leads the team’s constructors’ championship with a comfortable 120-point lead over Ferrari.
Zak Brown’s response was swift. Less than an hour after Norris’s statements, the American CEO posted a terse message on X (formerly Twitter) in exactly ten words: “Lando is staying. Papaya rules apply to everyone, no exceptions.” This tweet, seen by millions of followers, immediately set social media ablaze. #LandoOuPiastri became the top trending hashtag worldwide, with fans divided between those hailing Norris as the future champion and those accusing McLaren of favoritism. Brown, known for his outspokenness and tattoos honoring the team’s victories, then called an emergency meeting with Andrea Stella, the team principal, and the two drivers. According to leaks relayed by Sky Sports F1, the discussion was heated: Piastri is said to have threatened to file a complaint with the FIA for “internal bias”, arguing that the race strategies at Monza and Singapore systematically favored Norris.
What makes this case even more explosive is its potential impact on the season. McLaren, having won the constructors’ title for the second consecutive year in Singapore, is now aiming for a historic double with the drivers’ championship. Piastri, at 24, is seen as the natural successor to Alonso, but Norris, with his charisma and sponsors like Quadrant (of which Brown was a director until July), represents the marketable face of the team. Pundits like Sky commentator Martin Brundle believe Norris’s ultimatum is a “ticking time bomb.” “It’s theater, but dangerous theater. If the FIA intervenes, we could see penalties for non-compliance with team directives, as in 2007 with McLaren and Spygate.”
The International Automobile Federation (FIA) was quick to react. On Monday morning, President Mohammed Ben Sulayem ordered a preliminary investigation into “internal tensions at McLaren.” This dramatic decision, announced at a conference in Paris, requires the team to submit its radio communications and strategies for the last five races by October 20. “Formula 1 is a team sport, not an individual circus,” Ben Sulayem declared. “We will not tolerate internal rivalries compromising the integrity of the competition.” Observers speculate that this could lead to a record fine or, worse, a partial disqualification of points for both drivers, reopening the wounds of the Honda-McLaren affair in 2007.
There was no shortage of reactions. Lewis Hamilton, now at Ferrari, tweeted: “Support Lando. Loyalty goes both ways.” Max Verstappen, Norris’s long-time rival at Red Bull, quipped: “Welcome to the ultimatum club. We settle things on the track.” Oscar Piastri, discreet as usual, contented himself with an Instagram post: “Focus on Austin. The rest is just noise.” But behind the scenes, his entourage whispers that he is considering a move to Mercedes in 2027 if the situation does not calm down. Zak Brown, for his part, made repeated calls for unity during an interview with BBC Sport: “We have two exceptional talents. Lando and Oscar have deep respect for each other. This ultimatum is a knee-jerk reaction; we will overcome it together.”
This crisis is revealing the cracks in a team at the top. McLaren, bought at the last minute by Norris’s father in 2020 to avoid bankruptcy, has rebounded spectacularly in the hybrid era. Yet the “papaya rules”—those fair play principles established by Stella—are cracking under the pressure of the title. Analysts like former manager Peter Windsor point to Brown’s “flawed plan”: favoring Norris for marketing reasons while pretending to be equal. “It’s a house of cards. If Norris leaves, McLaren loses its crown jewel; if Piastri explodes, it’s civil war.”
As the paddock prepares for the Mexican Grand Prix in two weeks, the air is charged with electricity. Norris, on pole in Austin, dedicated his qualifying to “the team that gave me everything.” Piastri, third, promised a “merciless” race. The FIA, with its investigation, could redraw the contours of the season: sanctions, mandatory team orders, or worse, forced mediation. For Brown, those ten words about X were a risky gamble—a plea to authority to calm things down. But were they enough? Norris’s ultimatum isn’t just a threat; it’s a heartfelt cry from a driver tired of being caught between personal ambition and team loyalty.
In the tumultuous history of F1, duels like the one between Senna and Prost have forged legends. Could Norris and Piastri write theirs, or will this “either me or him” mark the end of a papaya dream? With six races remaining, the suspense is total. The federation, called upon to decide, holds in its hands the future of a team on the rise. And if McLaren’s history changes, it will be on a ten-word tweet that changed everything.
