Source: Imagn Images/David Kirouac
[Saba Sports News] At the press conference for the Canadian Grand Prix of F1, Lando Norris outlined a red line for the 2025 season with one sentence: McLaren will not sacrifice the team for the sake of an individual in critical moments of the championship battle. In response to this, Zak Brown, CEO of McLaren, stated: “How could you possibly make one of your two drivers, both sitting at the top of the leaderboard with a small gap between them, play a supporting role?” During the interview, Zak Brown reiterated the team’s “orange rule” — that teammates must respect each other, maintain sufficient space, and avoid collisions within the team at all costs. According to records, this principle has been repeatedly validated late in the 2023 season: the two drivers have raced side by side into Turn 1 from the grid without a repeat of the spectacular fireworks seen in Mercedes’ 2016 season. Zak Brown believes this self-awareness will also apply to Norris and Oscar Piastri, which is their greatest advantage in retaining their chance at consecutive titles. Norris fully understands how precious this harmony is and cited the well-known example of Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg driving their championship-winning team into internal conflict, emphasizing that McLaren will not repeat such mistakes.