Coulthard Would Order Norris And Piastri To Swap Positions In Monza

Wednesday, 04 September 2024 at 18:00

Former F1 driver David Coulthard said that he would order Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri to change positions at the end of the 2024 Italian Grand Prix.

McLaren F1 driver Lando Norris is still 62 points behind Max Verstappen in the drivers' Championship, but with Red Bull's slump in performance, the title might be within his reach.

The problem is that Norris needs to maximize his point score in every race while battling not only the other top three teams but also his own teammate, Oscar Piastri.

Many pundits, fans, and former F1 drivers keep saying that it would benefit McLaren to choose Norris as their number-one driver for the remainder of the season and have Piastri be his help.

In such a scenario, McLaren could, for example, swap Norris and Piastri at the end of the 2024 Italian Grand Prix, where they finished second and third.

If Norris finished second, he would be three points closer to the leading Verstappen. Asked whether he would have swapped the two drivers at the end of the race at Monza Circuit, David Coulthard told Channel 4:

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“"I would, based on what I've learned through my racing career where I was in a situation where Mika [Hakkinen] was a bit quicker in qualifying and developing the better chance of a championship."”

“"We were up against Ferrari and Michael Schumacher, I didn’t like it but I think that taking a look at the bigger picture, they can win this Constructors’, they’re only 10 [eight] points away."”

“"They still could also win the Drivers'' Championship with another not-so-very-good points-scoring day for Max Verstappen, and although Lando [was] brilliant again getting the fastest lap on the last lap, that could be crucial later in the year."”

McLaren CEO Zak Brown suggested that having a number two driver is not part of McLaren's DNA. However, he also said after the race in Italy that he, Andrea Stella, and their two drivers would have to revisit this topic before the next Grand Prix in Azerbaijan.