Wolff calls McLaren intra-team battle 'tricky' after Canada collision

Mercedes Team Principal Toto Wolff has weighed in on the burgeoning intra-team rivalry at McLaren, describing it as a "tricky situation" to manage. Wolff's comments come after McLaren teammates Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris collided during the Canadian Grand Prix while battling for fourth position, an incident McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella deemed "not acceptable." Having famously navigated a fractious rivalry between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg during their championship battles, Wolff drew parallels to his own experience. He noted that when two drivers from the same team are fighting for the championship, collisions are "inevitable." Wolff joked about his role as an "actor" in the upcoming F1 movie, which features a similar intra-team conflict, emphasizing the inherent difficulty in managing such scenarios. Wolff highlighted the core issue: drivers are conditioned to win championships, and in F1, this competitive drive is amplified. He suggested that the key lies in establishing clear "rules of engagement" within the team. The complexity is further compounded by McLaren's dominant lead in the Constructors' Championship, which effectively removes the argument of needing to score points for the team title. With Piastri currently 22 points ahead of Norris and the pair having won seven of the 10 races this season, the internal battle for the Drivers' Championship is intense, making strong management crucial.