Ralf Schumacher against the grain while assessing McLaren’ swap at Monza

Ralf Schumacher weighed in on the much-debated position swap that McLaren ordered Oscar Piastri to carry out in the closing stages of the Italian GP.

More than two days have passed since the end of the Italian GP, yet the late-race events between the two McLarens at Monza remain a major talking point.

As is now well known, the papaya team instructed Oscar Piastri to hand the position back to his teammate, even though Norris had rejoined ahead not because of an undercut, but due to a slow pit stop that cost the Briton valuable time. All this comes as the two remain locked in a tight title fight, where every single point could prove decisive.

Even so, the Australian complied with the team order from the pit wall, giving up the golden opportunity to extend his lead to +37 in the Drivers’ Championship with eight races to go.

While many questioned the decision, Ralf Schumacher—also asked about the matter on Sky Deutschland’s Backstage Boxengasse podcast—believes McLaren did nothing out of the ordinary.

Norris and Piastri after Italian GP

Schumacher agrees with McLaren's decision at Monza

''I didn’t even understand why this was being debated—I really don’t see what the problem is,'' he stated when addressing the team order.

''The team had already agreed on this approach last year, and the drivers are still the same. Back then, Oscar Piastri really benefited because, ultimately, he was the one in front. He couldn’t have overtaken, Norris unknowingly undercut him, came out ahead, and pulled away. But when asked, Piastri respected the decision.''

According to the German, both the team and the driver handled the situation in the best possible way: ''This time, though, it was completely different. It really wasn’t his fault—it was the team’s fault—and that’s why I think it was absolutely the right thing to do. Both he and the team handled it perfectly.''

He finally added: ''That’s the beauty of it at McLaren: what goes around comes around. It’s the same as when I let my teammate through because I’ve got an issue with the tyres, or I’ve damaged the floor—then it’s just the natural, fair thing to do. Credit to McLaren too for executing it so well.''

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