Outside Line: To swap or not to swap? That is the question

They swapped Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri during the race after they fluffed the Briton's pitstop, hence engineering the result, no matter which way you look at it or however McLaren wish to spin it. Team orders prevailed, which changed the real outcome of the race.

First and foremost, it is worth mentioning that no one saw the #1 Red Bull coming at Monza! Verstappen was on another planet, ambushing Ferrari and McLaren with a masterclass that began in qualifying. He set the fastest lap ever recorded at the Temple of Speed, reminding us why he is the cream of this extraordinary grid. The Dutchman just gets better and better.

At the start, he was aggressive, pushing Norris onto the sand, but gave the place back when instructed when he cut the second part of the Turn 1 chicane. By lap four, he was back in front with a ballsy but clean move around the outside of Turn 1.

From there, the Red Bull RB21 in his hands looked dominant. Piastri had no answer, and after the first six laps the race flattened into a procession. But those opening moments, with Leclerc, Norris and Piastri dicing without contact, showed again the quality of this generation, half a dozen of the best drivers I’ve ever seen all chasing one man.

After the flag, the debate centred not on Verstappen, but on McLaren's decision-making during what was a rather mundane race after the first half dozen laps. Three camps emerged: those who agreed with the swap, those who did not, and the fence-sitters.

The trigger, I believe, came with the pit call: “There will be no undercut.” That made no sense to me. How do you tell a driver he can’t undercut? Then it’s not racing, it’s just managing track position. While Piastri had a stunning 1.9s stop, Norris had a botched one, and suddenly the Australian inherited P2. None of it was his fault, none of it the Englishman's either. It was simply a circumstance. In other words: That's Racing!

To his credit and a tribute to the great sportsman that he is, Piastri abided by the pre-race agreement with a little moan if you can call it that: “Look guys, I understand, but we agreed pit stop errors are racing incidents, but I will swap.” He moved aside. Many would not have.

This is not yet McLaren of Prost-Senna or Hamilton-Alonso or Rosberg-Hamilton, poisoned by suspicion and backroom battles. What we are witnessing is a unique driver dynamic. Piastri accepted the call without bitterness, Norris got his P2 back, and afterwards, they were still mates.

Andrea Stella and Zak Brown deserve credit. McLaren are going out of the box, so to speak, trying to win a championship their way, not tearing themselves apart with two star drivers. If they succeed, they will have rewritten the script and a new template for success at this level with two AAA-level drivers. Let's see how it pans out...

Of course, million-dollar questions remain. What if the same scenario plays out in Abu Dhabi with the title on the line? Would they still swap? Would the championship be decided by pit-stop luck and team orders? Those are the uncomfortable what-ifs hanging in the background that this triggers with eight rounds still to go and a l; last race finale on the cards.

I’m not in the camp predicting inevitable fireworks between the pair. Although my head says (like many) something has to give, my heart says let it play out. Formula 1 doesn’t need forced drama; it delivers its own. Just look at Rosberg and Hamilton in 2016.

For McLaren, the Collision in Canada could have set off a civil war, but it didn’t. At Monza, too, the swap saga could have turned bitter. It didn’t. Instead, we saw a rare thing in modern Formula 1: a driver swap handled with professionalism, even respect. And for that alone, McLaren’s approach this year is worth watching.

For now, Monza showed that Verstappen is still clinging to a miracle that only he is capable of conjuring, aka a fifth title, which is still mathematically possible with some help of Fate, Karma and Luck. Meanwhile, the lads at McLaren fight on.

Despite Max, more than likely, either Piastri or Norris is destined to have his name etched on the most coveted trophy in motorsport. For the rest of us, sit back and enjoy a very unique Formula 1 ride.