Juan Pablo Montoya believes Lando Norris needs to adopt a more aggressive approach if he hopes to secure clear 'number 1' status in the battle for the 2024 championship.
Despite the 62-point gap, Norris is currently Max Verstappen's closest and most credible challenger in this year's title race, especially as Verstappen's dominance has begun to falter.
In the other McLaren, Oscar Piastri is another 44 points behind Norris, but he was the more aggressive driver at the most recent race in Monza.
McLaren's CEO Zak Brown remarked that Piastri's move to overtake Norris was "tough but fair," but it seems that team orders may soon come into play.
Montoya, known for his aggressive style, told AS Colombia, "In my opinion, Lando needs to be a bit more aggressive. I would be if I were him," said the 48-year-old.
"Because Oscar sets clear standards in this regard. He always attacks very aggressively."
"Piastri also used what they're calling the 'papaya rules', because he knew that Norris could not compete with him. He knew that Lando was fighting for the championship and vulnerable. He couldn't risk crashing."
"I'm sure the team is talking about it and looking at whether to issue a team order," Montoya continued. "The truth is that this is necessary if they want to win the world championship with Lando."
"It's important that this happens before Red Bull improves again," Montoya warned.
Red Bull and Verstappen's dominance has been steadily waning over the past few months. "Their problems have been clear for a while," Montoya noted.
Montoya also pointed out, "The interesting thing was what Checo (Perez) said – that Max is now having the same difficulties with the car. Monza was a weekend that produced many surprises, which might give us an idea of what is still to come this year."
