There’s nothing worse than watching a great race unravel because of one line over the radio.
You know the type. A driver is leading. The pace is solid. The strategy looks good. And then—bam. “Let him through.”
Team orders are part of Formula 1. We get it. Teams want maximum points. Championships are on the line. But sometimes, they don’t just influence the outcome—they completely ruin it.
These are the moments that left fans booing in the stands, slamming remotes on couches, and wondering why we even bother watching when the racing gets pulled from a script.
Here are six of the most painful times team orders took the fun out of Formula 1.
Austria 2002
Rubens Barrichello had the win locked up for Ferrari after leading for most of the race. But he’d been ordered to let his teammate Schumacher past to inherit victory. To make his dismay known, he decided he’d wait until the very last minute to hand over the victory. So he backed off right before the finish line. Michael Schumacher took the win.
Fans were livid. Rubens looked like he’d just swallowed a lemon. Even Schumacher looked embarrassed. He pushed Rubens onto the top step of the podium, but the damage was done.
Why were the team orders given?
Ferrari claimed they needed every point for Schumacher’s title fight. But it was only race 6 of the season, and Michael already had a big lead. Worse, Ferrari had done something similar the year before—same track, same drivers. People hadn’t forgotten.
Aftermath
Public outrage was instant. The FIA fined Ferrari and, that summer, introduced a rule banning “team orders that interfere with the race result.” The rule stayed in place until the start of 2011.
Germany 2010
Felipe Massa was leading for Ferrari. He’d been solid all race. Then his engineer delievered the line that would follow him for years: “Fernando is faster than you. Confirm you understood the message?”
At this point the FIA’s ban on team orders was still in place. So Massa’ engineer Rob Smedley tried to be cryptic. But it was clear to everyone what he meant. Massa let Alonso through without a fight, securing a 1-2 for Ferrari but in the wrong order. The crowd hated it. The podium was awkward. Everyone knew what had just happened.
Even worse, this happened exactly one year (to the day) after Massa’s horrific accident at the Hungaroring almost ended his career. Had he not been ordered to swap positions, this would have been his final victory in F1.
Why were the team orders given?
Ferrari thought Alonso had a better shot at the title. But this wasn’t a championship decider. It was round 11. The message was clumsy, and the move felt forced.
Aftermath
Stewards fined Ferrari $100,000, and the clip became meme material. The saga revived the team-orders debate, and the existing ban was scrapped the next year because officials decided it was impossible to police.
Malaysia 2013
Mark Webber was leading a Red Bull 1-2 at the Sepang International Circuit and the team told both drivers to hold position using their code word: “Multi-21.” Sebastian Vettel heard the message, but had other plans.
He ignored the order, attacked, and took the win. Webber wasn’t expecting it but still put up a defence on track, only for Seb to eventually get past him. Even Horner came on the radio and said to Vettel “Come on Seb, this is silly”.
Webber was stunned. In the cooldown room after the race he publically called out his teammate by saying that famous line ‘Multi-21 Seb?’. He got no response.
Why were the team orders given?
Red Bull wanted a clean 1-2. Instead, they got headlines, bad blood, and an early start to off-season drama. On this occasion the drama came from the driver ignoring the team order.
Aftermath
The rift never closed. Webber left F1 at the end of the year, and Red Bull tightened its internal protocols. Vettel’s image took a dent with many fans, even while he added another title that season.
Russia 2018 – Bottas Becomes the “Wingman”
Bottas was on pole for Mercedes at the 2018 Sochi Grand Prix in Russia. He led the race. He deserved the win. But then came the call: let Lewis Hamilton through. So he did.
Hamilton took the victory. Bottas looked like he’d just been told his contract expired.
Why were the team orders given?
Mercedes wanted to give Hamilton breathing room in the championship. But this one stung. Even Lewis said it felt wrong. Bottas, later, called himself a “wingman.” Ouch.
Aftermath
Hamilton clinched the title a month later, yet many felt the crown had a smudge. Bottas’s confidence dipped, and Mercedes faced a week of brutal press before promising more “transparent” calls in future.
Hungary 2024
At the 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix, Oscar Piastri started P2 but managed to overtake his teammate Lando Norris on the run down to Turn 1. Oscar comfortably led the race until the second round of pistops.
Despite being P2, McLaren pitted Lando one lap ahead of Oscar to cover off a potential undercut threat from Lewis Hamilton. Knowing this would give Lando an advantage and allow him to undercut Oscar, Piastri’s engineer told him they’d ‘manage the situation’.
When Piastri did emerge behind Lando after his second pitstop, ‘managing the situation’ meant Lando’s engineer Will Joseph pleading with him to give Oscar the position back. Lando was stubborn and told Joseph that Oscar ‘needed to catch him first.’ His engineer got desperate. Read the full transcript of their radio comms here.
Eventually, and reluctantly, Lando let Oscar through.
Why were the team orders given?
The team knew that Oscar should have had pit priority by running ahead of his teammate, and saw it fair from them to swap back after they’d both fitted. But Lando was ahead in the championship and stood a chance of taking the title fight to Max. Oscar didn’t.
Aftermath
It ended up being Oscar’s first victory but it was massively overshadowed by the team orders.
Brazil 2022
Max Verstappen had already clinched the 2022 title. Sergio Perez, meanwhile, was fighting Charles Leclerc for second in the championship—a spot Red Bull had never claimed with both drivers.
Late in the race at Interlagos, Max was let through by Perez to chase a podium. When that didn’t happen, he was told to return the position. He didn’t.
His engineer asked him twice. Max gave a short, sharp “I told you already—don’t ask again.”
Why were the team orders given?
Red Bull wanted Perez to take back sixth for an extra two points. They hoped it would help him finish second in the championship. But Max was still frustrated over Monaco earlier that season, where he believed Perez crashed on purpose in qualifying to secure pole position which eventually led to him winning the race.
Aftermath
Perez’s response? “It shows who he really is.” The team said they’d handle it internally, but the damage was obvious.
Max lost a lot of fans, especially those who referenced Checo being the ‘Mexican Minister of Defence’ in the 2021 season finale to help Max catch Lewis. Red Bull got bad press. And Leclerc beat Perez to P2 by just three points anyway—meaning Max’s refusal didn’t even change the final outcome.
