How could Mercedes punish its drivers?

It was pretty clear that simply posting a snap of smiley Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg shaking hands wasn't going to suffice in delivering a message that all was sorted at Mercedes after their Belgian Grand Prix clash.

We've seen such attempts in the past by teams trying to give the impression that all was cool after a bust-up (remember that pally Mark Webber/Sebastian Vettel picture after Turkey 2010?), but things are very different this time.

For a start, the stakes of the title battle are much higher. And, after the fallings-out in Bahrain, Spain, Monaco, Hungary and Belgium (at Les Combes and during the post-race debrief), it was clear that no amount of PR gloss was going to paint over the fact that things are not serene between the battling Mercedes duo.

In light of the tough times Mercedes is facing, though, it was refreshing last week to see it engage with fans for some feedback on the situation, rather than take the easier option of burying its head in the sand, trying to ignore the fact that the world was watching and waiting for its response.

Taking to its social media channels on Twitter and Facebook, there was no surprise to find that an overwhelming majority - around 95 per cent of fans across both platforms - urged the team to keep on allowing its drivers to race. No one, beyond perhaps Rosberg himself, would like to see the title battle locked down and the Silver Arrows touring around in procession for the final seven races.

Red Bull took a different approach to handling Vettel and Webber in public

While there was a consensus on letting the two drivers just get on with it, it was much less clear-cut about what the team should do to punish either of its drivers in the event of more trouble.

Some suggestions - like shaving off the perpetrator's eyebrows, sitting them down on the naughty podium step or having them run down the pitlane in a mankini - might have been proposed for a laugh, but ironically they would hurt the team less than more serious ideas of race bans, car development freezes or tyre handicaps.

No matter how much thought you give it, it's nearly impossible to come up with a punishment for a Mercedes driver overstepping the mark that doesn't ultimately harm the team.

Force a driver to sit out a race and you risk his replacement not achieving the car's full potential, which could compromise the constructors' championship battle. With Red Bull 157 points behind Mercedes right now, and 344 still available, there's everything to play for.

Force one of the drivers to become a number two for a weekend - through strategy, car specification or straight orders - and you risk discrediting the world championship battle and ruining the sense of excitement that's now swirling around F1.

In fact, the lines between a team's best interest and those of the drivers are especially blurred when it comes to handing down sanctions. However, it's not the job of Mercedes to take on the role of judge, jury and executioner in the event of trouble between its drivers. It must have faith that, in the event of there being deliberate intent from either of its drivers to cause a collision with his team-mate, the FIA will step in and hand down a suitable punishment - just as it did after Romain Grosjean took out championship contenders at Spa in 2012.

Everything boils down to trust now. Mercedes chiefs have to trust their drivers that what happened at Spa won't occur again. Hamilton and Rosberg have to trust each other that they will keep things fair on track. And fans have to trust that everyone at Brackley is going to keep the battle for the crown open.

The true test of such trust was never going to happen with a staged photo to suggest that Rosberg and Hamilton were friends again. Instead, it will come as Nico and Lewis do battle at more than 210mph at Monza this weekend.

These things can only be properly sorted out on track. And that is exactly how it should be.