[Rules] F1 Adopts 'Medal' System (gold only!), world gets giddy, idea dropped.

[LC2guy]

Perhaps there should be a 2 car shoot-out at the end of the season between the guy with most wins and the guy with most points. That would attract some attention. Wouldn't want to be the mechanic that bodges the tyre stop though ....

[ensign14]

Originally Posted by calibrax

Since 1990, only one championship would have changed had this new rule been in place - the one won by Lewis Hamilton. Of course, far be it from me to suggest any anti-Hamilton bias by the FIA....

And even that would not have changed had it not been for a stewarding decision that could kindly be characterized as being about as sensible as spending your Ready Steady Cook £5 on arsenic and strychnine.

[calibrax]

Originally Posted by rayburn

And now of course, a driver cannot be docked points for an infringement. He could be disqualified obviously, but it removes the option of just docking points.

We'll see an increase in time penalties. I expect more races will effectively be decided by the stewards, which is exactly what people DON'T want to see.

[gsyracer]

FIA"t" have ballsed it up again. I reckon Bernie is part Italian because he really has put his foot in it and screwed up the season.

Just as I thought the opening race might be a decent one, now with BGP running quick and a lot of variation to teams/drivers status during testing, this happens and I know it's going to ruin it big style!

Sure it might seem logical that the best driver with the most wins should win - but as people have said - where are the last race title clinchers going to go? Where will a rookie's first win be?

Total crap if you ask me - thank god I've had my fun whilst racing, now looks like Bernie, Max and the FIAt are having theirs...

[Satorian]

Originally Posted by ralf fan

Very surprising it went through. I guess what Bernie wants Bernie gets.

That might be the reason of recent Mosley-lovefest (without the uniforms and whips) Ecclestone had celebrated in the media.

Horrible idea in my opinion. While each driver certainly has to push harder, I don't think you can charge the front runners with a lack of will and motivation anyway. Now the last two or three races of the season are so much more likely to be boring, it's eyewatering.

[paddy]

This is crap. we could have a scenario where there are more winners than usual, let's say 4 drivers win 3 races each and 2 others win 2 races, but have more points going into the final round. Let's see if anyone will understand the possible outcome. Poor old Murray Walker would have blown a gasket trying to explain it.
My big problem with it is that penalties that put a driver down the field will affect the championship even more than now, because picking up good points won't be any use if your main rival wins.

[Flyin Ryan]

Why is everyone shocked about this? Bernie will do what Bernie wants. This is not a democratic institution where the majority rule. Formula One and the FIA like other large multinational corporations and governing bodies has the political structure of 16th-century Europe where in practice what the king says happens and occurs regardless of the points of view of the peasants. If you don't like that, "move to another kingdom".

[steve_r]

Crap Crap Crap.

It would not be so bad if the stewards decision had not lost all credibility. If this system was in place last year, the Spa ruling would have changed the championship.

[Adam43]

Originally Posted by the.cosmic.pope

Mosley says public must decide on medals

I bet we all feel like valued customers right now.

*bangs fist on table*
I beleive it is my god given right to decide the points system in F1.

[leonidas]

Quite the silliest championship scoring system I've seen in a long time- most drivers will have no incentive to race beyond July!

What next? a "chase for the Nextel Cup" style eliminator with the title decided on the results of the last three Grand Prix? Oops better delete that or Bernie might think its a good idea...

[Super Hans]

Originally Posted by leonidas

Quite the silliest championship scoring system I've seen in a long time- most drivers will have no incentive to race beyond July.

How is it any difference to last season or the season before? There are only ever 2 or 3 drivers with a sniff of the title in any given season. The others still try to do as well as they can in the races.

[Flyin Ryan]

so it's still important for the drivers' to collect points for championship ranking and constructors... it's just that the winner of the driver's championship goes to the guy who wins the most, and if they tie on wins, then the usual points will come into effect. Therefore, I don't expect any of this "giving up if can't win" schenanigans being flown about.

That's because the bottom 6-7 FOTA members would not agree to their finishes being marginalized. The drivers on the other hand do not have such an organizational mechanism with any power as they're easily replaceable if anyone ever thought of raising their voice.

2008:

Felipe Massa 6
Lewis Hamilton 5
Kimi Raikkonen 2
Fernando Alonso 2
Robert Kubica 1
Heikki Kovaleinen 1
Sebastien Vettel 1

[Flyin Ryan]

Originally Posted by Super Hans

How is it any difference to last season or the season before? There are only ever 2 or 3 drivers with a sniff of the title in any given season. The others still try to do as well as they can in the races.

Well it kills people like Kubica. Who is in a solid car that's not good enough to win usually but is consistent in finishing.

[Super Hans]

Originally Posted by Flyin Ryan

That's because the bottom 6-7 FOTA members would not agree to their finishes being marginalized. The drivers on the other hand do not have such an organizational mechanism with any power as they're easily replaceable if anyone ever thought of raising their voice.

2008:

Felipe Massa 6
Lewis Hamilton 5
Kimi Raikkonen 2
Fernando Alonso 2
Robert Kubica 1
Heikki Kovaleinen 1
Sebastien Vettel 1

Not quite. Under the new rules, the 2008 championship would've finished like this. The points system decides everything, except the champion.

2008
1 Lewis Hamilton British McLaren-Mercedes 98
2 Felipe Massa Brazilian Ferrari 97 (C)
3 Kimi Räikkönen Finnish Ferrari 75
4 Robert Kubica Polish BMW Sauber 75
5 Fernando Alonso Spanish Renault 61
6 Nick Heidfeld German BMW Sauber 60
7 Heikki Kovalainen Finnish McLaren-Mercedes 53

[ChrisPage]

As mentioned already - what happened to all this 'we'll do what the fans want'?

This will kill the excitement in races - as soon as one of the key drivers (anyone with a couple of wins) is down the order they won't risk the car for meaningless points. They will know a win is gone, have a little spin and stall and take a good car to the next race. It used to always be that every last point counted. This has just effectivly been taken away - if you ain't gonna win, park it.

[duke_toaster]

The sensible option for the sport, for the fans, for everyone is keeping it the same or 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1.

Most wins is a pointless system with no-one that benefits apart from Bernie and his tin-pot idea.

[ChrisPage]

How exciting a race was Monza last year? Bernie seems to think know Hamilton/Massa/Kimi would push even harder knowing the win was all that counted. Personally, I think if a championship contender starts that low now, a magic puncture will happen to save the engine for the next race, rather than risking all for some absolutly meaningless points.

[Flyin Ryan]

Originally Posted by Super Hans

Not quite. Under the new rules, the 2008 championship would've finished like this. The points system decides everything, except the champion.

2008
1 Lewis Hamilton British McLaren-Mercedes 98
2 Felipe Massa Brazilian Ferrari 97 (C)
3 Kimi Räikkönen Finnish Ferrari 75
4 Robert Kubica Polish BMW Sauber 75
5 Fernando Alonso Spanish Renault 61
6 Nick Heidfeld German BMW Sauber 60
7 Heikki Kovalainen Finnish McLaren-Mercedes 53

So in other words, here is what the FIA has decided:

"We have agreed that the current points system is not sufficient to determine the World Driving Champion, but it is sufficient to determine who finishes 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and so on."

[ensign14]

No-one cares who comes 2nd down. Who was runner-up in the title race in 1975? Without looking?

Originally Posted by leonidas

Quite the silliest championship scoring system I've seen in a long time- most drivers will have no incentive to race beyond July!

Most drivers have no incentive to race full stop. Was Bourdais going to be champ last year? But if a driver wins the first 8 or so races any points system that does NOT give him the title soonish is deeply flawed and artificially created to entertain the Great Unwashed.

[Super Hans]

Originally Posted by Flyin Ryan

So in other words, here is what the FIA has decided:

"We have agreed that the current points system is not sufficient to determine the World Driving Champion, but it is sufficient to determine who finishes 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and so on."

That's about the size of it.

It looks like they couldn't decide between a points system or a countback system so have created a hybrid of the two.

[Yannick]

Oh no!
This is crap.
Messing around with the points system diminishes the drivers' achievements in the historical perspective.
I wish they would abandon the new "gold" points system before the season even begins.

I still calculate them in the 10-6-4-3-2-1 system of circa 1991-2003, because that was the best, and awarding points up to 8th place always seemed like a "Jaguar and Toyota rule".
So if they had to change it, why not to 10-6-4-3-2-1-1/2-1/4 ?

[Super Hans]

Originally Posted by Yannick

I still calculate them in the 10-6-4-3-2-1 system of circa 1991-2003

Really? If the driver who comes out on top is different than the one who won the WDC do you send him a little trophy?

[Glen]

Haven't read the whole thread, so sorry if this has been pointed out - very bad news for LH. Somebody is highly likely to get a big lead over him in the first few races in terms of race wins, and reliable points finishes aren't going to represent much of a consolation.

Could be exceptional news for Button though! Brawn are certain to suffer from having reduced resources and being less able to put speed on the car as the season wears on - but he might have the Championship all sealed up before that happens! OK, bit fanciful.

[Adam43]

Originally Posted by Yannick

I still calculate them in the 10-6-4-3-2-1 system of circa 1991-2003, because that was the best, and awarding points up to 8th place always seemed like a "Jaguar and Toyota rule".

Which is fine as an academic exercise, but in reality the drivers drive to the points system on offer.
The points system may alter the result, so you can't have one in place and then retrospectively apply another.

[KA]

Originally Posted by ensign14

No-one cares who comes 2nd down. Who was runner-up in the title race in 1975? Without looking?


Most drivers have no incentive to race full stop. Was Bourdais going to be champ last year? But if a driver wins the first 8 or so races any points system that does NOT give him the title soonish is deeply flawed and artificially created to entertain the Great Unwashed.

Yes, if he's won the first 8, it would be madness for anyone else to get the WDC.

But- and I know this is a real long-shot that's unlikely to happen, just suppose you have a really closely-fought season, with the wins spread over maybe half-a-dozen drivers and no-one picking up more than a couple of wins. However, over the course of the season, helped by some freak circumstances (say a race stopped early by weather conditions- eg Fisi in Brazil '03) and a few retirements amongst the front-runners, a normally midfield driver, usually struggling to get into the top 6 somehow to picks up 3 fairly fluke-ish wins totally against the run of form...

Would you really want him to end up as Champion...?