Wins to decide 2009 F1 world title

~~Titch~~ · 17-03-2009, 10:03 PM

The 2009 world championship will be won by the driver who scores the most wins after the FIA unexpectedly decided to adopt Bernie Ecclestone’s favoured scheme rather than the points revisions suggested by the teams.

Following a meeting of its World Motor Sport Council on Tuesday, Formula 1’s governing body announced the system for deciding the world title would be changed with immediate effect – but that it had rejected the Formula One Teams’ Association's proposal to increase the points gap between first and second places.

Instead for the first time in the sport's 59-year history the drivers' title will not be decided by points.

The world champion will now be the driver who scores the most victories during the season, with any tie between two or more drivers only then decided by their respective overall season points total based on the existing 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 system.

Should the new format have been in place last year, then Felipe Massa and not Lewis Hamilton would have won the title by virtue of the Brazilian having scored six wins to his rival's five.

All other positions in the standings will continue to be determined by the current points arrangement, as will the constructors' championship.

"The WMSC accepted the proposal from Formula One Management to award the drivers’ championship to the driver who has won the most races during the season,” an FIA statement read.

“If two or more drivers finish the season with the same number of wins, the title will be awarded to the driver with the most points, the allocation of points being based on the current 10, 8, 6 etc. system.

“The rest of the standings, from second to last place, will be decided by the current points system.

“There is no provision to award medals for first, second or third place.

“The Constructors’ Championship is unaffected.

"The WMSC rejected the alternative proposal from the Formula One Teams’ Association to change the points awarded to drivers finishing in first, second and third place to 12, 9 and 7 points respectively."

FOTA announced earlier this month, as part of its blueprint for the future of the sport, that it wanted to see the points gap between the winner and second place increased by two to three points, with the current scoring system changed to 12-9-7-5-4-3-2-1.

That idea, which the body said was devised following feedback from fans, appeared to be the only proposed change on the table for 2009, after Ecclestone’s earlier Olympic-style medals suggestion had received a lukewarm responss.

However, while 'medals' will not be introduced as such the theory behind Ecclestone's proposal – that the driver with the most golds/wins should become world champion – has been adopted.

Ecclestone first floated a change to the points system after the end of last season, after Hamilton only had to race to a fifth place finish in Brazil to claim the title.

His medals idea, which would have seen gold, silver and bronze medals awarded to the top three finishers, had been discussed at the previous WMSC meeting in December, but the FIA put the plan on ice saying the proposals needed to be put to fans first.

Ecclestone's official Formula 1 website immediately ran a poll asking fans to vote in favour of, or against, his suggestion, although the results were never made public.

Speaking in January about the paddock's cool response to his idea, Ecclestone said that the award of medals wasn't central to his argument and that he simply wanted to see a system in force that placed a greater incentive on winning.

“Forget medals. It is about a system that rewards winning, makes it worth a driver’s while to win and not settle for second place,” he told the Daily Telegraph.
“Why would you risk going into a wall for two lousy points?
“You might if there was more to gain.
“They say cars don’t overtake any more. That is down to the drivers. They don’t always have to win to become a champion.
“Crazy.”

Stupid, utlity stupid! They could o really well and get lots of wins, and not even finish rest of races and win, thats wrong, should be about who can do best finishes ALLL Season!