Wins will take precedence over points this season
Hamilton would not have won 2008 title under new system
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 17 March 2009 14.03 GMT
The FIA has agreed to award the formula one world drivers' championship to the driver with the most race wins from this season onwards. Under the new regulations, the rest of the standings, from second place to last, will still be decided on the current points system.
If the new stipulations had been in effect last season, Felipe Massa and not Lewis Hamilton would have won the drivers' championship. The Brazilian driver won six races to Hamilton's five but the British driver ended the season on 98 points to Massa's 97.
In the event of two or more drivers finishing with the same number of race wins, the title will go to the driver with the most points. The current scoring system — 10 points for a win, eight for second, six for third — remains intact. A proposal to change the points awarded to drivers finishing in first, second and third place to 12, nine and seven points was rejected by the FIA's world motor sport council. The constructors' championship will still be decided by points, rather than team wins.
The proposal to hand precedence to wins over points was made by Bernie Ecclestone's Formula One Management, with an alternative option from the Formula One Teams' Association rejected by the FIA. The organisation did, however, dismiss Ecclestone's suggestion of gold, silver and bronze medals for the top three drivers in each race.
Although the title would have ended up in different hands last season had the new rules been effect, that remains the only time this century that the drivers' championship would have been won by a different driver from the actual champion had wins been the deciding factor.
The FIA has also agreed to introduce a voluntary budget cap from 2010 of £30m per two-car team. "As an alternative to running under the existing rules, which are to remain stable until 2012, all teams will have the option to compete with cars built and operated within a stringent cost cap," said the FIA in a statement. "To enable these cars to compete with those from teams which are not subject to cost constraints, the cost-capped cars will be allowed greater technical freedom."
Hamilton would not have won 2008 title under new system
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 17 March 2009 14.03 GMT
The FIA has agreed to award the formula one world drivers' championship to the driver with the most race wins from this season onwards. Under the new regulations, the rest of the standings, from second place to last, will still be decided on the current points system.
If the new stipulations had been in effect last season, Felipe Massa and not Lewis Hamilton would have won the drivers' championship. The Brazilian driver won six races to Hamilton's five but the British driver ended the season on 98 points to Massa's 97.
In the event of two or more drivers finishing with the same number of race wins, the title will go to the driver with the most points. The current scoring system — 10 points for a win, eight for second, six for third — remains intact. A proposal to change the points awarded to drivers finishing in first, second and third place to 12, nine and seven points was rejected by the FIA's world motor sport council. The constructors' championship will still be decided by points, rather than team wins.
The proposal to hand precedence to wins over points was made by Bernie Ecclestone's Formula One Management, with an alternative option from the Formula One Teams' Association rejected by the FIA. The organisation did, however, dismiss Ecclestone's suggestion of gold, silver and bronze medals for the top three drivers in each race.
Although the title would have ended up in different hands last season had the new rules been effect, that remains the only time this century that the drivers' championship would have been won by a different driver from the actual champion had wins been the deciding factor.
The FIA has also agreed to introduce a voluntary budget cap from 2010 of £30m per two-car team. "As an alternative to running under the existing rules, which are to remain stable until 2012, all teams will have the option to compete with cars built and operated within a stringent cost cap," said the FIA in a statement. "To enable these cars to compete with those from teams which are not subject to cost constraints, the cost-capped cars will be allowed greater technical freedom."
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