Japanese GP: why was there such confusion over points?

Formula One

Verstappen wasn't champion, then he was… how did heavy rain bring mass confusion to F1’s points system?

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Max Verstappen is a two-time world champion. We can now say this with absolute certainty, although it’s a tribute to F1’s love for obscure rules that, in the immediate aftermath of the Red Bull driver’s victory at Suzuka, nobody had a clue.

The maths heading into the race was simple enough: Verstappen needed to score eight points more than Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc and six more than teammate Sergio Perez to build an unassailable lead in the championship and seal the title.

That was made vastly less likely when the race was red flagged shortly after the opening lap, with torrential rain preventing a restart for two whole hours. Remind us again, why does F1 visit Japan in typhoon season?

With another F1 rule stipulating that the grand prix had to be completed within three hours of it starting, that left only a 45-minute window for the remaining action; nowhere near enough to hit the scheduled 53 laps.

And a shorter race means fewer points: earlier this year the FIA announced that it had a new system for this, in response to the 2021 Belgian Grand Prix in which a result was declared after only a couple of laps behind the safety car, much to the fury of the drenched spectators.

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Under the new rules, finishing with less than 25 per cent of the race distance would mean the top five earning 6-4-3-2-1 points respectively; 25-50 per cent would mean points for the top nine (13-1–8-6-5-4-3-2-1); 50-75 per cent would see the top 10 rewarded (19-14-12-9-8-6-5-3-2-1).

Or at least, that was the plan. As written in the sporting regulations – which are vetted by all of the teams before they’re approved – the wording states that the above only applies “If a race is suspended, and cannot be resumed”.

But the race was resumed. And officials felt they had no choice but to award full points, even though that was never the intention.

Which brings us to crowning the world champion: even though we only saw 28 laps, Verstappen, Leclerc and Perez went from earning 19, 14 and 12 points to receiving 25, 18 and 15. Enough to knock Perez out of contention, but not Leclerc.

Except the Monegasque had made an error under pressure from the Mexican in the final chicane, which saw him leave the track and gain advantage. For that he was given a five-second penalty and demoted to third, giving Verstappen the cushion he needed over both rivals to clinch the title. Not that any of us realised it. In the cool-down room, even Verstappen wasn’t sure.

Phew. No doubt the FIA will fix the rulebook for next season, although F1 is fortunate that Max’s humongous lead in the standings meant his second title was a formality anyway.

Two world championships, each won with a last-lap controversy. Verstappen loves giving us drama, eh?