Well, this double points situation isn’t going away is it?
Turns out that F1’s Strategy group recently veto’d the latest in Bernie Ecclestone’s crazy schemes, to extend a universally disliked double points system beyond Abu Dhabi, and to try and make the system a three race rule, including the Circuit Of The Americas and Brazil.
What makes this interesting is that F1’s Strategy Group is a new formation from within the FIA, and it excludes the smaller teams. Currently, it contains Mercedes, Red Bull, McLaren, Ferrari, Williams and a floating member, which is currently Lotus due to their championship position of 4th. This has already caused controversy given the potential for some of the bigger teams and their political influence and other agendas. Well, maybe apart from Williams, who are stinking up the joint for now anyway…
Dre’s Take: I’m still not quite sure what to make of all this. I used to be deadset AGAINST the idea of a Double Point rule in Formula 1 – But then you realise, a LOT of other sports with similar calendar formats do things in a similar fashion. For example, if you look at how Tennis compile their World Rankings, the Grand Slams (Wimbledon, US, Australia, French), are given a larger priority, same for Snooker’s World Rankings (Apart from when Ronnie O’Sullivan just crashes shit and wins random tournaments)
Same for track and field’s “Diamond League”, with its final event counting for double. And let’s not forget NASCAR’s entire Chase for the Sprint Cup. Imagine that, a playoff format in Motorsport!
I’m just saying, having an event mean a little bit more is more common than you think in sports – A bigger issue to me, is why Abu Dhabi? Not prestigious a race AT ALL, and very new to the F1 calendar, despite it being unique in its setting. I think if you’re going to have a system where some races mean more than others, go the whole hog and make 4 of them Double Points instead. Say, Silverstone, Monaco, Spa and Monza. Having just the one on a GP that paid extra money to be at the end, and isn’t even that special, is just a bit…off. The concept isn’t awful, just the execution…
Are you for or against the Double Point rule in Formula 1? Lemme know!
