Double Points For One F1 Race Is Nonsense

I haven’t seen any positive reaction to the decision taken earlier this week to award double points for the final race of next year’s Formula One season. That’s not a surprise. It’s a ridiculous decision.

If the race was twice as long, perhaps the decision would make sense. If the drivers had to drive half the race normally and then switch to running in reverse for the second half, it might justify the extra skill required.

The Championship is decided over a season in which every race is weighted evenly, so the strengths and weakness of cars and drivers in theory even out over the year. Not any more.

One hopes that the title is already sewn up by then – which is precisely the opposite of what the law-makers want to happen.

Sometimes, teams, drivers, players, coaches are just significantly better than their opposition. Such things never last forever and we should salute those who manage it while all the time working hard to legitimately catch them. Not changing the rules to try to handicap them artificially.

It’s not their fault that their dominance might not make the sport interesting for the casual viewer. That’s not their concern. If it’s about making it interesting and keeping the champonship alive until the last possible moment the FIA might as well scrap qualifying and decide the grid order randomly.

It would be no less artificial.

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