Was Bernie’s Most Wins scheme a ploy?
The governing body tried to introduce Bernie Ecclestone's favored system this year, but the late change was vetoed by the F1 teams alliance FOTA.
We reported in March that the FIA would consult the teams before trying to introduce the system for 2010, but the new sporting regulations for next year already feature the controversial rule.
Article 6 states that the drivers' title "will be awarded to the driver who has been classified first in the greatest number of races".
The news has until now slipped the attention of the media because – unlike all other changes to the rules – the amended rule was not highlighted in pink and underlined in copies of the 2010 sporting regulations.
The FIA also confirmed that, accompanying the ban on race refueling next year, drivers in 'Q3' can refuel under parc ferme conditions prior to the race.
This change ensures the spectacle of low-fuel dashes for pole position, not affected by varying race strategies.
05/03/09 The new F1 rules for 2010 make no mention of a change in the points system.
In March the FIA announced at Bernie Ecclestone's urging that the championship winner this year would be the driver that won the most races. However that plan was abandoned after several F1 teams pointed out the rule could not be introduced so close to the start of the season.
The FIA declared that the ‘most wins’ system “will be deferred until 2010″. But the sporting regulations for 2010 published last week describes the same 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 points system used since 2003.
Some claimed the FIA never intended to use a ‘most wins’ system – that they announced it in March to deflect attention away from another controversial plan, namely the proposed introduction of budget caps.