The news that Formula 1 is planning to award double points for at least the final race of the season has been greeted with almost universal derision from fans and drivers alike. I pride myself on attempting to put both sides of the argument before coming to a reasoned decision, and this will be no different. Personally, I disagree whole-heartedly with the changes, but then again I generally am averse to major change in sport. I disliked the points move to 25 initially, but this has widely been accepted.
After such an emphatic title victory by Sebastian Vettel last time around, it is unsurprising that bosses want to prevent the same repetitive, boring season next year. Handing double points for the final race of the season would certainly prolong the title race, as an individual would need to be more than 50 points clear before travelling to the final race to be assured of the title. However, even this argument has flaws. It would not prevent the situation that we saw this season, as Vettel would still have been champion entering the final race in Brazil, and his win in the final race would only add further emphasis to the margin of victory.
I have further issues with this proposal. At the beginning of the season, every team sets up their car in a particular way, with different top speeds and cornering ability. This means that the best car often changes depending on the type of track. If a track has a huge amount of straights, like Spa-Francorchamps or Monza, this inevitably favours a car with a high top speed. On the other hand, a track like Monaco or Singapore's Marina Bay circuit rely on twisting turns, meaning that cars with excellent turning ability and high downforce will be at an advantage. What this has to do with the proposal is regardless of the track that is chosen to be the final race of the season, it will favour one team in particular. Either this, or, even worse in my opinion, all of the teams will set their cars up with the final race in mind, meaning that there will be no difference between the cars from track to track, meaning that we will almost certainly repeatedly see the type of emphatic Vettel win each season. It will become who can set their car up for the final race best.
As I mentioned earlier, this proposal has been met largely with disapproval. Most outspoken of the drivers has been Sebastian Vettel. Whether that is because it disadvantages him should his championship lead next year not be as emphatic as this, or whether that is me being cynical, I am not sure. Nevertheless, his comments have been covered in media across the globe, and he has become the face for the anti-50 points campaign. As much as I agree with the sentiment behind his words, I have a serious issue with something he said. One of the soundbites used during his comment was 'it's like giving double points for the final game of the Bundesliga'. That got my back up. I do love a good analogy, but it is this kind of ill-conceived and poorly constructed notion that makes me think that sportsmen should just stick to 'I think that...'.
The reason this simple statement got me irritated is that the two aren't really comparable. Whilst they are both sports, there is pretty much where the similarities end. The key point that makes me disagree is the fact that not all of the teams play each other on the final day. In racing, every driver is on the track at the same time, and therefore each can alter their own fate and position. On the final day of the football season, Bayern Munich (the team in first) could be playing Eintracht Braunschweig (the team currently bottom), whilst their main title rivals Borussia Dortmund could be playing Bayer Leverkusen for double points. I know which I would favour in that equation. In football, the fixtures leave more to fortune than F1 ever can, and therefore the double points in football would be far more unfair than the double points in motor racing.
However, just because I am arguing against Vettel's usage of a misguided metaphor, please do not think that I support the new rules. I do not. I think, for the reasons I have outline, it is a ridiculous notion, which doesn't even achieve its original purpose. If an individual is really as dominant as Vettel was this season, they will win the final race regardless, as Vettel did. Designed to attract TV audiences, all this new rule would do would be to force the other 19 races into a lesser category, meaning that viewers are unlikely to watch them. This makes no sense, either for the benefit of the sport, or the wallet of Bernie Ecclestone.
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