History remains as rules change

Imagine Formula One's new points system had been introduced last year instead of the upcoming 2009 season.

Lewis Hamilton would not have been crowned the sport's youngest world champion and, even worse, he probably would have been cruelly stripped of his BBC Sports Personality of the Year runners-up award.

Under the initiative, announced by the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) on Tuesday, the driver who features most regularly at the top of the podium will be crowned champion for that year.

The 24-year-old won his maiden championship right at the death, pipping Felipe Massa of Ferrari by one point as he took fifth place in the final race in Brazil to secure the title. Massa, however, recorded more race victories during the season – six to Hamilton's five.

The McLaren man must be counting his lucky stars. Hamilton, however, would not be the only driver affected. If the new scheme accompanied the launch of the Drivers' Championship in 1950, 13 titles would have been awarded to different drivers in the past 48 years.

Jim Clark, the celebrated Scotsman, would therefore have added two championships – in 1964 and 1968 – to the duo of titles he achieved in the same decade.

By the time he died in a tragic crash at the Hockenheimring in 1968, he had already amassed more Grand Prix (25) and Grand Prix pole positions (33) than any other driver.

He would surely now rank alongside Michael Schumacher – the German with a record seven world championships – as one of the best in the business. Nelson Piquet, one of only nine men to win more than two world titles, would have been the most aggrieved.

All three of the Brazilian's title triumphs, between 1981 and 1987, were won by acquiring more points than any of his rivals, yet Alain Prost (twice) and Nigel Mansell won more races in the respective seasons.

Mansell himself would have been the darling of British racing much sooner had the revamped points system been in place when he chased the championship in the 1980s. His sole win, in 1992, would have ranked as his third, having taken the most first places in successive seasons in 1986 to 1987.

The new scheme – which replaces the 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 system (unless two drivers share the same number of wins) – was first announced at the end of last season by F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, whose idea was to introduce an Olympic-style reward, where drivers would gain gold, silver or bronze medals for finishing in the podium places.

While Ecclestone didn't get his wish granted in full, he was still pleased with the decision, arguing the revamp will make the sport even more exciting as it should encourage overtaking.

"If you're in the lead and I'm second, I wouldn't want to risk falling off the circuit or doing something stupid to get two points," said Ecclestone, head of Management and Administration for F1.

"The decision was unanimously agreed by the World [Motor Sport] Council. But we leave all the points in all of the other championships as they are at the moment."

Hamilton will breathe a sigh of relief. He might have to work even harder for this year's title, though.


Titles that would have changed

Year               Actual Champion           Most Wins Champion

1958                   Mike Hawthorn                   Stirling Moss

1964                      John Surtees                     Jim Clark

1967                     Denny Hulme                     Jim Clark

1977                      Niki Lauda                     Mario Andretti

1979                    Jody Scheckter                 Alan Jones

1981                      Nelson Piquet                 Alain Prost

1982                     Keke Rosberg                  Didier Pironi

1983                       Nelson Piquet                 Alain Prost

1984                        Niki Lauda                     Alain Prost

1986                       Alain Prost                   Nigel Mansell

1987                      Nelson Piquet                Nigel Mansell

1989                     Alain Prost                      Ayrton Senna

2008                     Lewis Hamilton                Felipe Massa