The points system has been restructured yet again to accommodate the 13 teams competing in 2010. After seven years with the eight-point model, F1 now changes to a ten-point structure…

Bernie's rejected medal system proposed an emphasis on podium finishers © AP Images

The new system rewards the top ten finishers, with 25 points being handed to the race-winner and the rest following up with 18-15-12-10-8-6-4-2 and 1 for the tenth place.

This is an updated version of the new points system for the upcoming season from the one that was initially proposed (25-20-15-10-8-6-5-3-2-1). The system has been adopted primarily to spread out rewards for an expanded grid that now features 24 cars and also to create a significant gap between the first and the second places.

Over the years, numerous changes have been made to the points system. We shall now look at the evolution of this system, which has been implemented since the first F1 Grand Prix at Silverstone in 1950.

1950’s
The 1950’s regulation gave a boost to just the top five finishers (8-6-4-3-2). In addition, only a certain number of ‘best results’ were counted towards the world championship standings. Points were awarded for the fastest laps of each race as well but that practice had to be discontinued due to inaccurate timings. Shared drives split points but that was deemed complicated and was promptly discarded too towards the end of the decade. Since the inaugural season, selective ‘best scores’ from the season determined championship points.

1960’s and 1970’s
The 1960 season saw an additional solitary point given to the sixth place. This new six-point structure remained until 2002. The 1961 season interestingly started with an alteration to the winner’s points tally. It had increased from eight to nine. The new system (9-6-4-3-2-1) continued until the end of the 1990 season.

1980’s
The first half of the decade had the simplest form of the points system. The “best scores” regulation was discarded from 1981 to 1984. However, an evolved ruling meant that the system came back on, but this time, a standard score from the best-11 races of the season was used to assess the final tally.

1990’s

Senna and Prost in 1988. Senna won the championship even though he lad lesser overall points than Prost. © AP Images

The system of considering only certain number of races for the driver’s points created an anomaly. For instance, in 1988, Alain Prost earned more points overall than rival Ayrton Senna, but the best 11 scores ensured the Brazilian won the championship. The ‘best scores’ parameter was done away with for good and an additional one point was added for the winner’s slot from 1991. The new system now read as 10-6-4-3-2-1. This ruling remained until the end of the 2002 season.

2000’s
The six-point model was modified to the eight-point classification from the start of the 2003 season. This system was approved to encourage teams to score regularly and reward for consistency and reliability as well. This feature remained until the end of the 2009 season.

However, with the introduction of new teams and to give more significance to race wins, a new system has been implemented for the 2010 season.

Points system over the decades

Position	1950's	60's - 80's	1990's	2000's	2010
1	8	9	10	10	25
2	6	6	6	8	18
3	4	4	4	6	15
4	3	3	3	5	12
5	2	2	2	4	10
6		1	1	3	8
7				2	6
8				1	4
9					2
10					1

This change in the new points system makes the season more absorbing, with more drivers now fighting for positions for an additional two places over last year. With the 2007 and 2008 seasons won by a margin of a solitary point, the tenth place could make a significant contribution to a driver’s points tally.

Let’s see how this affects the final standings at the end of this season. The new system may just make the title battle more thrilling than ever!