What’s up with the points in Suzuka and how Max Verstappen became champion

Max Verstappen was crowned Formula One World Champion in Japan, something even he couldn’t believe as there was confusion over how points were awarded to drivers.

As there was no full race due to the rain we all expected some of the points to be awarded. In particular, since the race that eventually took place was between 50% and 75% of the planned distance, the first place was to receive 19 points instead of 25, with a corresponding reduction in the points that would be awarded for the remaining places.

However, the stewards awarded all points to the riders who finished in the top 10 places, as they said the race finished normally under green flags and was not interrupted.

So Max got the 25 points of victory and together with the fact that Charles Leclerc ended up third after the penalty he received for being ahead of Sergio Perez in the last box, the Dutchman also mathematically secured the title . Verstappen is now 113 points clear of second in the standings, with only 112 points still up for grabs in the next few races.

To clarify the regulations, the FIA ​​spokesman explained: “The Rules for Reduced Scoring [άρθρο 6.5] they only apply in the event of an interruption that cannot be continued and therefore there are full points and Max Verstappen is world champion“.