How one point can change the world (championship)
03/16/2019
Until 1959, Formula 1 also awarded an extra point for the fastest race lap. This rule will come into effect again from tomorrow Sunday at the F1 season opener in Australia. It's hard to believe, but the world championship title has actually gone to a different driver five times since 1959 with this extra point:
In 1976, James Hunt won the duel with 69 to 68 points against Niki Lauda. The Austrian withdrew from the Fuji rain race after his fire accident at the Nürburgring and thus lost the title to the Briton. But with the extra point, he would have clinched the title with 72 to 71 points.
In 1979, Gilles Villeneuve would have won the title for Ferrari against Jody Scheckter. The Canadian recorded 6 fastest race laps for himself and would have taken the title to Maranello with 53 to 51 points. Without the point, the season ended 51 to 47 for the South African.
In 1986, Alain Prost won the duel against Britain's Nigel Mansell by 72 points to 70. The Williams driver would have been 4:2 up on the McLaren with the round duel at 74 to 74 and would have been crowned world champion after a number of wins (5:4).
In 1988, Ayrton Senna beat Alain Prost to the runner-up title by 90 points to 87. However, the Frenchman was 7:3 ahead with his fastest race laps and would have swapped the top two places with 94:93 points.
In 2008, Felipe Massa in the Ferrari lost the title in his home race by 97 to 98 points in an absolute Hitchcock final against Lewis Hamilton in the McLaren. With the fastest race laps of the year, 3:1 for Massa, the Brazilian would have held the title for all eternity with 99:100 points and not just for 30 seconds.
