2002 F1 standings - 'new' style!

The Formula One Commission met near Heathrow airport yesterday and announced a number of new rules for 2003, including a new points system, whereby the top eight will now score points.

So how would it have affected the 2002 campaign?

In truth, the overall standings would have been affected very little.

Indeed, Michael Schumacher would have scored more points under the new system than the old, however he would have had to have waited until Germany to secure his fifth title, rather than France - a whole one race later.

It is also interesting to note that Ralf Schumacher and David Coulthard would have tied for fourth place under the new 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 pattern, rather than Ralf taking the position outright with 42 points, compared to DC's 41.

The most significant impact, though, is on those nearer the back of the grid. Did you know that if the new system had been adopted for 2002 then British American Racing would have scored points as early as Malaysia, rather than having to wait until the British Grand Prix to open their account? And that it would have beaten Jaguar to seventh place in the constructors' championship.

Toyota would also have done a lot better, scoring 13 points, as opposed to the two it achieved under the 10-6-4-3-2-1 scheme. Allan McNish would also have broken his duck and taken some points, and so too would have Alex Yoong. Indeed, the Malaysian would have done so in Australia, making it a double whammy for Minardi, which achieved fifth place with Mark Webber.

So does this mean then that the new points system will make no difference to the top teams?

At the moment, it is to early to tell, although it is important to remember that, next year, the new points scheme will work in conjunction with other new rules too. The impact in 2003 and beyond remains to be seen.

A full list of the new-look points standings is below...

2002 standings under 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 points system:

Drivers' Championship (after 17 of 17 rounds)

1. [1] Michael Schumacher Ferrari-Ferrari 156 points [144]
2. [2] Rubens Barrichello Ferrari-Ferrari 93 [77]
3. [3] Juan Montoya Williams-BMW 74 [50]
4= [4] Ralf Schumacher Williams-BMW 63 [42]
4= [5] David Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes 63 [41]
6. [6] Kimi Raikkonen McLaren-Mercedes 36 [24]
7. [7] Jenson Button Renault-Renault 31 [14]
8. [10=] Nick Heidfeld Sauber-Petronas 22 [7]
9. [10=] Giancarlo Fisichella Jordan-Honda 20 [7]
10. [8] Jarno Trulli Renault-Renault 19 [9]
11. [9] Eddie Irvine Jaguar-Cosworth 16 [8]
12. [12=] Felipe Massa Sauber-Petronas 15 [4]
13. [12=] Jacques Villeneuve BAR-Honda 14 [4]
14. [15=] Mika Salo Toyota-Toyota 10 [2]
15. [14] Olivier Panis BAR-Honda 8 [3]
16. [15=] Heinz-Harald Frentzen Arrows-Cosworth 6 [2]
17= [15=] Takuma Sato Jordan-Honda 5 [2]
17= [15=] Mark Webber Minardi-Asiatech5 [2]
19. [N/A] Allan McNish Toyota 3 [0]#
20. [N/A] Pedro de la Rosa Jaguar-Cosworth 2 [0]#
20= [N/A] Alex Yoong Jaguar-Cosworth 2 [0]#

[# denotes, did not score points under 10-6-4-3-2-1 system in 2002]

Constructors' Championship (after 17 of 17 rounds)

1. [1] Ferrari-Ferrari 249 points [221]
2. [2] Williams-BMW 137 [92]
3. [3] McLaren-Mercedes99 [65]
4. [4] Renault-Renault 50 [23]
5. [5] Sauber-Petronas 37 [11]
6. [6] Jordan-Honda 25 [9]
7. [8] BAR-Honda 22 [7]
8. [7] Jaguar-Cosworth 18 [8]
9. [9=] Toyota-Toyota 13 [2]
10. [9=] Minardi-Asiatech 7 [2]
11. [9=] Arrows-Cosworth 6 [2]

[Number(s) in brackets denote official standings using the 10-6-4-3-2-1 points scoring system]