Last year, Max Verstappen won the Formula One world championship and Red Bull took home the Constructor’s Cup, breaking some records along the way. What will this season hold?
As a data storage company, we couldn’t resist breaking an F1 win down by the numbers. Read on to learn how F1 wins are calculated so you know exactly what’s at stake on Sundays and what each team will need to win.
The Leaderboard
The current standings, according to formula1.com on December 3, 2024. Image via formula1.com.
Each season, there are two cups to be won in F1: the Constructors’ Cup for the top team and the World Championship Cup for the top driver. This season so far, Max has a decent lead in points, with McLaren nipping at Red Bull’s heels.
Let’s dig into what it will take to win each Cup.
The Drivers’ Championship by the Data
In F1, winning the championship boils down to points. However, it can be determined by both Grand Prix first-place wins and cumulative points earned throughout the season. (In the event of a points-based tie, a “countback” rule means the ultimate winner will default back to the driver with the most Grand Prix wins that season.)
In 2020, Lewis broke Michael Schumacher’s record 91 Grand Prix wins and tied him for seven championship wins. In the 2021, Hamilton became the first to break 100. Max racked up 54 points so while he remained shy of that record, he did break the number of wins taken in a season—15, which he set himself last year. (Ten of those wins were consecutive, which beat Vettel’s prior record of nine.) That’s 86.35% of races during the season, breaking the prior record of 75%.
The Constructors’ Cup by the Numbers
The Constructors’ Cup is awarded each year to the engine manufacturing team that accrues the most points over the season. In F1, team points are handed out at each race according to placements in the top 10.
There’s one point for the fastest lap (but only if the driver finishes in the top 10), then the rest are divvied up by placements on the leaderboard, like this:
- First place: 25
- Second place: 18
- Third place: 15
- Fourth place: 12
- Fifth place: 10
- Sixth place: 8
- Seventh place: 6
- Eighth place: 4
- Ninth place: 2
- Tenth place: 1
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