FIA announces pole position trophy to driver who qualifies fastest the most times
LONDON: Mexican driver Sergio Perez went against the flow of popular opinion on Thursday by backing a controversial rule change for Formula One to award double points at the final race of the season.
Red Bull’s quadruple world champion Sebastian Vettel has called the change ‘absurd’ while irate fans have flooded social media and message boards with opposition to what many consider a needless gimmick.
Perez, announced as a Force India driver after losing his place at McLaren, begged to differ.
“For some it will be right and for some it will be wrong, but I see the positive. I think it will create a much better final race where things can completely change for everyone,” he told reporters at a team presentation.
“I see it positive…I am OK with the rule.”
Force India scored 77 points in total last year, finishing sixth. With a win in Abu Dhabi next November now worth 50 points instead of 25, there is the potential for teams to make sudden and big jumps up the table.
Formula One’s governing body has also decided to allow drivers to choose their racing numbers in future and keep them throughout their grand prix careers, with the exception of the number one reserved for the reigning champion if he wanted it.
Perez said he would go for the number 11, if available, and also approved of that change.
“Ever since I was a kid I always wore the 11, in karting. Actually my email has 11 in it as well,” he grinned. “A lot of things have to do with 11 so I identified myself with that number.”
The number two might be less popular, since no driver wants to be second best, but Perez thought somebody would go for it regardless.
“There are strange characters in Formula One so for sure someone will pick the number two because they identify themselves with that number,” he said.
Meanwhile, Formula One will award a pole position trophy next year to the driver who qualifies fastest the most times during the season, the governing International Automobile Federation (FIA) announced on Thursday.
The 2014 sporting regulations, posted on the FIA website, said that in the event of a tie the holder of the most second places would win, with a further countback until a winner emerges.
“If this procedure fails to produce a result, the FIA will nominate the winner according to such criteria as it thinks fit,” the regulations stated.
Vettel would have won the award in four of the last five seasons.
The FIA also wrote a penalty points system into the regulations, which will see drivers handed a race ban if they accumulate 12 points in a year.
“Penalty points will remain on a driver’s Super Licence for a period of 12 months after which they will be respectively removed on the 12-month anniversary of their imposition,” the FIA said.
Driver numbers, to be chosen by the competitors and kept for the duration of their Formula One careers, will have to be clearly visible on helmets and the front of cars. — Reuters