The removal of the point for the fastest lap in a race? Good news according to Ocon

Introduced in 2019 on the sidelines of the Australian Grand Prix, the point for the fastest lap in a race, awarded only if the author finished in the Top 10, bowed out in Abu Dhabi last December. Six seasons during which this system has sometimes been the subject of controversy, as seen at the Singapore Grand Prix in September.

So in a fierce struggle against McLaren at the Builders, Red Bull asked Daniel Ricciardo, still a driver for sister team Racing Bulls and at the back of the pack, to stop three laps from the finish. The goal? To set the fastest lap in the race with fresh tires and thus ensure that the extra point does not go to Lando Norris who temporarily held the bonus at that time.

This did not fail to create anger at McLaren, Zak Brown pointing out a lack of sporting fairness. Subsequently, discussions took place and a few weeks after the Singapore GP the FIA ​​ruled the end of the point for the fastest lap in races from 2026. This news was rather well received by the players, some of whom felt that the teams were using it to grab an extra point or to deprive a direct competitor of one.

« Teams that had a nice margin can simply stop (at the end of the race) and focus on the fastest lap, highlighted Esteban Ocon near talkSPORT.com.

In the end, the cars would have had to not stop to do the fastest lap. That would have been the fairest. But we couldn't control it. So, yeah, it didn't really work.. » And the Norman knows what he is talking about since he made a final stop in Austin in the final moments to set the best lap in the race and thus deprive Franco Colapinto and Williams a point that could have counted for a lot in the Constructors' Championship.

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