When Ecclestone wanted to introduce medals in Formula 1

Since the start of the Paris Olympic Games, we no longer calculate (except for the most fanatical!) the number of times we hear the word "medal" on television, in the stadiums or in the street. Whether they are gold, silver or bronze, these metal charms fascinate and punctuate our days, with extraordinary enthusiasm for each medal collected, in all countries of the world.

You will then tell me: what does this have to do with the Formula 1 ? Well, this medal system could very well have been adopted by the discipline not that long ago, at the end of the 2000s! An unusual story which came close to transforming the championship forever…

Ecclestone and the obsession with victory

Back in 2008: at the time, Formula 1 was ruled with an iron fist by one man: Bernie Ecclestone. The “big moneyman” of F1, who was not short of ideas to make the discipline more attractive – especially in this period of economic crisis – then arrived with a brand new proposal: to get rid of the current points system (which rewarded the first eight drivers at the time) and, as for the Olympic Games, rewarding the first three drivers in a Grand Prix with gold, silver and bronze medals. Thus, a bit like the medal table during the Olympics, the pilot with the most gold medals would win the championship. In the event of a tie, it would be the silver medals, then the bronze medals, which would decide between the pilots.

According to “Mister E”, this system had the advantage of favoring the number of victories during a season compared to the regularity of a driver who does not win. “ Seeing a driver be titled without having won a single race should not exist, because it could happen if we don’t change anything”, such was the fear of the British leader. Although few people take this proposal seriously, Bernie Ecclestone says he wants to apply this new system from the following season, in 2009!

Bernie Ecclestone, director of the FOM, helped in his medal mania by the president of the FIA ​​at the time, Max Mosley. © DPPI

And thanks to its power of influence, in March 2009, the World Council adopted a formula quite close to that proposed by the director of the FOM. It was then decided that the title of world champion would be awarded to the driver with the most victories, and no longer to the one who scored the most points. No medals therefore, but a system rewarding victories more than consistency: Bernie Ecclestone achieves his goals. A change which would have had an impact on the 2008 championship for example: if this format had been applied, Felipe Massa would have been champion ahead of Lewis Hamilton, with six victories against five.

However, the introduction of this new system caused an uproar in the world of Formula 1. “FOTA would like to express its disappointment with the measures adopted by the World Council. She is concerned about the fact that they were adopted unilaterally (…) we think it is necessary for us to study the situation and do everything possible to maintain a certain stability in the regulations and to avoid perpetual changes, which would only bring confusion and perplexity in the eyes of manufacturers, teams, sponsors and spectators”, lamented Luca di Montezemolo, then President of the Formula 1 teams association, a few hours after the validation of these new rules. FOTA says it is ready to establish a new points scale to give more credit to the winner of a race without putting a regular driver at a great disadvantage throughout the season.

Medals in F1 since 2022

Faced with the outcry from those involved in the discipline, the tandem Max Mosley (President of the FIA) – Bernie Ecclestone must back down. The measure voted by the World Council is canceled before the start of the 2009 season, and it will finally be decided to change the points scale in 2010 (25 points for 1st, 18 points for 2nd and so on until 10th ), system still in force in 2024, in order to increase the value of a victory. By brandishing this totally crazy idea of ​​a medal at the start, Mister E will still have succeeded, ultimately, in imposing his desire to reward the winners rather than the regulars.

The history of medals in Formula 1 does not end there since the end of 2022, the discipline rewards the winner of a Grand Prix with a gold medal. A purely symbolic charm: unlike trophies, recovered by the teams following a victory, the medal can be kept by the drivers “as personal proof of their success. »

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