FIA SHOCK DECISION TO REMOVE F1 FASTEST LAP POINT IN 2025

24 Points taken off the table for 2025 leads fans to call decision ‘unfair’

Visa Cash App Racing Bulls driver, Daniel Ricciardo ended his Formula One career with a bang in Singapore, clinching the fastest lap award point on the final lap of the race. Ricciardo’s race was a seemingly unfortunate ending to his impressive F1 career after a poor qualifying result left him out of the points. With his former Red Bull teammate , Max Verstappen in a tight Drivers Championship battle with competitor, Lando Norris, Ricciardo pit for new tyres, taking the fastest lap bonus point from the Mclaren Driver and cementing his position in 18th place, slowing Norris’ approach on Verstappen in the 2024 Driving standings.

Many fans called to social media, claiming that Ricciardo took the fastest lap to intentionally deny Norris the point and to help his former teammate secure his top spot in the championship, seeming that Ricciardo was driving with Red Bull’s sister team. Other fans argued that it was the perfect send-off for the winner of eight Grand Prix races.

When Redbull’s team principal, Christian Horner, was asked on the matter, he expressed, “Given this may have been Daniel’s last race, we wanted to give him the chance to savour it and go out with the fastest lap”.

Formula 1 Flag - Photo by Cole Longmuir

This situation caused noise in the media, with many calling for the rules to be changed to prevent drivers from denying important driver championship points. On October 17th 2024, the FIA World Motor Sport Council announced they would be removing the fastest lap point starting as soon as the 2025 season. Drivers will still receive the DHL Fastest Lap Award with their signed Pirelli Tire trophy, but not the crucial point that could make or break the title.

Many drivers spoke out on the change at the Austin GP with split opinions. Drivers like Leclerc, Sainz, and Russell agreed it was “unnecessary”. Other drivers such as Perez disagreed, saying “There were races, especially when the championship is pretty tight, between teams and drivers where that could really make a difference. We are talking about 24 points a season”.

With 24 fewer points up for grabs in 2025, drivers are going to be more focused on their position points, especially for back-marker teams that score points less occasionally, such as Alpine and Williams.