Explained: Points rule that led to Max Verstappen winning the F1 world title

Max Verstappen is the 2022 Formula 1 world champion, but only had it confirmed after a fiasco over points post-race in Japan.

Suzuka regularly throws up drama around a potential title decider and, in the end, that is what we got again on Sunday at the iconic circuit.

After a lengthy delay due to a red flag and heavy rain, we had around 50 minutes of racing action and it was Max Verstappen who took the win, ahead of Charles Leclerc and Sergio Perez on track.

Leclerc, though, saw himself demoted down to third a matter of minutes after the chequered flag after a late mistake in the final corner saw him cut the chicane and be given a time penalty, after being deemed to have unfairly retained a position in front of Perez.

Indeed, that meant it was Verstappen from Perez from Leclerc in the classification but the school of thought was that the Dutchman’s title wait would still have to go onto the US, as it was expected reduced points were to be awarded given the reduced length of the Grand Prix.

Confusion reigned, but it was eventually filtered through that Max was indeed the champion, with full points being awarded.

Many, then, wanted to know why full points were given for a race that wasn’t full length, but the confusion was down to a mass misinterpretation of the rules.

It had been widely assumed that a Grand Prix of reduced length, as we were going to get in Japan, would mean reduced points.

Indeed, in this particular case it was expected that Verstappen would get 19 points after 52% of the original race distance was run, with Perez getting 14 and Leclerc getting 12 – meaning Verstappen needed another point to clinch the crown.

However, the rules actually state that those reduced points only come into place if a race is