World Driver's Championship

Like all other sports, the goal of each individual driver in Formula One is only one thing, the World Driver's Championship and it's trophy. Along with the trophy, the title holder has the prestige and total commitment from the team to adjacent years trophy as well.

To win this coveted title it isn't just about the drive. When you ask the fans what it takes to become the World Driver's Champion they will tell you that it is so much more...

"commitment, Passion" - Ben R.

"Timeless beauty, teamwork" - Anouck W.

"Patience, perseverance and complete understanding of your performance." - Mohamed A.

"F1's about passion, adrenaline, endurance & perseverance. For teams, drivers and fans alike!!" - Smiffie

To determine the World Drivers' Championship (WDC) winner, the FIA has set out a simple guideline. For each race the drivers that finish in the top ten are awarded points.

1st	25 point	6th	8 points
2nd	18 points	7th	6 points
3rd	15 points	8th	4 points
4th	12 points	9th	2 points
5th	10 points	10th	1 point

Over the combined season, the points are collected and after the checkered flag has fallen in the final race of the season, the driver with the most points wins. Simple right?

You may ask, what happens when more than one driver has the highest combined amount of points at the end of the season? In a case of a 'tie', the FIA calls in the clever boffins and have them figure out which of the drivers have the best finishes combined.

Out of the 24 drivers in the paddock, there are only 10 positions that can take points each race. That leaves a few of the teams as 'back markers'. These are the men that are normally lapped by the front runners but are a necessity to the future of the sport.

Not only do the front runners air for WDC points, so do the back markers.  So at the end of the season, when the WDC winner is announced, the back markers teams are flipping through pages of data and race standings trying to figure out just where their drivers have placed.

Just as the front runners are decided in the chance of a tie in standings, the back markers boffins are calculating by race finish where they stand.

Using 2010 final standings as example, you can see each driver that had failed to score any championship points were still given a standing in the WDC. What you can determine is that the driver with the combined best finishes is given the higher standing (lower car number).

With the highest (or best) finishes combined over the season, Heikki Kovalianen was given the 'best' number of the back markers. To discover the 2011 season start car and team numbers, it is much simpler than it look (and reads).