Mexican GP
F1 drivers compete for a drivers’ championship each year. This is the Formula One World Drivers’ Championship (WDC). The teams, who construct the cars in the competition, also compete for the Formula One World Constructors’ Championship (WCC).
How do F1 drivers get points and how do F1 teams get points? Well, drivers in F1 earn points based entirely on their race performance. The races are Grands Prix or Sprints.
This year, 2025, there are 24 Grand Prix races and six Sprint races. For a Grand Prix (GP) there are 101 drivers’ points available which are allocated to the top ten drivers. For a sprint race there are 36 drivers’ points which are allocated to the top eight drivers. The allocation of points for these events are as follows in the table below.
POINTS ALLOCATION PER EVENT
Big Points
That’s a lot of drivers’ points. What is the maximum a driver could earn in a year? If a driver won every GP and Sprint in a season, they would earn 648 points. Do the math if you do not believe me. 24 GP wins at 25 points each. 6 Sprint wins at 8 points each.
Most Points
The absolute highest points earned by a driver in a F1 season is 575. This was in 2023 when Max Verstappen won 19 out of 22 GPs and 4 out of six Sprints.
For the Teams
How do F1 teams get points? They simply add whatever points their two drivers achieved at each event. To win the Formula One World Constructors’ Championship the teams need both drivers to perform. The best result is to have their drivers achieve first and second at each event. A 1st and 2nd earn 43 points. A 3rd and 4th get only 27 points. When the other driver does not keep up with the leading driver in a team, things happen. Cases in point are Sergio Perez and Daniel Ricciardo.
We are now enjoying the 76th year of F1 Grand Prix racing. Sprint racing was only introduced in 2021. Initially it was at only three venues in a season. In 2023 it was upped to six venues. It looks like the Sprints, which are short fast races without pit stops, are here to stay.
WDC TROPHY
WCC TROPHY
