Formula 1 is an easy sport to understand in theory- the fastest car wins. However, the F1 points system is a little bit more complicated, as teams are vying for two different championships at the same time. The drivers are competing for the World Drivers Championship- the driver with the most points at the end of the season, while the teams are competing for the Constructors Championship- the team with the most points at the end of the season.

Points are scored based on how a driver finishes in a race, with additional points being earned for finishing well insprint races. Here is how it all works:

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How Many Points Do F1 Drivers Get?

Formula 1 points are scored if a driver finishes in the top-10 in a race. Here is how points are awarded:

Finish position	Points awarded
1	25
2	18
3	15
4	12
5	8
6	6
7	4
8	2
9	2
10	1
11-22	0

This point structure rewards not only finishing in the top-10, but to winning races overall. The gap between 1st and second is quite large, and with every point mattering for both the Drivers’ Championship and Constructors Championship, that gap can be the difference between winning and not.

How Do F1 Sprint Races Award Points?

Six races a year have a Sprint Race, which changes the nature of the race weekend. These races are about 1/3 the length of a regular race, and prioritize being fastest versus being the most strategic. We wrote about the difference here.

Teams win points for finishing well in a sprint race as well. Here’s how it breaks down:

Position	Points
1	8
2	7
3	6
4	5
5	4
6	3
7	2
8	1
9-22	0

While it may seem like a small number of points, these add up very quickly. Winning a sprint race makes a big difference at the end of the season when drivers and teams look to be as high up the standings as they can.

Does it matter more to win the Drivers’ Championship or the Constructors Championship?

It depends who you ask. The drivers want to win the Drivers’ Championship as it impacts their ability to earn more money, move to bigger teams, and secure their place in Formula 1 history.

However, drivers race for teams and take instructions from them directly. Teams try to prioritize winning the Constructors Championship and make decisions to do so. Sometimes that means sacrificing one driver’s success for another, with the optimal goal of finishing each race in 1st and 2nd position.

Teams that perform better get more prize money at the end of the year. It is also a boost for sponsorship and investment from companies.

For the driver in second place constantly, that does not bode well for their future, as nobody remembers who won second place in a given year the same way they do who took home the championship. Lewis Hamilton has seven World Drivers’ Championships, but nobody counts his three second-place finishes for anything.

How has the F1 point system changed over time?

The current model of awarding points to the top-10 finishers has been in place since 2009. Before that, the winner got ten points, but only the top eight finishers earned points. Back in the early days of the sport, it was initially only the top-five that scored, and was then revised to be the top- six in 1960.

In 2019, the scoring was adjusted to give a point to the driver who had the fastest lap, but this was removed in 2025. Sprints were introduced in 2022 to add additional fun to race weekends and introduce more variability to the races.

What’s next for the F1 point system?

It seems like there is a good deal of support for Sprint Weekends as a part of the F1 point system and little interest in bringing back the extra point for fastest lap. The big question is whether points will be expanded with the addition of Cadillac to the F1 grid. Perhaps they add points for finishing 11th to balance it back to half of the grid scoring points now that there are 22 drivers instead of 20.

Hopefully this gives you a good idea of how the F1 point system works and what to watch for in an F1 race. Happy watching!