It is incredibly unlikely for two drivers to finish with the same amount of points in the F1 championship given the increased number of races on the calendar. The permutations and combinations of the results for 24 races make it astronomically difficult, but it isn’t impossible. With the way the 2024 championship has been going, Max Verstappen and Lando Norris may end the season equal on points.
Sean Kelly, F1 host and chief statistician tweeted, “If Lando Norris wins every remaining GP and sprint and takes the fastest lap bonuses, and Max Verstappen is second each time, they will end the season tied on points. That means they’d be 1-2 starting the last lap in Abu Dhabi.”
If Lando Norris wins every remaining GP and sprint and takes the fastest lap bonuses, and Max Verstappen is second each time, they will end the season tied on points. That means they’d be 1-2 starting the last lap in Abu Dhabi, knowing whoever sets the fastest lap wins the title
— Sean Kelly (@virtualstatman) September 16, 2024
Kelly then revealed that whoever gets the fastest lap in Abu Dhabi will be taking home the championship. Regardless, if Norris takes the fastest lap in Abu Dhabi, the two will end up on equal points. Then, F1 will have to count back the results. Norris will have more wins than Verstappen in this scenario and will win the 2024 championship.
According to Formula 1’s official website, “Were two – or more – drivers to be tied on points at the end of the season, there would be a countback of results. The driver with the most wins would be crowned champion. If the drivers had an equal number of victories, then the driver with the most second-place finishes, and so on down until a point of difference is reached, would win the title.”
There has never been a championship in F1 where the championship contenders have finished the season tied i.e. on equal points. The closest it ever came was during the 1984 season when McLaren teammates Niki Lauda and Alain Prost finished the championship separated by only half a point.
