I am sure that, by now everyone has heard of the super license points debacle between Colton Herta and the FIA. Over the last few days, many motorsport personalities have given their input on the super license point system and whether or not the current system is fair to all the drivers. For those of you that do not know the basics of the super license system, here is the need to know facts.
The FIA Super License is the biggest criteria needed in order to compete in Formula One. It is the highest level of racing license that the FIA grants. However before you can even be considered for a super license, there are six criteria you must meet. Firstly you must be at least 18 years of age. This rule was put in place after Max Verstappen was given an F1 seat when he was 17. The FIA felt that the drivers must be at least 18 in order to be at the level of maturity needed to be competing in the highest level of motor racing. The second piece of criteria is the driver must already have a Grade A Competition License. Thirdly, the driver should have a valid road car driving license. An important thing to note, the driver’s nationality must be the same on the road car license and the super license. The driver then has to pass an FIA theory test about the F1 sporting code. This is to ensure that the drivers are well educated on the rules and regulations, so that if they want, they can pull a George Russell and educate their engineer on the rules over the radio, mid race. The penultimate step for the driver is they had to have competed in 80% of two full seasons in a single seater championship. These single seater championships include; Formula 2, IndyCar, Formula 3, and Formula E. And finally, here’s the part you’ve all been waiting for. The final step in getting an FIA Super License is the driver has to have accumulated at least 40 points over the previous three seasons in any combination of an FIA sanctioned single seater championship.
The issue that has arisen over recent weeks has been the amount of points offered in different racing series. The points are given at the end of a season and are handed out based on the championship standings. In Formula 2, for example; if you finish first, second, or third, you will automatically be given the 40 points necessary. However in IndyCar, it is only the first place winner that gets the 40 points necessary. This recent debate stems from the fact that many people believe IndyCar is a more competitive series than the likes of the lower Formula series. And therefore, if IndyCar is more competitive, the drivers should be given more points.
Based on the current standings in Formula 2 there are 6 drivers out of 22 that could be eligible for a Super License at the end of this season with 11 drivers so far having won a race out of 26 races. And based on the final standings this year in IndyCar, only 4 drivers out of 35 are eligible for a Super License with 9 different winners out of 17 races. So 27% of the Formula 2 grid are eligible at the moment for a Super License. That may seem like a small percentage, however, only 11% of the IndyCar grid is eligible.
Now let’s look at Colton Herta specifically. He has had quite an impressive career so far, having 15 wins over the course of 11 years, which some people might think isn’t impressive when looking at the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel, however over the course of 12 years, Daniel Ricciardo has only had 8 wins. And there could be an argument that Formula One is more competitive than the series that Herta has raced in, but 15 wins is still no mean feat.
And even for those people that still believe Colton Herta isn’t “worthy” of a seat in F1, there is no denying that the current super license system is in need of an update. If the only series that grants drivers a realistic chance at getting into Formula One, is Formula Two, then we are going to see an endless stream of mainly young, wealthy drivers without giving an opportunity to drivers racing in other series. One can argue that IndyCar is the most popular American racing series with the exception of NASCAR. So why is it that those drivers aren’t given an equal opportunity to race in F1?
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