number66.net

Writing about A1GP got me thinking. Pitching nation against nation is a fantastic concept and what if Formula One was like that? If it was, who are the real world champions? What is the most successful motorsport nation? To answer that I have looked at the statistics for the last 56 years of Formula One (1950-2006) and I think I've found the answer. It is first necessary to outline the criteria for the comparisons. Only nations which have scored a World Championship point are eligible. This means wins and podiums can be taken into account but I have explicitly not looked for nations which may have held pole positions or achieved fastest laps yet failed to score any points. This is for practicality's sake. I also recognise that the system of awarding points has changed many times over the history of Formula One. Nevertheless, statistics are statistics and considering the majority of points in this era have been scored by just one man (Michael Schumacher, Germany) and that points is just one comparisons, it should even itself out. So let us get started. This first table shows the total number of World Championship's won by each nation. That's all well and good, but it's hardly conclusive. Next, we will look at the total number of World Championship points scored by each nation. This provides a little more weight. However, there is the aforementioned problem - over the years the Formula One points system has changed and so it favors drivers in the modern era. Also, points are achieved through consistency and it follows that we look at outright wins. Likewise, a win doesn't necessarily imply outright speed. The following shows the total number of pole positions. Staying on the subject of outright speed, this shows the total number of fastest laps. And finally, as a more general measure of success, let us compare the total number of podiums achieved. Now, to bring some kind of conclusion and amalgamate all of the separate comparisons into one I have weighted each nations position in each of the above tables by awarding a score from 19 to 1 (there are 19 points scoring nations). This, therefore, gives us the final positions. So there you have it - Rule Britannia! In each comparison made, statistically, Great Britain has been most successful. It is then followed closely by Brazil, Germany and France. Some nations, such as Germany, are largely being carried by the statistics of one driver (Schumacher). Some, like Argentina, haven't won a World Championship since 1957 (Fangio) and have only ever had two Grand Prix participants (Fangio and Reutemann). Others, Great Britain, for example, have an even distribution amongst eight world champions and 15 points scoring drivers. Isn't it interesting that people always refer to Scandinavians or South Americans as being the most naturally gifted drivers when statistically they are eclipsed by the British? Why is it so often overlooked? Also worth noting is that no Asian or Middle Eastern nation has ever scored a World Championship point. I anticipate that this will change during the next decade. And so to conclude, I thought I would preempt the criticisms that I expect. Yes, this isn't perfect but it does illustrate some interesting points. Motorsport is unfair and especially in Formula One, drivers never have the opportunity to compete in equal equipment. Does that make drawing comparisons irrelevant? Probably not, but it does demonstrate the need for A1GP to control the technology in its own series. You could also argue that the success of a nation's motorsport should include construction too. Perhaps, but overall, I would not expect the outcome to be significantly different. And what about GNP? Isn't Great Britain's dominance proportional to the socio-economic opportunities within our country and just another example of the unfortunate economics of motor sport? Again, perhaps. However, the same applies to the motorsport heritage in smaller nations - Brazil or Argentina, for example. Senna, Piquet and Barrichello were all born into large amounts of money. In some ways I wish the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport was based on Formula One. That way, at least we would have won something.... If you would like to validate my statistics, feel free. I have provided the script used to generate them here.