Why the new points system isn't working

Bernie Ecclestone can often be a bit hard to read - which is probably why he has been such an ultra-successful businessman. One of his traits, for example, is that whenever he talks about an idea, you can rarely tell whether he is being deadly serious or is simply up to a little bit of mischief.

It was exactly like that on the Thursday of the Singapore Grand Prix when he resurrected his idea of abandoning Formula 1's current points structure and replacing it with his medal system - whereby the championship is handed to the driver who secures the most wins.

Ecclestone reckoned that the new-for-2010 points structure had been a failure as it had done nothing to improve the show - and that the fight for the world championship would have been just as close under the old version.

He was adamant that the current season would have had some spice added to it by having the medal system in place - and that F1's teams and chiefs would quickly realise the errors of their ways in shunning the concept. His comments drew a wave of criticism from both within and outside the paddock.