Jonathan Noble: Online

Mark Webber often remarks that the only thing that matters in sport is the points on the scoreboard. But while that may be a reality for the teams and drivers battling it out at the head of the field, further down the order the lines between potential and reality can get blurred at times.

Take Sebastien Bourdais for example. If you took a cold hard look at his season, you could easily come to the conclusion that his move to Formula One has been a big disaster. He has just four points to his name - a whopping 26 points less than high-flying teammate Sebastian Vettel.

Yet, despite Webber's mantra, the points do not tell you the story of Bourdais - and how it could be him, and not his Red Bull Racing colleague, who is the unluckiest man in F1.

In Fuji he put in one of his very best performances of the season. Strong in qualifying and, having got to grips with the STR3's quirky handling characteristics for once, he was comfortably ahead of his teammate in the race to take sixth.

Sebastien Bourdais climbs into the Toro Rosso © LAT

A few hours after the race, however, and Bourdais was dumped out of the points after the stewards blamed him for a collision with Felipe Massa as they battled for position. Such has been Bourdais' luck this season that he was fairly resigned to it all as he left the track on Sunday night.

"It is the story of the season - every time there is something that seems as though it is going to be a really nice deal, it evaporates," Bourdais told autosport.com. "There was Melbourne, two laps from the end with the driveshaft. Then Spa. Then Monza. Every time you feel like you have the result in your hands, it slips away and that is it."

Indeed, Bourdais' season could have been so much better had he been blessed with a little more luck. Melbourne could have been a fourth place, Spa should have been a fifth, Monza should have been a podium and Fuji should have been sixth. That's up to 15 points that have gone begging through almost no fault of his own.

Such analysis brings little consolation to Bourdais, however, who is still holding out for a decision from his bosses to find out if he will be given another chance in 2009.

"People may see what I have done, but then the points are not there at the end of the weekend," he explains. "I hate it as much as anyone else."

But does he not feel that his performances have been recognised by the world - and especially those who will be making a decision on his future?

"I would like to hope so but I am not so sure, otherwise the decision would already have been made and we would not be talking about the future. We would know by now. What I heard after Monza, people saying, shit it was a great weekend, we were hoping you could do this. But then there is always a 'but' which kills you."

Bourdais is expecting a decision about his future after this weekend's Chinese Grand Prix. Judging by his recent pace, you would think he has probably done enough now to retain his place for next year - especially as Vettel is departing for new pastures.

But (and there is that word again!) with the way Bourdais has ridden his luck this year, he is not going to expect anything until the ink is dry on the contract.

And only then will he know for sure if Webber really is right.