Winning the wdc without winning a race

[webby74]

Was wondering with the way lewis hamilton is leading the world drivers championship without winning yet, has anyone won it without winning a race all season? Do you think it is possible this season?

[Jungles]

Keke Rosberg almost did it in 1982: WDC with just one race won. A bit of a coincidence given who won the race last weekend.

I can't think of anyone who became champion with no races won, though.

[ralphrj]

I'm pretty sure that no-one has ever won the WDC without winning a race.

Rosberg has the lowest number of wins with just 1 in 1982.

Raikkonen came close in 2003 having only won 1 race.

[MrKipling43]

Mike Hawthorn only won one race too, IIRC. But no one's done it without winning one.

[Life Saab Itch]

Mike Hawthorn won 1 race in 1958 against Stirling Moss' 4 wins.


I don't see Lewis not winning this year, but it's nice to see him happy to settle for a position and not being aggreived by it.

[Vocal Minority]

Rosberg's first pole also came in 1982, and the Swiss GP was his first win.

Surely the only F1 driver to ever have 1 world championship and 1 victory to his name.

[Chrisgr31]

Wasnt the latest change in the amount of points awarded done in order to to ensure them what won races won the championship after some issue recently with someone who won more races in the season but didnt win the championship?

[Eric Mc]

There have been various attempts to try and award points in such a way that -

a) winners were more likely to win the championship

b) the chanpionship was kept alive for as long as possible

The two demands often worked against each other.

Up until the 1980s, there were fewer than 16 races in the year that counted for the championship. In Hawthorn's winning year (1958) there were only eleven point scoring races. And for a few years, drivers had to drop their worst scoring sets of points.

No one yet has been world champion without winning at least one round.

[chevronb37]

Vocal Minority said:

Rosberg's first pole also came in 1982, and the Swiss GP was his first win.

Surely the only F1 driver to ever have 1 world championship and 1 victory to his name.

Not sure I understand that one - Rosberg took more than one career victory, but only one win in 1982. Hawthorn also took the 1958 title with just one victory in his title season.

[heebeegeetee]

Life Saab Itch said:

Mike Hawthorn won 1 race in 1958 against Stirling Moss' 4 wins.

That was in a season of just 8 races too, one of which IIRC was the US GP at Indianapolis in which no/few European teams or drivers took place.

Might be worth mentioning that Hawthorn competed much of the '58 season with painfully burnt legs.

In 1982 the most wins by a driver that season was just two, albeit with three drivers winning two races. Keke only won one less than that .

[28jaguar]

chevronb37 said:

Not sure I understand that one - Rosberg took more than one career victory, but only one win in 1982. Hawthorn also took the 1958 title with just one victory in his title season.

Before the '83 Monaco GP, Rosberg had 1 race win and 1 title. It's having that stat for a period of time is what he meant. With Hawthorne, when he won the title, it would've been 1 title and 2 or 3 wins.

Edited by 28jaguar on Monday 16th April 13:36

[ralphrj]

Vocal Minority said:

Rosberg's first pole also came in 1982, and the Swiss GP was his first win.

The Swiss GP was his first World Championship F1 race win he had previously won a non-championship F1 race.

[Vocal Minority]

Oh fair enough, didn't realise he had won a non champ race.

What I meant was at the end of the 1982 season, his career stats were, wins (in world champ it turns out): 1, World championships: 1

Hawthorn's win in 1958 was not his first GP win

[Eric Mc]

Wining the World Championship wasn't as big a deal as it is today. Drivers like Hawtrhorn had lots of wins in all sorts of races, F1 (Championship and non-Championship), F2 (including some World Championship races), sports cars, saloon cars etc.
They also got points for fastest laps.

[heebeegeetee]

ralphrj said:

he had previously won a non-championship F1 race.

Oh yes, Brands Hatch.

[davepoth]

If we use 2011 as a comparison, 19x15 points (for third) would have put LH into second position with 285 points, 15 points ahead of Jenson. 19 second places would have been 19x18 = 342 points, again second place.

however, using 2010 as a guide when Vettel was much less dominant and only scored 256 points in a 19 race season, 285 points would have been plenty for a championship. So certainly possible.

[Eric Mc]

heebeegeetee said:

ralphrj said:

he had previously won a non-championship F1 race.

Oh yes, Brands Hatch.

The 1983 International Race of Champions.
The last ever non-Championship F1 race for then current F1 teams, cars and drivers.

[LordGrover]

Life Saab Itch said:

... it's nice to see him happy to settle for a position and not being aggreived by it.

I'm warming to him again.
He's beginning to mature a little now - I suppose I/we expected a lot from a young'n.

[freedman]

Eric Mc said:

The 1983 International Race of Champions.
The last ever non-Championship F1 race for then current F1 teams, cars and drivers.

Which he won when he was reigning world champion

However he also won the 1978 Silverstone International Trophy in a Theodore, after everyone else crashed in the wet

[Eric Mc]

freedman said:

Eric Mc said:

The 1983 International Race of Champions.
The last ever non-Championship F1 race for then current F1 teams, cars and drivers.

Which he won when he was reigning world champion

However he also won the 1978 Silverstone International Trophy in a Theodore, after everyone else crashed in the wet

So that's TWO non-Championship F1 races he won