Statistical anomalies in motorsports.

[Greycap]

Is Red Bull-Renault the only customer team to beat the works team to the constructors' title?

I'd say no, McLaren was still the Mercedes works team in 2009 when Brawn took the title with customer engines.

 

[Liquid]

I'd say no, McLaren was still the Mercedes works team in 2009 when Brawn took the title with customer engines.

Interesting point. I was taking it as either Mercedes GP team or nothing. They did have the exclusive contract for Mercedes for a long time but that's like Benetton having the "works" Ford contract from 1989-94 and other teams like Jordan, Minardi, Footwork and so on having "customer" engines but Benetton wasn't Ford Grand Prix Racing. And neither was Stewart who became the "works" Ford team in 1997 until Ford actually bought the team for 2000.

McLaren was the de facto Mercedes team but not de jure. So technically no but I see your point of view.

 

[Jimlaad43]

Pic and Leclerc

 

[Har1MAS1415]

A BTCC odd one.

The series has points not just overall drivers, independents, and teams, but independent teams as well. Due to the BTCC system of penalty points for exceeding a certain amount of engine changes per season (5 I believe, created in the early 00's to stop big budget factory teams creating Quali-spec super-engines), Welch Motorsport and drivers Ollie Jackson and Dan Welch achieved this rather bizarre set of statistics:

Overall (Out of 32)
28th Jackson 0 points.
32nd Welch -40 points.
Combined -40 points.

Overall Teams Championship (Out of 21)
21st with 0 points.

Independents Trophy (Out of 28)
26th Jackson 2 points
28th Welch -38 points
Combined -36 points.

Independent Teams Trophy (Out of 19)
19th 6 points


Incidentally Mark Howard finished 2016 36th/36th overall with -3 points!

We've also had Jade Edwards and Nick Halstead this year, -5 apiece, I believe Derek Palmer Jr ended up on -2 in 2015.

 

[Furinkazen]

We've also had Jade Edwards and Nick Halstead this year, -5 apiece, I believe Derek Palmer Jr ended up on -2 in 2015.

Even more impressive when you consider Nick had a top 10 finish....

 

[Har1MAS1415]

Even more impressive when you consider Nick had a top 10 finish....

The only others I can think of are Production Class Driver Hyla Breese in 2002 (-16 points) and Dave Brodie in 1989 (-37 points)

 

[Roo]

McLaren's consecutive F1 race start streak stands at 361, which they've achieved twice: from Belgium 1983 to Canada 2005, and France 2005 to Abu Dhabi 2023.

 

[Liquid]

McLaren's consecutive F1 race start streak stands at 361, which they've achieved twice: from Belgium 1983 to Canada 2005, and France 2005 to Abu Dhabi 2023.

That's quite the coincidence that it lasted until the end of a season, to catch that figure whilst it's the same.

 

[Roo]

That's quite the coincidence that it lasted until the end of a season, to catch that figure whilst it's the same.

Yep. Obviously Red Bull and Williams share the current 361 streak (a record in Red Bull's case, not in Williams') but that McLaren's fits so neatly is delightful.

 

[MagpieRacer]

In the 2010 F1 season, no driver won a race while leading the championship.

 

[Har1MAS1415]

After 3 races in 2010, Felipe Massa led the championship and was the only driver to have scored 2 podiums, despite never winning a race after 2008. Also, the eventual champion and runner-up each had a win, a 4th and a non-score to their name. Not to the mention the eventual champion not leading the championship all season until the end of it.

 

[Pupik]

McLaren's consecutive F1 race start streak stands at 361, which they've achieved twice: from Belgium 1983 to Canada 2005, and France 2005 to Abu Dhabi 2023.

Until 1987, Monaco only permitted 20 qualified starters, which doesn't seem all that weird in the last ten years. FIA used to have a rule of one car per tenth-of-a-mile of circuit, but was relaxed at the whims of race organizers.

It's funny how McLaren was actually pretty good in 1983, considering their power deficits to the turbo runners that year, but really dropped the ball in qualifying at the tightest circuits, even though those were the places where DFV/DFY-powered cars had their best achievements. Monaco was a fluke because rain washed out qualifying on the second day, though that happened at least once a year somewhere.

Before Monaco, they also did not compete at the 1982 San Marino GP (along with Williams, et al). Tyrrell was going to back out, but showed up anyway because their sponsors said they better race, since they were only there for Michele Alboreto. If the Ferrari drivers took each other out, he would have won that race after landing on the podium.

 

[Com Fox]

If you account for the results and point system the #60 Meyer Shank Racing ARX-06 squad should've won the 2023 IMSA Season.

If it wasn't for Honda snitching on them that they cheated at Daytona and IMSA stripped them off their points from that race (but kept their 1st place result oddly), which is suspected to be why Honda ditched them for a 2nd Wayner Taylor Racing car for 2024.

(Honestly kudos to Honda for doing that to their own team and not just let them get away with it just because their car won and couldve won them the Championship)

 

[RACECAR]

If you account for the results and point system the #60 Meyer Shank Racing ARX-06 squad should've won the 2023 IMSA Season.

If it wasn't for Honda snitching on them that they cheated at Daytona and IMSA stripped them off their points from that race (but kept their 1st place result oddly), which is suspected to be why Honda ditched them for a 2nd Wayner Taylor Racing car for 2024.

(Honestly kudos to Honda for doing that to their own team and not just let them get away with it just because their car won and couldve won them the Championship)

I think with how long it was before it was found out (as opposed to the Penske Porsche's win being taken away at the Glen because the violation was found right there and then literally in post race tech), taking away the points was a much more sensible call.

 

[Blitz24]

If you account for the results and point system the #60 Meyer Shank Racing ARX-06 squad should've won the 2023 IMSA Season.

If it wasn't for Honda snitching on them that they cheated at Daytona and IMSA stripped them off their points from that race (but kept their 1st place result oddly), which is suspected to be why Honda ditched them for a 2nd Wayner Taylor Racing car for 2024.

(Honestly kudos to Honda for doing that to their own team and not just let them get away with it just because their car won and couldve won them the Championship)

See Mark Martin at the 2nd race of the season in the 1990 NASCAR Cup season: Won the race, penalized 51 points and lost the championship by less than that.

 

[Har1MAS1415]

In 1958, the first year of the British Saloon/Touring Car Championship, the outright title, by rights, should have gone to Tommy Sopwith on countback as he and Jack Sears ended up with 48 points apiece after dropped scores are taken into account but Sopwith scored 8 Class Wins to Sears' 7. I know because I have done the research. I know it was the series' first season and they probably weren't expecting the Championship to end in a dead-heat and therefore didn't think to impose a rule accordingly.

Would have meant both the first and last BSCC/BTCC Champions of the 20th Century would have been one-year-only drivers.

 

[Liquid]

In 1997, the All-Japan Grand Touring Car Championship was decided on countback between the pairing of Pedro de la Rosa/Michael Krumm and the singular Masami Kageyama. Both had an equal number of wins (two) and an equal number of second places (one). The title was decided in de la Rosa and Krumm's favour due to them having a third place unlike Kageyama.

Have any other titles in any other series gone down to needing or using a third tiebreaker? Or even further beyond that?

 

[Carbonox]

In 1997, the All-Japan Grand Touring Car Championship was decided on countback between the pairing of Pedro de la Rosa/Michael Krumm and the singular Masami Kageyama. Both had an equal number of wins (two) and an equal number of second places (one). The title was decided in de la Rosa and Krumm's favour due to them having a third place unlike Kageyama.

Have any other titles in any other series gone down to needing or using a third tiebreaker? Or even further beyond that?

There's always Didier Pironi and John Watson settling the 1982 silver medal based on Pironi finishing 3rd twice and Watson once.

 

[Har1MAS1415]

After two meetings, every driver competing in the 2024 British Touring Car Championship has scored points.

This hasn't happened since 2005 when only the top 10 finishers were awarded points.

Also, Ash Sutton has been on the podium in every race so far but hasn't won any yet.

Also, every nation in the United Kingdom represented on the 2024 BTCC grid has won 2 races each.

 

[Liquid]

Also, every nation in the United Kingdom represented on the 2024 BTCC grid has won 2 races each.

Considering that not very nation is represented, this is an arbitrary piece of information rather than an anomalous or noteworthy statistic.

Every European Union nation represented in the 1997 championship (United Kingdom, Germany, Italy and Sweden) won a race but... so what?

 

[Har1MAS1415]

Considering that not very nation is represented, this is an arbitrary piece of information rather than an anomalous or noteworthy statistic.

Every European Union nation represented in the 1997 championship (United Kingdom, Germany, Italy and Sweden) won a race but... so what?

I just thought it was worth pointing out the symmetry, especially since both reverse-grid races have gone to Scotland so far.

 

[Har1MAS1415]

Considering that not very nation is represented, this is an arbitrary piece of information rather than an anomalous or noteworthy statistic.

Every European Union nation represented in the 1997 championship (United Kingdom, Germany, Italy and Sweden) won a race but... so what?

There aren't any Welsh BTCC drivers at the moment, are there?

The Republic of Ireland is represented (Aron Taylor-Smith) but isn't part of the United Kingdom.

Northern Ireland (Colin Turkington and Andrew Watson) is.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[Har1MAS1415]

This is not exactly an anomaly but:

Every time the Hungarian GP has produced a first time winner, the race number has gotten higher.
0>8>12>23>31>81

All of whom won from even numbers (6, 6, 4, 12, 44* and 4)

(*After Vettel (#5) was disqualified of course)

 

[Jimlaad43]

Leonardo Fornaroli joins the list of drivers who have won a title without ever winning a race that season. His best result was a solitary P2 in the Albert Park Feature Race.

He's champion of a series he never won a race in over two seasons. Impressive stat.

 

[Pupik]

Leonardo Fornaroli joins the list of drivers who have won a title without ever winning a race that season. His best result was a solitary P2 in the Albert Park Feature Race.

He's champion of a series he never won a race in over two seasons. Impressive stat.

That has to be a really short list.

Austin Dillon in the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide series, and I recall some Portuguese Touring Car Championship in the early-1990s had this occur.

 

[Blitz24]

That has to be a really short list.

Austin Dillon in the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide series, and I recall some Portuguese Touring Car Championship in the early-1990s had this occur.

Matt Crafton in 2019 Trucks as well.

 

[Liquid]

That has to be a really short list.

Austin Dillon in the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide series, and I recall some Portuguese Touring Car Championship in the early-1990s had this occur.

As previously discussed, both Volker Strycek and Eric van der Poele's title-winning seasons in the DTM.

 

[Liquid]

 

[PaMu1337]

For some context, Hill and Barrichello ended 12th and 13th in the championship.
They both finished 2nd once in the season. Villeneuve never did.
But Villeneuve did win 7 races and was 3rd once. Hill only had one other point-scoring finish at P6, for Barrichello the P2 was his only time in the points.

 

[Carbonox]

That has to be a really short list.

Austin Dillon in the 2013 NASCAR Nationwide series, and I recall some Portuguese Touring Car Championship in the early-1990s had this occur.

Matt Crafton in 2019 Trucks as well.

I think the point was to list champions who didn't even have a career win in the series outside of the already winless title year.

Personally I always found it fascinating that Oriol Servia never won a race in Indy Lights despite winning the title in his sophomore year, and went through over a decade of full-time IndyCar racing with loads of podiums, a 2nd and 4th place finish in points, and only a single win that came with a stewarding decision (a correct one, as Timo Glock blocked his pass for the lead by shortcutting the last chicane at Montreal twice, which ended up being one too many) with 1 lap to go.