Last season, the leader of the rally after Saturday received provisional points, which could only be secured if they also finished on Sunday. On Sunday, there was an opportunity to earn up to 12 additional points from the sprint race and the Power Stage.
This year, the system has been revised again, as last season’s setup caused frustration among many drivers. The rally winner was often not rewarded sufficiently, with the second or third-placed driver frequently collecting more championship points than the winner.
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Neuville was undoubtedly the best driver last year at adapting to the new points system. While the Belgian did secure two victories during the season, his main focus was on consistently collecting points, particularly on Sundays, when he delivered every time.
For instance, in Sardinia in June, Neuville made a mistake and retired due to a crash. However, on Sunday, he managed to secure maximum points from a poor starting position, salvaging his weekend. Similarly, in Kenya in March, a strong Sunday performance saved Neuville a significant amount.
“There are a few changes, but very small changes at the end. I think it’s a tiny adjustment, but we have seen that the point system worked out in some how quite well, because the Sundays were more interesting than they have been before;” Neuville told to RallyJournal.com
“That was the main purpose of the system. Nevertheless, we saw also for those guys who have been retiring on Friday or Saturday, they had a lot of opportunities to score.”
The system has been updated for this year. The biggest change is that no provisional points are awarded after Saturday anymore. Additionally, the daily points available on Sunday have been reduced, with a maximum of five points now up for grabs for the fastest driver of the day. Of course, an additional five points can still be earned from the concluding Power Stage.
“Still lots of points on Sunday. But yeah, it is what it is. I think that with the small little adjustment, it will be still very exciting on Sundays because everybody will push for those extra points. I think it’s going to be interesting like this.”