Formula Vee 1200cc Pointscore: An explanation
A question has arisen today, triggered by my mistake, although ultimately it has not affected the outcome of a state championship. Or a class winner within a state championship more precisely..
You see I left Dave Boulton out of the Formula Vee 1200 pointscore. Entirely my mistake as I had him down as a 1600cc car. However despite Dave having done all four rounds and Luke Battaglia, the 1200cc champion did only three, Luke is the champion. The background to this is with the other class within a class, the 2000cc Improved Production Class.
The U2 Im-Prods used to have their own championship pointscore. Back a few years ago there were so many Im-Prods the grids were over-subscribed, so the grids were split into Under and Over two litre divisions and they were to get separate races. Grid numbers however fell almost immediately. There were some very large budgets going on some of the RX-7s and V8s at the top end of the class and they full away quite suddenly.
The problem arrived in, I think it was 2008. Back then the regulations stated that to have points allocated there had to be eight bonafide entries to the meeting or points would not be allocated. In 2008 U2 Im-Prods went the whole season without getting eight entries. By this stage they had been re-combined with the Over 2L cars. In truth the separation never really took place. So after a year when no points were awarded at all, the regs were changed so that class within a class would then be recognised based on your pointscore in the main championship. So the U2 award went to the highest placed U2 car in the combined Im-Prod championship. At the same time it was decided the Formula Vee 1200cc pointscore would be recognised in the same manner. Particularly as drivers flooded over from 1200cc to 1600cc Vees.
Fast forward to 2011.
By now the number of eligible cars has dropped to six. So if the full CAMS pointscore were to be applied then... in round one there were Kayne Thornhill (Spectre), David Boulton (Manta) and David Bell (Pulse) were the only 1200cc entries. So no points from Round 1. Round two had Boulton, Thornhill, Bell and add Luke Battaglia (Argus) and Brady Nicholls (Bee Cee). Five cars, no points for round 2. Round three had Boulton, Thornhill, Bell and Battaglia. Four entries, no points. Round four had Boulton, Thornhill, Bell, Battaglia and Nicholls. So the championship would have been a null result. No points scored. Theoretically you could add the Group V historic Vees to the mix. That way you might have enough to allocated full championship points, if it was in the state championship regulations, although not for the contentious Round 1 where there was only Graeme Clarke so still short of the magic six.
That all assumes that Formula Vee 1200 had full championship status with the CAMS State Championships. Presently it does not. Both U2 Improved Production and 1200 Formula Vees are given "recognition" in the state championships, not full championship pointscores. Full championship though could be applied for if the FVAQ were behind the idea.
The clarifier to that is though, 1200cc cars would have to be removed from the 1600cc pointscore. For this year’s championships it was decided that after a few years where Formula Ford drivers scored points in the Racing Car championship, and Production Sports Cars propped up the Sports Car championship, that no one car would be eligible the score points in two championship at the same race. The genesis of that came from a situation in late 2010 where a race official decided to separate the Formula Fords and Racing Cars into separate races after having raced all year in the same races, citing safety grounds, but got the split wrong and stuck several Duratec engined Formula Fords, which are not eligible for Formula Ford championship points and are classed as Racing Cars and put them into the Formula Ford race. The Formula Ford championship is specified in the regulations to be for Kent engined Formula Fords only (including Historic Group Fa and Fb).
Which might not mean much, except it now meant there were only five Racing Cars. So in a nervous title fight at the last race of the season, an incorrect call by a race official invalidated the Queensland Racing Car championship. It was caught after only one race and the Duratec Formula Fords were moved back into the Racing Car race but several canny Kent Formula Ford drivers asked if they could still race in the Racing Car races, getting them a sneaky two extra races for no additional entry costs. To be fair to all classes the clarification was made that cars would now only be eligible for one championship.
So the choice is available to Formula Vee. If you want it you can have a complete separate pointscore at state championship level, but the conditions are you need six bonafide entries, and you cannot score points in the 1600cc championship.
In the meantime the 2011 1200cc class winner is awarded to the highest pointscorer in the Formula Vee pointscore, Luke Battaglia, winning with 14 points to David Bolton's 13.
I do hope that all makes sense.
You see I left Dave Boulton out of the Formula Vee 1200 pointscore. Entirely my mistake as I had him down as a 1600cc car. However despite Dave having done all four rounds and Luke Battaglia, the 1200cc champion did only three, Luke is the champion. The background to this is with the other class within a class, the 2000cc Improved Production Class.
The U2 Im-Prods used to have their own championship pointscore. Back a few years ago there were so many Im-Prods the grids were over-subscribed, so the grids were split into Under and Over two litre divisions and they were to get separate races. Grid numbers however fell almost immediately. There were some very large budgets going on some of the RX-7s and V8s at the top end of the class and they full away quite suddenly.
The problem arrived in, I think it was 2008. Back then the regulations stated that to have points allocated there had to be eight bonafide entries to the meeting or points would not be allocated. In 2008 U2 Im-Prods went the whole season without getting eight entries. By this stage they had been re-combined with the Over 2L cars. In truth the separation never really took place. So after a year when no points were awarded at all, the regs were changed so that class within a class would then be recognised based on your pointscore in the main championship. So the U2 award went to the highest placed U2 car in the combined Im-Prod championship. At the same time it was decided the Formula Vee 1200cc pointscore would be recognised in the same manner. Particularly as drivers flooded over from 1200cc to 1600cc Vees.
Fast forward to 2011.
By now the number of eligible cars has dropped to six. So if the full CAMS pointscore were to be applied then... in round one there were Kayne Thornhill (Spectre), David Boulton (Manta) and David Bell (Pulse) were the only 1200cc entries. So no points from Round 1. Round two had Boulton, Thornhill, Bell and add Luke Battaglia (Argus) and Brady Nicholls (Bee Cee). Five cars, no points for round 2. Round three had Boulton, Thornhill, Bell and Battaglia. Four entries, no points. Round four had Boulton, Thornhill, Bell, Battaglia and Nicholls. So the championship would have been a null result. No points scored. Theoretically you could add the Group V historic Vees to the mix. That way you might have enough to allocated full championship points, if it was in the state championship regulations, although not for the contentious Round 1 where there was only Graeme Clarke so still short of the magic six.
That all assumes that Formula Vee 1200 had full championship status with the CAMS State Championships. Presently it does not. Both U2 Improved Production and 1200 Formula Vees are given "recognition" in the state championships, not full championship pointscores. Full championship though could be applied for if the FVAQ were behind the idea.
The clarifier to that is though, 1200cc cars would have to be removed from the 1600cc pointscore. For this year’s championships it was decided that after a few years where Formula Ford drivers scored points in the Racing Car championship, and Production Sports Cars propped up the Sports Car championship, that no one car would be eligible the score points in two championship at the same race. The genesis of that came from a situation in late 2010 where a race official decided to separate the Formula Fords and Racing Cars into separate races after having raced all year in the same races, citing safety grounds, but got the split wrong and stuck several Duratec engined Formula Fords, which are not eligible for Formula Ford championship points and are classed as Racing Cars and put them into the Formula Ford race. The Formula Ford championship is specified in the regulations to be for Kent engined Formula Fords only (including Historic Group Fa and Fb).
Which might not mean much, except it now meant there were only five Racing Cars. So in a nervous title fight at the last race of the season, an incorrect call by a race official invalidated the Queensland Racing Car championship. It was caught after only one race and the Duratec Formula Fords were moved back into the Racing Car race but several canny Kent Formula Ford drivers asked if they could still race in the Racing Car races, getting them a sneaky two extra races for no additional entry costs. To be fair to all classes the clarification was made that cars would now only be eligible for one championship.
So the choice is available to Formula Vee. If you want it you can have a complete separate pointscore at state championship level, but the conditions are you need six bonafide entries, and you cannot score points in the 1600cc championship.
In the meantime the 2011 1200cc class winner is awarded to the highest pointscorer in the Formula Vee pointscore, Luke Battaglia, winning with 14 points to David Bolton's 13.
I do hope that all makes sense.