F1 Title Permutations: 2020 Turkish Grand Prix

Mercedes have been crowned Constructors’ Champions and Lewis Hamilton can seal a seventh title at Istanbul Park. Here are the title permutations ahead of the 2020 Turkish Grand Prix!

After retiring from the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix, Max Verstappen ensured that the 2020 Drivers’ Championship would be awarded to a Mercedes driver. Only Lewis Hamilton and Valtteri Bottas have a mathematical chance of claiming the title this season. With four races remaining in 2020, and a maximum of 104 points on offer, Hamilton leads the title race by 85 points.

To keep his championship hopes alive, Bottas must outscore Hamilton by eight points at the Turkish Grand Prix. It means that if Bottas fails to finish in the top six, Hamilton will be crowned champion regardless of where he finishes the race. It also means that even if Bottas wins the Istanbul Race, Hamilton can still win the title if he finishes second and records the Fastest Lap.

How Bottas can keep the title fight alive at the Turkish Grand Prix:

• He wins and sets the fastest lap, with Hamilton finishing second
• He wins, with Hamilton finishing second and not setting the fastest lap
• He finishes second and sets the fastest lap, with Hamilton scoring 11 or fewer points (fifth or lower)
• He finishes second, with Hamilton scoring 10 or fewer points (sixth or lower)
• He finishes third and sets the fastest lap, with Hamilton scoring 8 or fewer points (seventh or lower)
• He finishes third, with Hamilton scoring 7 or fewer points (seventh or lower)
• He finishes fourth and sets the fastest lap, with Hamilton scoring 5 or fewer points (eighth or lower)
• He finishes fourth, with Hamilton scoring 4 or fewer points (eighth or lower)
• He finishes fifth and sets the fastest lap, with Hamilton scoring 3 or fewer points (ninth or lower)
• He finishes fifth, with Hamilton scoring 2 or fewer points (ninth or lower)
• He finishes sixth and sets the fastest lap, with Hamilton scoring 1 or fewer points (tenth or lower)
• He finishes sixth, with Hamilton failing to score

Mercedes secured a record-breaking seventh consecutive Constructors’ Championship at the Emilia Romagna Grand Prix. With only seventeen races, it’s no surprise that the team are set to score their lowest number of championship points since 2013. That being said, if they have perfect weekends at all of the four remaining races, their total points tally for 2020 will be 655 – the same number as they recorded in 2018’s 21 races.