Lewis Hamilton dismisses Bernie Ecclestone medal idea

Lewis Hamilton hopes Formula One chief executive Bernie Ecclestone will drop plans to consider again a medal system in the sport, saying it was "not his greatest idea".

Ecclestone first aired the suggestion of race wins determining the destiny of the championship instead of points a year ago.

At present the five title contenders - Mark Webber, Hamilton, Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button and Sebastian Vettel - are separated by 24 points under the new points plan that was introduced by the FIA's World Motor Sport Council at the start of the year, with Ecclestone's idea overlooked.

If Ecclestone's scheme were in force now, Webber would continue to lead the way with four victories compared to the three for Hamilton and Alonso, and two apiece for Button and Vettel.

Speaking yesterday, Ecclestone said: "(The new points system) has made absolutely no difference. If we were using the old system it would be exactly the same.

"Maybe they will wake up and think about my gold medal system as Mark would have four now, with a couple other guys with three, so the championship could go all the way down to the wire."

Asked if he would again try and push for it, he added: "Yeah, for sure. They'll see now what could happen. Let's wait and see."

But an unimpressed Hamilton said: "Out of the many ideas that have come out, this is potentially one of the worst. I would say it's not his greatest idea.

"What Bernie has achieved in Formula 1 is absolutely phenomenal and no one else could have done as great a job as him. But even the best have ideas that are not as good as their best ideas, and even the best are not always right.

"What I do like about Bernie is that he is always up front about what he thinks. He never holds back, and that says a lot about a person, it shows great character."

Assessing this season's championship, Hamilton added: "If the Red Bulls had not failed they would have won it a long time ago, and no one would even bother turning up.

"But now you are racing for points, the opportunity to jump the guy in front of you, and you can only do that by gaining points at each and every grand prix. So points-wise it is by far the smartest way forward."

As McLaren team-mate Jenson Button noted, his title triumph last year would have been over with four races remaining if the medals system had been in place, and, appreciating how important points are to the smaller teams, he added: "For the three teams at the back, if they get one point, how exciting would it be for them to achieve that?"