How will the new F1 teams be allocated their race numbers?

[Giuseppe F1]

???

My first feeliong was that it would be on an alphabetical basis.... yet when we last had more than 1 brand new team starting in the championship, 1997 with Stewart and Lola, Stewart had the higher numbers, 22 and 23, and Lola higher in the alphabet had 24 and 25.

Is it on the basis on when they lodged their official F1 entry perhaps?

[CNR]

http://f1bits.wordpress.com/2009/03/...s-car-numbers/

Originally Force India were given the last 2 driver numbers, but the Brawn GP F1 Team have now been classed as a new entry for 2009 so Button & Barrichello will now have the last 2 driver numbers.
The numbers 18 and 19 will not appear on the 2009 grid as they were originally assigned for the HONDA team, who are no longer in F1. As Brawn GP was classed as a new team entry they are now going to be numbers 22 and 23

with bmw pulling out
new teams will have the numbers
18 & 19
20 & 21
22 & 23
Lotus F1 24 & 25
Qadbak (Sauber) 26 & 27

if Renault are gone
the first new team would get 16 & 17

[Alfa Fan]

The odd situation with the Brawn/Force India numbers this year was due to the fact that Force India didn't want to change number when Brawn were classed as a new entry, moving FI to 18 & 19 and Brawn to 20 & 21. Instead FI kept 20 & 21 and Brawn used 22 & 23.

[call_me_andrew]

Is it on the basis on when they lodged their official F1 entry perhaps?

That's what I would assume. I'd also like to know if cars #14+ can request #13.

[Saint Devote]

Guess who was number 22 when he won the championship? Hamilton.
James Hunt and Jody Scheckter were number 11 when they won their titles.
Button is number 22 this year :-]

If any of th teams are superstitious then I am sure they will be trying to engineer certain numbers.

I think they should just follow the number sequentially and in the order as the FIA decided in favor of their entries.

But they should avoid high double digits - those have always been the domain of "extra" drivers.

So 1 thru' 30 or so should do it!

[inimitablestoo]

The FIA's official releases have always mentioned Campos Meta, Manor and US F1 in that order (which is alphabetical order, so it may just be that) so I wonder if they'll be ordered like that. Where Lotus and the new Sauber lot fit in I don't know, although I imagine Lotus will go behind the first three, with Sauber possibly either replacing BMW Sauber or being filed at the bottom, as per Brawn (and, if we do have 28 cars, getting the number 29 that they had during their early years in F1).

Otherwise... knockout stone-paper-scissors?

[Ranger]

Old numbering system would do me.

#1 and 2 go to champion team.

Otherwise:

#5 and 6 - Williams.
#7 and 8 - McLaren.
#11 and 12 - Lotus.
#14 and 15 - Red Bull.
#22 and 23 - Brawn.
#27 and 28 - Ferrari.

The other teams pick their numbers and stick with them.

It will be simple enough and it would be good for merchandising if teams don't change their damn numbers every year!

[CNR]

the driver number would be ok

rossi 46
Kevin Schwantz 34
casey stoner 27
murph 51 across 3 teams over 9 years

[Saint Devote]

Otherwise... knockout stone-paper-scissors?

mokin:

[Saint Devote]

Old numbering system would do me.

#1 and 2 go to champion team.

Otherwise:

#5 and 6 - Williams.
#7 and 8 - McLaren.
#11 and 12 - Lotus.
#14 and 15 - Red Bull.
#22 and 23 - Brawn.
#27 and 28 - Ferrari.

The other teams pick their numbers and stick with them.

It will be simple enough and it would be good for merchandising if teams don't change their damn numbers every year!

But formula one does not really have a numbering tradition other than ONE and TWO go to the car of the team whose driver has won the world drivers title.

Rather have the names on merchandise than numbers. At least to me, numbers in f1 don't mean a whole lot -and given that they are so tiny on cars today because lap scoring is computerized they are not given too much import.