The three extreme rule changes Jeremy Clarkson once suggested to help improve Formula 1

Jeremy Clarkson’s extreme measures to improve Formula 1

In a video on the DRIVETRIBE YouTube channel, Clarkson was asked how he would ‘fix’ F1. He responded with three quite extreme changes, including rewarding drivers for dangerous driving.

“Well, number one, get rid of the stewards. Dangerous driving is what the fans want, so if somebody does dangerous driving, I’d give them an extra five championship points,” said Clarkson.

“Number two, the cars have to be stronger. They have to be able to withstand wheel-to-wheel actually without bits of front wing coming off.

“And number three, the governing body needs to look at what cricket did, I’m no cricket fan, but they need to look at what cricket did.

“They had a five-day boring sport and they turned it into what we saw, I didn’t see, but what I’m told we saw in the final of the World Cup, super overs and crowds chanting who let the dogs out and deflections and the most exciting…

“I was watching the tennis, just as exciting, the Federer-Djokovic final and meanwhile there’s Lewis Hamilton: ‘Oh I’ll just wait for a pit stop to come in and I’ll overtake Bottas that way.’I want to see Villeneuve and Arnoux, wheel-to-wheel, last lap of the French Grand Prix.

“Let’s turn it into a proper sport again and not some health and safety exercise. I’d far rather watch a Formula E race these days than Formula 1, far rather.”

Jeremy Clarkson has been involved with the Alpine F1 team

While Clarkson has not invested in an F1 team, he has been heavily involved with Alpine through various marketing campaigns.

In 2023, he promised to give the whole team a bottle of his Hawkstone beer if they scored a podium. Sure enough, he fulfilled that promise when Esteban Ocon finished third in Monaco.

Clarkson repeated that feat in 2024 when Alpine scored a double podium in Sao Paulo with Ocon and Pierre Gasly. His Hawkstone brand has also done digital campaigns with the team.