Why fastest lap bonus points matter more than ever in 2025

Fastest lap bonus points will return in the 2025 Repco Supercars Championship, and there's every chance they could decide who makes the Finals Series.

First introduced in 2021, five additional points have been awarded to drivers that sets the fastest lap across the championship's sprint rounds.

Drivers must finish inside the top 15 positions to be eligible to claim the additional points, which go towards their final championship total.

The make-up of the championship changes in 2025, with the top 10 drivers after the Sprint Cup and Enduro Cup segments of the season qualifying for the new Finals Series, where points will be reset.

Previously, fastest lap bonus points would end up buried in a driver's final classification at the end of the season. From 2025, however, they could be the difference between making the Finals, and missing out.

There's a new point system in 2025, with points weighted to the lengths of races. For example, the 100km Sydney sprint will offer 60 points for the winner, while the 200km races will offer 120 points for the winner.

For the first time, bonus points will be on offer at the very first round. That means a driver could leave the Thrifty Sydney 500 - Opening Round with a maximum of 315 points.

All 25 races in the eight-round Sprint Cup segment of the season will offer fastest lap bonus points. Drivers in the hunt for a Finals berth will be scrapping for every point they can, and every race matters.

A case study

So, why do bonus points matter, and how could if affect the standings?

Well, a simple glance at last year's standings after Bathurst demonstrates that it could indeed come down to a driver's ability to secure bonus points.

Seventh-placed Nick Percat left Bathurst just 18 points ahead of 10th-placed Will Davison, with Thomas Randle five points behind Percat, and Anton De Pasquale 12 points behind Randle.

Jack Le Brocq was 11th, 86 points behind Davison, with 12th-placed Andre Heimgartner 22 points behind Le Brocq.

All told, Percat was 126 points ahead of Heimgartner after Bathurst. With a maximum of 125 fastest lap bonus points on offer in 2025, these margins could come down, should drivers on the bubble manage to steal bonus points here or there.

Percat would have entered the Gold Coast round, which is the first elimination round in 2025, with a slender lead over Randle. When the points are reset for the Finals, the driver in first has 150 points, with a decreasing bonus of 120, 96, 78, 66, 57, 48, 39, 30 down to 21 points for 10th. Sprint Cup and Enduro Cup Bonus points are then applied.

If a driver wins either race at the Gold Coast round, they are automatically into the next Finals round at Sandown.

After the two races at the Gold Coast, the three Finals drivers with the lowest points in the championship (eighth, ninth and 10th) are eliminated, unless those drivers have won a race at the event. In that case, the next driver with the lowest points in the championship would be eliminated, leaving seven drivers in contention going into the semi-final round at Sandown.

If the reset is applied to the 2024 standings after Bathurst, Percat gets 48 points, Randle 39, De Pasquale 30 and Davison 21. Le Brocq and Heimgartner miss out altogether, but while he has a small lead over eighth, Percat still has points to play with to protect his Finals position.

Tickets for the season-opening round in Sydney, on February 21-23, are on sale now.