Fernando Alonso labeled F1's decision to award half a point "shocking" to the top ten finishers of the Belgian Grand Prix and compared it to receiving early Christmas presents.
The Belgian Grand Prix was declared an official race, despite having completed only three laps behind the safety car. This meant that Max Verstappen won the shortest race ever in F1 without completing a single racing lap.
Verstappen and the next nine finishers were awarded half of the normal points awarded to the top ten.
Alonso, who finished 11th, said it was an absurd result.
"It was a terrible day for everyone to be honest," Alonso said. "Well, for some of them it was probably a small part of the start of Christmas because some people were given some presents because we didn't run, but they still get places and they still get points. So, it's a bit shocking.
"I was P11, I was ranked one by points. I wasn't allowed to fight for those points, but they still score points, so it's kind of shocking, but it's like that."
Fellow ex-champion Sebastian Vettel was awarded half a point, despite the fact that he received five for finishing fifth.
Asked if it was a fair reward for his qualifying performance on Saturday, he said: "But it's a joke. If you want to get a reward for qualifying you must get points for qualifying."
"What did we do today? I don't know."
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton was also critical, suggesting that F1 had completed only two laps behind the safety car to meet commercial obligations. F1 and the FIA, the sport's governing bodies, have strongly denied that suggestion.