Bernie Ecclestone has revealed that he is no longer pushing for a repeat of his controversial plan to award double points at the last race according to an article in the Independent by Christian Sylt.

Double points are in place for F1's season-ender next weekend in Abu Dhabi and will likely decide the title battle between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg.

However, Ecclestone, who was the brainchild of the plan, says that it may be dropped next year.

F1 personalities and fans opposed it from the moment it was announced in December last year. Four-time champion Sebastian Vettel said it is "absurd and punishes those who have worked hard for a whole season." More recently, Mercedes' motorsport boss Toto Wolff said "nobody likes the double points... I don't think Bernie even likes them now. It's going to be something that we should probably be getting rid of for next season."

The double points plan wasn't simply criticised because it would manipulate race results but also because it favours Abu Dhabi which is often one of the most processional Grands Prix. It makes the race worth twice as much as classics like Britain and Monaco with the winner scoring 50 points instead of the usual 25. Rosberg trails Hamilton by 17 points so awarding double at the finale increases his chances of taking the title.

Ecclestone created the plan and pushed for the last three races to be worth double which would put less emphasis on the season-ender.

"One race is stupid but imagine if it was the last three races," he says. "It means that somebody would have to have a 150 point advantage minimum to be sure they will win. The teams have not accepted it because they are bloody idiots. They are all mechanics. They think of their team in the short term."

Repeating the plan requires consent from all of the teams and Ecclestone says "I'm not going to propose the three races again. I'm going to let them get on with it." He adds "I don't know what we're going to do next year." Time will tell.

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READERS COMMENTS

1. Posted by f1fan, 18/11/2014 10:51

"I agree that Bernie is out of touch with reality. He may be "great" in the past but like Montezemolo he should go and retire with his billions. There must be another qualified person who can run F1 properly and with dedication to the sport."

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2. Posted by vins0n, 17/11/2014 12:19

"Unfortunately Bernie is so out of touch now he is damaging the sport. He did great things in the past but like many drivers has hung on too long and is now souring his reputation and that of the sport. Like Mosely before him he needs to go. "

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3. Posted by Renone, 16/11/2014 7:49

"Recent statements by Ecclestone only draw further attention to the dire state of F1. Comments by readers defending him on the basis of what he has done for F1 in the past regrettably miss the point which is that his past does not give him the right to destroy F1. My belief is that Ecclestone now lives in a world detached from reality, revolving solely about his own wealth with very little interest or concern about anything thing else. His seemingly erratic statements are made to attract media attention in a misconstrued attempt to keep F1 in the news. As the situation deteriorates his outbursts will become more frequent. Time to go. "

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4. Posted by bfairey, 15/11/2014 21:24

"so if Rosberg wins and Hamilton comes second Hamilton is champion? ie 50-36=14 and Ham leads by 17"

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5. Posted by Chris Roper, 15/11/2014 21:09

"So he doesn't want young fans, he shuns Free to air TV, considers Europe to be third World whilst planning races in obscure, often violent, parts of the world and the Teams are now Idiots...

I think we are the Idiots for going along on this ride, the man is surely senile.

Whilst he is owed much in making F1 what it is I for one think he lost the plot some time ago and is now insulting the very people he is meant to be championing.
"

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6. Posted by Ro, 15/11/2014 19:14

"Bernie, please just give it all up ! Your sell-by date has long expired. All for the "show" ??? How about the fans and enthusiasts/purists ? Retire and go work on your alotment and grow carrots..."

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7. Posted by Spindoctor, 15/11/2014 17:38

"@nonickname.
I can't speak for all, but I don't think it's hatred for Ecclestone: more like contempt. You make the oft-quoted point that he "built" F1 into what it is today. That surely is the problem!

You seem impressed by the intellectual capacity of his little finger, shame that his brain appears seriously to be fading. I await with interest the next pearls he casts before us... "

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8. Posted by slracer, 15/11/2014 16:29

"This whole "double points" thing means NOTHING, except there will be a race instead of a "coronation display"! With the double points, Hamilton has to finish 2nd if Rosberg wins. Without the double points, a Rosberg win means that Hamilton would only need to finish 5th (and in every race he finished he has been 3rd or higher). This is exactly what Bernie was looking for! Of course, if Hamilton reverts to his earlier form where he ran into Massa 4(?) times in one season, he could compare himself to Senna/Prost and not even have to finish. "

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9. Posted by Editor, 15/11/2014 13:30

"@ bfairey

Everyone gets double points for all positions... drivers and constructors."

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10. Posted by bfairey, 15/11/2014 13:27

"Do i get this wrong ? is it just the winner that gets double points?"

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11. Posted by nonickname, 15/11/2014 12:57

"I don't understand the hatred for Ecclstone. Sure, he has made mistakes, sure he looks after is back pocket,not like the good people who will soon tear me apart for this post and would, so they intimate, only work for the good of the sport.I would say say that he has more brains in his little finger than most of us have in the cranium.He has, single handedly build F1 into what it is. The day he goes and it is left to the idiot Todt, the teams (God protect us from Toto the xxx and the idiot from Mclaren) F1 will definitely be dead.
Give the man space. He really does not need the money, nor does if wife/wives or daughters. He goes on year after year doing what he does best looking after F1 ...and upsetting a lot of idiots in the process.
I am now open to your ridicule, but I remember him when he was a second hand car dealer running a F! team,not a multi billionaire, who put F1 on the map....."

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12. Posted by Jet Jockey, 15/11/2014 12:31

"The only idiot here is Ecclestone!

He needs to go for the good of the sport."

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13. Posted by MrShadow, 15/11/2014 12:26

"Spindoctor, there is also nothing wrong with being an idiot. Some mentally challenged people are very gentle and mild-mannered and can make 'normal' people look bad.
that however does not make them fit to be prime minister. Ask any citizen of your country ;)"

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14. Posted by Spindoctor, 15/11/2014 11:00

""The teams have not accepted it because they are bloody idiots. They are all mechanics. They think of their team in the short term."

What's wrong with being a 'mechanic'? Surely a more noble profession than flogging used cars? Notwithstanding all that it's hardly an apt description of some of the most gifted electrical & mechanical engineers, aerodynamicists and indeed 'mechanics' in the world."

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Ecclestone gives up on F1 double points

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