As day turned to night in the floodlit Singapore paddock, the big talking point was the FIA's radio clampdown. Actually, F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone claimed the credit. "I was the one who started it off, yes," he told reporters on Thursday.
Earlier, in downtown Singapore, Mercedes duo Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg welcomed the move. "The drivers are all happy it's gone," said Ecclestone, referring to the end of all performance-related messages between the pitwall and the drivers. "They drive the cars, they should know what's wrong and right."
The 83-year-old, who has been fiercely critical of the direction of today's F1, also suggested that more moves could be on the horizon, amid rumours all telemetry might be the next to be axed in the not-too-distant future. "We have a regulation in force, 'drivers must drive the car alone and unaided'. They have been well and truly aided and still are, even if we get rid of this 'ship to shore', as I call it. There are still a lot of aids they shouldn't have," said Ecclestone.
However, as the drivers filled the Singapore paddock as the sun faded on Thursday ahead of F1's popular night race, it became clear that not every driver is in fact happy with the ban. "Maybe he (Ecclestone) spoke to the drivers from the 80s, who do not know what it is like to drive these cars," said Felipe Massa.
"The cars are very complicated (and) if the settings are wrong, you cannot do two laps before the car fails," he explained. "If it stays like this, there will be a big fight in the drivers' briefing." Sergio Perez agreed: "It's not great they have made such a big change from one race to another."
World champion Sebastian Vettel said the drivers might struggle to manage the complicated charging of the cars' on-board energy recovery systems. "That's why we have so many people in the garage," said the Red Bull driver. "They're not here to have a nice time and have a couple of beers. They're here to do a job." (GMM)
Bernie Ecclestone claims credit for radio clampdown
- Published on 18 Sep 2014 15:37
-
0
- By: Rob Veenstra
.
Trending news
-
Antonelli admits Mercedes has lost its speed advantageAndrea Kimi Antonelli has confirmed what Mercedes feared: the team no longer has the fastest car on the grid. Speakin...
25 Aug 2026 16:11 -
Steiner's stark warning to Russell: top team days could be overGeorge Russell faces intense scrutiny after being told by Guenther Steiner that he must improve immediately or risk e...
25 Aug 2026 15:09 -
Why Alonso rates Verstappen above Schumacher as his greatest rivalFernando Alonso has named Max Verstappen the best competitor he has ever faced on track, placing the Red Bull driver ...
25 Aug 2026 14:08 -
Why Toto Wolff believes Max Verstappen's new Red Bull contract ends the 2025 silly seasonToto Wolff believes the driver market has effectively closed after Max Verstappen committed his future to Red Bull Ra...
25 Aug 2026 12:56 -
Why Wolff isn't worried about Norris repeating Verstappen's comebackToto Wolff has played down the threat posed by Lando Norris's closing title deficit, pointing to Max Verstappen&#...
25 Aug 2026 11:55
Dutch Grand Prix
Local time
-
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
Dutch Grand Prix
Local time
-
Friday
-
Saturday
-
Sunday
-
Friday
-
Saturday
-
Sunday
Test calendar
Circuit de Catalunya - Winter testing
-
Jan 26
I. Hadjar
- 1:18.159
-
-
-
Jan 27
M. Verstappen
- 1:19.578
-
-
-
Jan 28
A. Antonelli
- 1:17.362
-
-
-
Jan 29
G. Russell
- 1:16.445
-
-
-
Jan 30
L. Hamilton
- 1:16.348
-
-
Bahrain International Circuit - Winter testing
-
Feb 11
L. Norris
- 1:34.669
-
-
-
Feb 12
C. Leclerc
- 1:34.273
-
-
-
Feb 13
A. Antonelli
- 1:33.669
-
-
Bahrain International Circuit - Winter testing
-
Feb 18
G. Russell
- 1:33.459
-
-
Feb 19
A. Antonelli
- 1:32.803
-
-
Feb 20
C. Leclerc
- 1:31.992
-
-
World Championship standings 2026
Pos
Driver
Team
Points
Pos
Team
Points
Related news
Give your opinion!
Formula 1 Calendar - 2026
Date
Grand Prix
Circuit
-
Spain
-
Bahrain
-
Bahrain
Formula 1 Calendar - 2026
Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
-
Spain
Circuit de Catalunya
-
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
-
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
6 - Mar 8
Australia
Albert Park
13 - Mar 15
27 - Mar 29
Japan
Circuit Suzuka
10 - Apr 12
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
17 - Apr 19
Saudi Arabia
Jeddah Street Circuit
1 - May 3
United States of America
Miami International Autodrome
22 - May 24
Canada
Gilles Villeneuve
5 - Jun 7
Monaco
Monte Carlo
12 - Jun 14
Spain
Circuit de Catalunya
26 - Jun 28
Austria
Red Bull Ring
3 - Jul 5
United Kingdom
Silverstone
17 - Jul 19
Belgium
Spa-Francorchamps
24 - Jul 26
Hungary
Hungaroring
21 - Aug 23
Netherlands
Circuit Zandvoort
Driver profile
- Team -
- Points -
- Podiums -
- Grand Prix -
- Country BR
- Date of b. Apr 21 1981 (45)
- Place of b. Sao Paulo, BR
- Weight 59 kg
- Length 1.66 m
4 members have this team as their favourite
Tweets about Felipe Massa
Team profile
- Team name Mercedes
- Base Brackley, Germany
- Michael Schumacher 3
- Nico Rosberg 4
- Nico Rosberg 6
- Michael Schumacher 7
- Nico Rosberg 8
- Nico Rosberg 8
- Nico Rosberg 9
- Lewis Hamilton 10
- Andrea Kimi Antonelli 12
- Lewis Hamilton 44
- George Russell 63
- Valtteri Bottas 77
- 638,760 comments on Mercedes
- 59 members have this team as their favourite
- Tweets about Mercedes
Replies (0)
Login to reply