F1: Double points could be dropped in '15

Formula 1 chief executive Bernie Ecclestone has suggested that the double points regulation will likely be dropped for 2015 following the backlash it has caused this year.

The new rule announced last winter left fans outraged, and many leading figures in F1 accepted that the move had been a mistake. Despite the outcry, Ecclestone has previously stood firm on the matter and insisted that having double points for the end of the campaign was better because it kept the world championship battle open longer.

However, speaking ahead of the Singapore Grand Prix, Ecclestone accepted that the idea had not proved popular, and admitted that he had given up on a push to expand double points for the final few races.

"I wanted it to be for the last three races and then people would believe it was still possible for somebody else to win," explained Ecclestone. "But they all say I'm mad, so we won't do it."

When asked if he expected double points to be kept for even the final race in 2015, he said: "Don't know. Probably not. We can't see whether it has worked, so it depends.

"It just seemed to me the right way to keep the championship open. Otherwise for the last three or four races, people are running in non-championship races."

Changing the rules for 2015 will require unanimous support from the teams for the matter to be put forward to the FIA's World Motor Sport Council, which next meets in Qatar on Dec. 3, but can hold a fax vote if required.