Formula One: Ecclestone backs the sound of radio silence; wants more restrictions added

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone has backed a clampdown on the use of team radio to help drivers, claiming it was his idea and suggesting more restrictions should be considered.

"I was the one who started it off, yes," Ecclestone told reporters on Thursday at a sponsorship event on the sidelines of the Singapore Airlines Singapore Grand Prix.

He added that a majority of drivers were more than happy to comply with the new regulations.

Last week, Formula One banned all radio communications that help improve the performance of the car or driver, starting with the Singapore race, in a move that could add another twist to the title battle between Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton.

"I think none of the drivers want it (radio assistance). They are all happy that it has gone," Ecclestone said. "They drive the cars, they should know what is wrong or right. They don't need someone on the pit wall telling them what to do."

German Rosberg leads his Mercedes team mate Hamilton by 22 points with six races remaining but the pair have been embroiled in a feisty season-long battle for supremacy with both drivers doing plenty of talking on the radio to engineers.

Ecclestone hinted that more could be done to reduce the amount of assistance given to drivers, including a ban on live telemetry from the cars.

"We have a regulation in force that drivers must drive the car unaided. They have been aided - and still are," the Briton added. "There are still a lot of aids that they should not have."

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