Formula 1 qualifying is to revert back to last year’s format from the Chinese Grand Prix, Autosport has learned.
The move comes on the back of a letter from all 11 teams to FIA president Jean Todt, supremo Bernie Ecclestone and commercial rights holders CVC Capital Partners on Thursday morning, demanding the current elimination system be ditched, and that F1 returns to the set-up used from 2006-15.
Souces have confirmed Todt and Ecclestone have accepted it would be in the best interests of the championship to drop the controversial format and plans for an aggregate replacement.
Speaking to Autosport, Ecclestone does not now feel “it is possible to find a solution” for the future.
Ecclestone added: “People seem to forget what we are trying to do, which is muddle the grid up a little bit because what we have seen doesn’t make for much excitement.
“Lewis [Hamilton] has helped us a bit this season by not making good starts and having to come through the field, and Ferrari finally seems to have got his act together, so maybe things will change.
“Unless we can get everybody on board with regard to a new format then we are not going to find an answer. It’s as simple as that.”
Earlier on Thursday, it appeared as if an impasse had been reached between the 11 teams in one corner and Ecclestone and Todt in the other, with regard to a way forward over the future format of qualifying.
Although the teams played their part in voting through the new elimination set-up for this season, it had proven unpopular and ineffective, with the action front-loaded in Q1.
Further talks took place between the teams, Ecclestone, Todt, along with Pirelli motorsport director Paul Hembery in the paddock in Bahrain last Sunday, with the aggregate qualifying system proposed.
That system ran for six races only at the start of 2005 before being ditched, but teams agreed to review it, only for talks over the past few days to discover it would not work.
A vote was scheduled to take place, but with the teams in agreement for once, they opted to make a stand against Ecclestone and Todt.
