Ecclestone: Cheats should be named

His call comes after Max Mosley, president of the sport's governing body, the FIA, revealed at least one team may have cheated in last years championship by using outlawed traction control.

"If they have the evidence then the FIA should name the team they believe is cheating," said Ecclestone.

"At the moment a cloud of suspicion is hanging over everyone and the finger is being pointed all over the place.

"It is affecting everyone which is not fair."

He was speaking ahead of the next week's British Grand Prix in which the FIA are to bring in swinging new rules to prevent cheating.

Mosley declared war on the team's increasingly sophisticated electronic systems from next weeks British Grand Prix.

He has so far refused to name the outfit they suspect but said FIA experts were close to having 100 per cent proof.

And if they get that he did not rule out retrospective action, which could include a fine or a ban.

He expressed concern that pit lane speed-limiters could be used as illegal start-line launch control systems and they will be outlawed from next week.

At last Sunday's San Marino Grand Prix he said there was starting to be a culture of infringement of the rules and, just as they did with banning a team for cheating in rallying, he said the FIA were determined to stamp it out in F1.

The FIA are due to meet team technical experts this week to outline the changes they intend to make, starting at Silverstone.

Team bosses had a mixed reaction to the proposed new regulations, some saying they agreed with the changes and not the timing while others said the changes were not the right ones.

Their concern is that hasty alterations of the sophisticated traction control systems could make the cars unreliable.

Michael Schumacher, who starts testing at Silverstone on Thursday led driver concern that the abolition of the automatic speed-limiters could lead to accidents in the pits during a race.

"Drivers are going to find it hard to watch the speed dial and the road," he said.

After years of the teams telling him the FIA could not police such systems Mosley finally admitted at Imola they were right. But legalising traction control, as some teams wanted, would mean "the end of modern Grand Prix racing as we know it," he said at San Marino.

Mosley added: "I am not going to name the team but they were prepared to do something that was not a question of interpreting the rules but was quite clearly outside them.

"We have got to stop assuming major companies would not be involved in actions that were against the rules.

"We are not prepared to take anything on trust any more. "We don't have 100 per cent proof but we are sure enough to know this is something we have got to put a stop to.

"Our fundamental task is to make sure racing is fair.

"Our job is to look each one team and say we can guarantee to you no other team is cheating and know we are right when we say that."