Motor
Mouth
Even at 82, Formula One’s head of state retains a tight grip on the sport. Bernie Ecclestone talks to CHRIS RITCHIE about his life, legacy and family Bernie Ecclestone is a force of nature. He strides up and down the pit lane and paddock with the same boundless energy that has marked his three decade reign over the Formula One hierarchy. Indeed, he has ruled the sport in a benevolent but iron-fisted way that has transformed a formerly rag-tag operation comprising factional racing tribes into a multi-billion dollar global business empire. One of the UK’s richest men, Ecclestone’s personal wealth is not what defines him. He speaks in plain terms, using a tight economy of words to state precisely what he thinks and feels. He has long sealed deals with a single handshake and adheres to an oldworld expectation that one’s word is one’s bond. Credited as the ringmaster who turned the Formula One circus into the greatest touring sports show on earth, Ecclestone harnessed the potential of TV to transform racing into a worldwide spectacle, making billions from his management and ownership of the sport’s commercial activities. “When I arrived in the sport it was a very amateurish show,” he says, typically direct. “Nobody cared or wanted to take responsibility for organising it – they just wanted to send their cars around a track to win races. The way things were going wasn’t good for the drivers, the teams or the fans. You need to have proper management if you’re going to move forward. I tried to do what I thought was good for the sport and what seemed necessary.” Ecclestone, who has a long and cherished association with Chelsea, embodies the fearless approach
so typical of his surroundings. “I’m a confident person; I’m a west London person. I like what success brings and I won’t be threatened or intimidated by anyone. I’ve always been prepared to do what is necessary to defend my stock and my interests.” On the face of it, the silverhaired business magnate may appear heavy-handed and defensive, but there’s a layer of humility that sits just beneath. “Sometimes you just need to be forceful in business to get things done and this is a business... at least, it is now. What we did was make the necessary changes and I’m happy to have been part of that process. Am I a nice guy? Yes, I think so! “And it was actually a case of being quite gentle with the sport, in places. You must remember, you have very wealthy, protective people in F1, even if it may
“When I arrived in F1 it was a very amateurish show... I tried to do what was good for the sport” appear a ruthless, dangerous sport in the pit lane. When I was running my racing team, Brabham, I didn’t have any strategy for expanding the sport but I knew what had to be changed to turn it into a better product. That kind of thinking probably helped me to reshape things here, and I took exactly that same philosophy abroad when we went further into Europe and Asia and beyond.” As a businessman, Ecclestone knows what he is doing. He has often been pegged as a fearsome negotiator and master dealmaker. His perspective: “It’s like being a singer or an artist. You’re born with certain