19/10/2010
NEWS STORY
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Ahead of his eightieth birthday, Bernie Ecclestone has been talking to various sections of the media, giving his view on all manner of issues.
Though he may have small feet, the F1 supremo has a habit - much like Prince Philip - of putting them firmly in his mouth, over the years he has managed to upset all manner of people, though in all honesty this is often because of a (deliberate?) failure to appreciate his somewhat wicked sense of humour.
He upset women by comparing Indy Car's Danika Patrick to white goods, suggesting she should remain in the kitchen, while last year he caused uproar when he suggested that Hitler was a man who got things done.
While we should not expect to see him on the streets of London any time soon waving a 'Death to Democracy' placard, the man who has nurtured the sport over the last thirty-odd years and turned it into a global business admits that he believes sometimes a dictator is precisely what is needed.
In an interview with the Guardian, Ecclestone is asked about last year's faux pas regarding Hitler. "I get myself into so much trouble when I say these things," the Englishman admits, "but I don't think democracy is the way to run anything. Whether it's a company or anything you need someone who is going to turn the lights on and off.
"We had Mrs Thatcher, he continues, a name that will have Guardian readers choking on their muesli, "and when she was in charge she did turn the lights on and off. She brought the country to where it was before it got muddled up again."
The soon-to-be octogenarian, not for the first time, subsequently admits that his former 'partner in crime', Max Mosley, would have been the man to sort the country out.
"He would have been a very good prime minister," he says. "Max would've been ideal. He would know how to handle things. Max had an awful lot going for him. Maybe people thought he was too clever."
While many have a lot to be grateful to Ecclestone for, many fans see him as a man without passion, a man who puts money before all else, a man seemingly intent on destroying 'their' sport. Those of a certain age, however, remember when the sport got scant coverage from the media, when the sport was regarded as elitist. Yes, he has made a vast amount of money, and made many within the paddock, and his own inner circle, wealthy beyond their wildest dreams, but he has created a sport which often dominates the headlines, if often for the wrong reasons.
Thanks to the sterling job done by our politicians, the old notion of retiring at 65 is a thing of the past, nonetheless working flat-out at 80 is not what most envisage for the Autumn of their years. However, not for the first time, Ecclestone admits that it is his work which keeps him going.
"The way I feel at the moment, why stop?" he says. "I do it because I enjoy it. And yesterday is gone. I don't care what happened yesterday.
"What else would I do?" he adds. "People retire to die."
Last week, Ecclestone was in Russia meeting a man who knows all there is to know about ruling with a rod of iron, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin. The two have agreed a deal which will see the Black Sea resort of Sochi host a round of the world championship from 2014 as another piece of Bernie's F1 jigsaw falls into place.
"We're a world championship and so, by definition, we need to be in different parts of the world," he says. "In the end common sense has prevailed and we've expanded. It's just having the courage to do it."
However, this weekend's foray into pastures new, Korea, was very much under threat, the circuit only getting the FIA's official clearance last week. Ecclestone reveals that he came very close sensationally cancelling the race at Yeongam.
"Last month I didn't think it would be finished," he admits. "It would have been cancelled then, for sure. But the track has been inspected and passed. Everything's OK."
When it comes to raising the ire of the fans, it's is Ecclestone's attitude to wards the tracks on which the races are held that most rankles. More and more iconic tracks fall by the wayside to be replaced by emasculated sterile facilities such as Shanghai, Bahrain, Yas Island, Valencia, Singapore...
"Our problem is that we're trying to build race circuits that are super safe," he says. "You don't get so much up-and-down because you can't just put a new circuit anywhere. But one of the best circuits in the world is Turkey. It's a great circuit - that's up-and-down."
With so many new counties and circuits joining the calendar, their are real fears for truly legendary tracks such as Spa Francorchamps. A man not known for his love of tradition, Ecclestone cannot offer any crumbs of comfort.
"If it wasn't supported by the government over there it probably would go because they wouldn't be able to afford it," he says. "It's the same with the British grand prix. The worst thing is that the government here have wasted a fortune on the Olympics which will come and go, and be forgotten in a few weeks, when they could have supported Silverstone and made sure the British grand prix is there forever. The only good thing about the Olympics is the opening and closing ceremony. They do a lovely showbiz job. Otherwise, it's complete nonsense."
Strange that, because Ecclestone is on record as being a vociferous supporter of the 2012 Olympics in London both in the run up to the 2005 vote and in the aftermath.
Looking ahead to the big day next week when he will turn 80, Ecclestone is philosophical. "Hopefully I'll make it," he says. "But it's all nonsense. What's the difference being 79 one day and 80 the next? It's the same."
No doubt the ideal birthday present would be a result this weekend which sees McLaren record a 1-2 and thereby close the gap to Webber and Co.
And remember, what Bernie wants, Bernie gets.