Bernie Ecclestone: The F1 Supremo
The sport of Formula 1 is ruled with a strong hand by a single man; Bernie Ecclestone. He has turned Formula 1 from a small time racing event into the world’s most popular global motorsport on the planet. With races being held all over the world; from the
UK to Abu Dhabi, the sport’s popularity has simply exploded in the last few years. This was all possible through the relentless pursuit of excellence by Ecclestone and his desire to turn F1 into a huge commercial success. He has been involved with the sport
for the last 53 years and with his 80th birthday approaching soon, he still surprisingly doesn't look like he'll be slowing down anytime soon.
Ecclestone was born almost 80 years ago in a small town called St Peter South Elmham. He left school at the age of 16 to get a taste of the real world. He set up a motorcycle dealership along with a friend called Compton and Ecclestone and they started dealing
in motorcycle spare parts. It gave Bernie a chance to test his feet in the world of business while also allowing him to combine his love of making money with his desire to race. He started racing in 1949 in the Formula 3 series but soon had to give it up because
of an accident and he wanted to secure himself financially first. He eventually got some good deals in real estate and loan financing but he never gave up on his love of racing. Even if he could not race himself, he decided to pursue it another way.
Ecclestone never lost his hope of returning to racing one day and he was able to do just that when, in 1957, he became the manager of racing driver Stuart Lewis-Evans and he also secured the assets of the F1 Connaught team. This started his long association
with Formula 1. Tragedy struck when Stuart Lewis-Evans was severely burnt after his engine exploded and caught on fire and he later succumbed to his injuries.
The incident really shook up Ecclestone and he left the world of motorsport only to be persuaded back by a friend of his. He returned to become the manager of another driver, this time, Jochen Rindt. It did not seem like Bernie was meant to manage drivers
because Rindt also died after crashing during the 1970 World Championship. This time Ecclestone did not quit the sport but he purchased the Brabham team and started his long stint with the team.
At the helm of Brabham, Ecclestone changed the direction of the team to suit his idea of what a pure Formula 1 outfit should resemble. It seemed to pay off, because with a new designer on board and a new design for their cars, Brabham started to win championships;
namely in 1974 and 1975. Slowly over the years, Brabham’s performance diminished and Ecclestone started to concentrate more on his involvement with the Fédération Internationale du Sport Automobile (FISA) and the Formula One Constructors Association (FOCA).
He eventually sold his team for almost $5 million to a Swiss businessman and concentrated on his role in FOCA.
Bernie became the chief executive of FOCA in 1978 and went on to stage a successful coup that saw him effectively become the most powerful person in the sport. He was also instrumental in securing television rights for the Grand Prix races and this started
his unending rule over the sport which has continued to this day. Ecclestone is known to be a shrewd businessman and a strong negotiator who has continuously managed to make himself wealthy with every single deal he has ever made.
He is also a controversial figure and he is a big supporter of dictatorships and has even claimed that democracies do not work, not for countries, companies or sports teams. He feels you always need a strong handed person at the top who will turn the lights
on or off when need be. He has also come under fire for endorsing Hitler as a person who could get things done. His comments against women were not taken very well by the media and he was forced to apologise after saying that women should be domestic appliances.
A lot of people have also said that he has taken the soul out of racing and has stretched the sport too thin by having too many races take place in too many parts of the world.
Whatever the case may be, Bernie Ecclestone is a man who gets things done and with this attitude and an iron fist has taken the sport of Formula 1 to the heights it enjoys today. The sport may have lost its soul but he does not seem to care, as long as it
is profitable and people still come out in droves to watch it, he is happy. We have to wonder how long he can continue to run the sport now that he is approaching 80, but as he says he will retire when he dies, and it seems as if that is the only way he will
ever leave the sport.
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