Oct.28 (GMM) As Bernie Ecclestone celebrates his 95th birthday, the former Formula 1 supremo says that at this stage of life, just one person still qualifies as a true friend – Flavio Briatore.
Speaking to Bild in Gstaad, where he had invited German journalist Helmut Uhl, 74, and former Formula 1 Management colleague Hannah Gude, Ecclestone reflected on his long and often lonely journey through motorsport and business.
“My daughters wanted a big party,” he smiled. “I’d rather fly with Fabi and Ace to my ranch in Brazil.”
Asked how many friends he has, Ecclestone paused. “That’s a very, very good question. Of course, many friends came and went,” he said, raising his fingers in air quotes around the word ‘friends’.
“But I had real friends, please wait a minute … maybe four. Yes, four.”
Three of them – Jochen Rindt, Max Mosley and Niki Lauda – are no longer alive. When Uhl handed him a photo from Lauda’s funeral, Ecclestone immediately returned it. “I don’t want it,” he said.
So who remains? “Flavio Briatore,” Ecclestone answered. “The only one still alive.”
“What is a friend to you?” Uhl asked.
“It can only be someone you stick with through thick and thin over a long period of time, someone you trust 100 percent, and who isn’t afraid of taking any risks,” Ecclestone replied.
“I have an example of that with Flavio. When his yacht was confiscated by the authorities in Italy in 2010 for undeclared fuel tax, I bought it at auction and sold it back to him for the same price – plus one dollar,” he laughed.
When asked if he worried about authorities reading that, Ecclestone grinned: “That’s friendship for me.”
He also mentioned Karl-Heinz Zimmermann as a friend, “but the four I mentioned have accompanied me longer and more closely.”
Now living quietly between Switzerland and Brazil, Ecclestone still follows Formula 1 religiously. “I watch every race, even every practice session, and I get up at the appropriate times for the overseas races,” he said.
His wife Fabiana, 49, says Bernie is a devoted father to five-year-old Ace despite his age. “It’s working very well. Bernie and I are a team, and we’re raising Ace as a team,” she said. “When I get impatient, Bernie calmly explains that Ace can’t watch TV for half an hour until he’s done his homework.”
“It’s not easy to explain to Ace that online, tablet, and YouTube are only allowed on Tuesdays, while his classmates can use them every day,” she added. “I think it’s a good idea for him to get his first cell phone at 12 or 14.”
Ecclestone added proudly: “Ace has accepted this and doesn’t complain. He’s bright, intelligent, a wonderful boy. I already see no limits to what he’ll be capable of.”
Despite an estimated fortune of up to USD 10 billion, Ecclestone insists money was never his main drive. “It sounds unbelievable, I know, but money and being rich were never my motivation,” he said. “My ideas and deals were what drove me.”
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