Misplaced Pages

#459540

66-614: Bernard Charles Ecclestone (born 28 October 1930) is a British business magnate , motorsport executive and former racing driver . Widely known in journalism as the " F1 Supremo ", Ecclestone founded the Formula One Group in 1987, controlling the commercial rights to Formula One until 2017. Ecclestone began his career as a racing driver and entered two Grand Prix races during the 1958 season , but failed to qualify for either of them. Later, he became manager of drivers Stuart Lewis-Evans and Jochen Rindt . In 1972, he bought

132-458: A "glamour sport" and on the "false trail" of Jowell's husband's links to Benetton . On 6 November correspondents from three newspapers inquired whether Labour had received any donations from Ecclestone; he had donated £1 million in January 1997. On 11 November Labour promised to return the money on the advice of Sir Patrick Neill. On 17 November, Blair apologised for his government's mishandling of

198-650: A 14-year agreement with the FIA for the exclusive broadcasting rights for 18 FIA championships. In 1999, the European Commission investigated FIA, ISC and FOA for abusing dominant position and restricting competition. As a result, in early 2000 the ISC and FIA made a new agreement to reduce the number of rights packages to two, the World Rally and Regional Rally Championships. In April 2000 Ecclestone sold ISC to

264-460: A Formula One team. He abandoned the highly successful customer car production business established by Jack Brabham and Tauranac – reasoning that to compete at the very front in Formula One you must concentrate all of your resources there. For the 1973 season , Ecclestone promoted Gordon Murray to chief designer. The young South African produced the triangular cross-section BT42, the first of

330-564: A German prosecutor in the Gerhard Gribkowsky case showed that Ecclestone had been under investigation by the UK tax authorities for nine years, and that he had avoided the payment of £1.2 billion through a legal tax avoidance scheme. HM Revenue and Customs agreed to conclude the matter in 2008 with a payment of £10 million. In a Times interview published on 4 July 2009, Ecclestone said "terrible to say this I suppose, but apart from

396-652: A chairman emeritus had since expired in January 2020. Business magnate The term magnate derives from the Latin word magnates (plural of magnas ), meaning "great man" or "great nobleman". The term mogul is an English corruption of mughal , Persian or Arabic for "Mongol". It alludes to emperors of the Mughal Empire in Early Modern India , who possessed great power and storied riches capable of producing wonders of opulence, such as

462-475: A four-point championship lead over Moss and Trintignant. Vanwall and BRM returned after their Argentine absence and so Stirling Moss , Jean Behra and Harry Schell all went back to their regular drives. In Moss's place at the Rob Walker Racing Team with the new 2000 cc engined Cooper T45 was French driver Maurice Trintignant . The race winning Cooper T43 could not even qualify for

528-499: A group led by David Richards . On 17 June 2005, Ecclestone made American headlines with his reply to a question about Danica Patrick 's fourth-place finish at the Indianapolis 500 , during an interview with Indianapolis television station WRTV: "She did a good job, didn't she? Super. Didn't think she'd be able to make it like that. You know, I've got one of these wonderful ideas that women should be all dressed in white like all

594-651: A hamlet three miles south of Bungay . He was the son of Sidney Ecclestone, a fisherman, whose family was originally from Kent , and his wife Bertha Sophia (née Westley). Ecclestone attended primary school in Wissett in Suffolk before the family moved to Danson Road, Bexleyheath , southeast London, in 1938. He was not evacuated to the countryside during the Second World War and remained with his family. Ecclestone left Dartford West Central Secondary School at

660-523: A lot of cases, black people are more racist than what white people are." In response, Hamilton has countered Ecclestone, criticising him on Instagram for being "ignorant and uneducated", and that he has realised why nothing much has been done to address diversity and racism. Formula One Group also issued a statement, saying that they "completely disagree with Bernie Ecclestone's comments that have no place in Formula 1 or society", and had added that his title as

726-575: A meeting with Blair. Ecclestone and Max Mosley, both Labour Party donors, met Blair on 16 October 1997, where Mosley argued: "Motor racing was a world class industry which put Britain at the hi-tech edge. Deprived of tobacco money, Formula One would move abroad at the loss of 50,000 jobs, 150,000 part-time jobs and £900 million of exports." On 4 November the "fiercely anti-tobacco Jowell" argued in Brussels for an exemption for Formula One. Media attention initially focused on Labour bending its principles for

SECTION 10

#1732794628460

792-427: A move Murray described as "like having a holiday". Piquet formed a close and long-lasting relationship with Ecclestone and the team, losing the title after a narrow battle with Alan Jones in 1980 and eventually winning in 1981 and 1983. In the summer of 1981 Brabham had tested a car powered by a BMW turbo engine, and 1982 's new BT50 was powered by BMW 's turbocharged four-cylinder M10 . Brabham continued to run

858-474: A number of eventually lucrative investments in property and loan financing and to manage the Weekend Car Auctions firm. He returned to racing in 1957 as manager of driver Stuart Lewis-Evans , and purchased two chassis from the disbanded Connaught Formula One team. Ecclestone even tried, unsuccessfully, to qualify a car himself at Monaco in 1958, although this has since been described as "not

924-536: A partial owner of Rindt's 1970 Lotus Formula 2 team, whose other driver was Graham Hill . Rindt, on his way to the 1970 World Championship, died in a crash at the Monza circuit, though he was awarded the championship posthumously. During the 1971 season , Ecclestone was approached by Ron Tauranac , owner of the Brabham team, who was looking for a suitable business partner. Ecclestone made him an offer of £100,000 for

990-578: A proposed European Union Directive banning tobacco advertising and sponsorship. At this time all leading Formula One Teams carried significant branding from tobacco brands. The Labour Party's stance on banning tobacco advertising was reinforced following the general election by forceful statements from the Health Secretary Frank Dobson and Minister for Public Health Tessa Jowell . Ecclestone appealed 'over Jowell's head' to Jonathan Powell , Tony Blair's chief of staff, who arranged

1056-405: A series of Ford-powered cars with which the Brabham team would take several victories in 1974 and 1975 with Carlos Reutemann and Carlos Pace . Despite the increasing success of Murray's nimble Ford-powered cars, Ecclestone signed a deal with Alfa Romeo to use its powerful but heavy flat-12 engine from the 1976 season . Although this was financially beneficial, the new BT45s were unreliable and

1122-670: A serious attempt". He also entered the British Grand Prix , but the car was raced by Jack Fairman . He continued to manage Lewis-Evans when he moved to the Vanwall team; Roy Salvadori moved on to manage the Cooper team. Lewis-Evans suffered severe burns when his engine exploded at the 1958 Moroccan Grand Prix and died six days later; Ecclestone was shocked and once again retired from racing. His friendship with Salvadori led to his becoming manager of driver Jochen Rindt and

1188-474: A subsequent interview with The Jewish Chronicle , Ecclestone said that his comments were taken the wrong way, but apologised, saying, "I'm just sorry that I was an idiot. I sincerely, genuinely apologise." However, when Ecclestone was later told by Associated Press that the World Jewish Congress had called for his resignation, he said: "It's a pity they didn't sort the banks out," referring to

1254-495: A £409m lawsuit against the 2005 sale of Formula One, alleging it was the sport's rightful owner. In May 2013, Süddeutsche Zeitung reported that the Munich prosecutors' office had charged Ecclestone on two counts of bribery after a two-year investigation into his relationship with Gribkowsky. In July 2013, German prosecutors indicted Ecclestone for alleged bribery. The charge relates to a $ 44 million (£29m) payment to Gribkowsky. It

1320-471: Is money goes out and away. There's a question whether that money even returns to Formula One." Flavio Briatore also criticised FOM: "Nowadays Ecclestone takes 50% of all revenues, but we are supposed to be able to reduce our costs by 50%". Ecclestone was removed from his position as chief executive of Formula One Group on 23 January 2017, following its takeover by Liberty Media in 2016. In 1996, Ecclestone's International Sportsworld Communicators signed

1386-624: The 1987 season . Having bought the team from Ron Tauranac for approximately $ 120,000 at the end of 1971, Ecclestone eventually sold it for over US$ 5 million to a Swiss businessman, Joachim Luhti in 1988. In parallel to his activities as team owner, Ecclestone formed the Formula One Constructors Association (FOCA) in 1974 with Frank Williams , Colin Chapman , Teddy Mayer , Ken Tyrrell , and Max Mosley . He became increasingly involved with his roles at FISA and

SECTION 20

#1732794628460

1452-484: The 2005 United States Grand Prix at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The seven teams which refused to participate, stating concern over the safety of their Michelin tyres, requested rule changes and/or a change to the track configuration. Despite a series of meetings between Ecclestone, Max Mosley and the team principals, no compromise was reached by race time, and Ecclestone became an object of

1518-415: The 2007–2008 financial crisis , and stated: "They have a lot of influence everywhere." In a 2012 trial against the former BayernLB chief risk officer Gerhard Gribkowsky, the public prosecutor accused Ecclestone of being a co-perpetrator in the case. Gribkowsky confessed to the charges of tax evasion, breach of trust and for accepting bribes. In closing arguments at a Munich trial the public prosecutor told

1584-646: The Brabham team, which he ran for 15 years. As a team owner he became a member of the Formula One Constructors Association , whom he led through the FISA–FOCA war . His control of the sport, which grew from his pioneering sale of the television rights in the late 1970s, was chiefly financial; under the terms of the Concorde Agreement , Ecclestone and his companies also controlled the administration, setup and logistics of each Grand Prix, thus making him one of

1650-848: The Taj Mahal . The term tycoon derives from the Japanese word taikun ( 大君 ) , which means "great lord", used as a title for the shōgun . The word entered the English language in 1857 with the return of Commodore Perry to the United States. US President Abraham Lincoln was humorously referred to as the Tycoon by his aides John Nicolay and John Hay . The term spread to the business community, where it has been used ever since. Modern business magnates are entrepreneurs that amass on their own or wield substantial family fortunes in

1716-401: The 500cc Formula 3 Series, acquiring a Cooper Mk V in 1951. He drove only a limited number of races, mainly at his local circuit, Brands Hatch , but achieved a number of good placings and an occasional win. He initially retired from racing following several accidents at Brands Hatch, intending to focus on his business interests. After his accident, Ecclestone temporarily left racing to make

1782-668: The Alfa engines rendered them significantly overweight. The 1976 and 1977 seasons saw Brabham fall towards the back of the field again, before winning two races again in the 1978 season when Ecclestone signed the Austrian double world champion Niki Lauda , intrigued by Murray's radical BT46 design. The Brabham-Alfa era ended in 1979, the team's first season with the up-and-coming young Brazilian Nelson Piquet when Alfa Romeo started testing its own Formula One car during that season. This prompted Ecclestone to revert to Cosworth DFV engines –

1848-593: The British Grand Prix for the following five years. In mid-November 2004, the three banks comprising Speed Investments , which owns a 75% share in SLEC , which in turn controls Formula One – Bayerische Landesbank , J.P. Morgan Chase , and Lehman Brothers – sued Ecclestone for more control over the sport, prompting speculation that Ecclestone might altogether lose the control he had maintained for more than 30 years. A two-day hearing began on 23 November. After

1914-529: The FOCA in the 1970s, in particular with negotiating the sport's television rights, in his decades-long advocacy for team control. Ecclestone became chief executive of FOCA in 1978 with Mosley as his legal adviser; together, they negotiated a series of legal issues with the FIA and Jean-Marie Balestre , culminating in Ecclestone's famous coup, his securing the right for FOCA to negotiate television contracts for

1980-474: The Ferraris by some 20 seconds giving Rob Walker his second race win of the year. Behind the Ferraris of Luigi Musso and Peter Collins was Jack Brabham in the factory Cooper T45, although three laps down and still looking a long way from becoming the next years champion. Schell in his BRM P25 was a further six laps behind Brabham picking up the final points after Wolfgang von Trips had an engine failure in

2046-476: The Ford-powered BT49D in the early part of the season while reliability and driveability issues were sorted out by BMW and its technical partner Bosch . Ecclestone and BMW came close to splitting before the turbo car duly took its first win at the 1982 Canadian Grand Prix but the partnership took the first turbo-powered world championship in 1983. The team continued to be competitive until 1985. At

Bernie Ecclestone - Misplaced Pages Continue

2112-628: The Formula One Group. Ecclestone used the proceeds of this sale to purchase a stake in this new company (the exact ratio of the CVC/Ecclestone shareholding is unknown). On 6 December Alpha Prema acquired JP Morgan's share of SLEC to increase its ownership of Formula One to 86%; the remaining 14% was held by Lehman Brothers. On 21 March 2006 the EU competition authorities approved the transaction subject to CVC selling Dorna, which controls

2178-461: The Grands Prix. For this purpose Ecclestone established Formula One Promotions and Administration , giving 47% of television revenues to teams, 30% to the FIA, and 23% to FOPA (i.e. Ecclestone himself); in return, FOPA put up the prize money – grand prix could literally be translated from French as "great prize". Television rights shuffled between Ecclestone's companies, teams, and the FIA in

2244-529: The affair and stated "the decision to exempt Formula One from tobacco sponsorship was taken two weeks later. It was in response to fears that Britain might lose the industry overseas to Asian countries who were bidding for it." In 2008, the year after Blair stepped down as Prime Minister, internal Downing Street memos revealed that the decision had been made at the time of the meeting, and not two weeks later as Blair stated in Parliament. Interviews conducted by

2310-503: The age of 16 to work as an assistant in the chemical laboratory at the local gasworks testing gas purity. He also studied chemistry at Woolwich Polytechnic and pursued his hobby of motorcycles. Immediately after the end of the Second World War , Ecclestone went into business trading in spare parts for motorcycles, and formed the Compton & Ecclestone motorcycle dealership with Fred Compton. His first racing experience came in 1949 in

2376-625: The cars to see if he could help identify the cause, but he couldn't. This has given rise to the widely circulated story that he attempted unsuccessfully to qualify. Also failing to make the grid were Maria Teresa de Filippis , the first female driver to enter a World Championship Grand Prix, and 58-year-old Louis Chiron in his final appearance at a Grand Prix. The Monaco local had won the Grand Prix 27 years earlier but Chiron and his Maserati 250F did not make it past qualifying. Tony Brooks took pole position in his Vanwall VW 5 but Behra won

2442-559: The closing stages in his Ferrari 246 F1. The only other car still circulating was the second Lotus 12 of Cliff Allison , 13 laps behind Trintignant. Trintignant's win disproved the belief that rear-engined Cooper victory achieved by Stirling Moss in Argentina was a one-off freak circumstance win, and the smaller British cars would be treated more seriously, although ultimately a Cooper would not win again until 1959 . The Rob Walker Racing Teams pair of early 1958 victories would remain

2508-473: The companies. Ecclestone came under fire in October 2004 when he and British Racing Drivers' Club president Jackie Stewart were unable to come to terms regarding the future British Grand Prix , causing the race to be dropped from the 2005 provisional season calendar. Negotiations with Ecclestone to keep the race in Formula One ended in the signing of a contract on 9 December to guarantee the continuation of

2574-481: The court Ecclestone "hasn't been blackmailed, he is a co-perpetrator in a bribery case". According to the prosecutor and defendant, Ecclestone paid about $ 44 million to the former banker to get rid of the lender's stake in Formula One. Ecclestone told prosecutors he paid Gribkowsky because he blackmailed him with telling UK tax authorities about a family trust controlled by Ecclestone's former wife. In November 2012 private equity firm Bluewaters Communications Holdings filed

2640-601: The decision. The following day, at a meeting of team bosses at Heathrow Airport in London, Ecclestone offered the teams a total of £260,000,000 over three years in return for unanimous renewal of the Concorde Agreement, which expired in 2008. Two weeks later, Gerhard Gribkowsky, a board member of Bayerische Landesbank and the chairman of SLEC, said that the banks had no intention to remove Ecclestone from his position of control. Ecclestone saw 14 of 20 cars pull out of

2706-521: The end of the year, Piquet left after seven years. He was unhappy with the money that Ecclestone was willing to offer him and went to Williams where he would win his third championship. The following year, Murray, who since 1973 had designed cars that had scored 22 GP wins, left Brabham to join McLaren. Brabham continued under Ecclestone's leadership to the end of the 1987 season, in which the team scored only eight points. BMW withdrew from Formula One after

Bernie Ecclestone - Misplaced Pages Continue

2772-486: The fact that Hitler got taken away and persuaded to do things that I have no idea whether he wanted to do or not, he was – in the way that he could command a lot of people – able to get things done." According to Ecclestone: "If you have a look at a democracy it hasn't done a lot of good for many countries — including this one", in reference to the United Kingdom. He also said that his friend of 40 years Max Mosley,

2838-520: The fifth richest person in the world, who bought 20% of the club. On 17 December 2010 it was announced that Ecclestone had purchased the majority of shares from Flavio Briatore becoming the majority shareholder with 62% of the shares. It was announced on 18 August 2011 that Ecclestone and Briatore had sold their entire shareholding in the club to Tony Fernandes , known for his ownership of the Caterham Formula 1 team. For many years Ecclestone

2904-597: The last day of 2012. After the loss of Silverstone as the venue for the British Grand Prix in 2008, Ecclestone came under fire from several high-profile names for his handling of Formula One's revenues. Damon Hill blamed Formula One Management as a key factor in the loss of the event: "There's always been the question of the FOM fee, and ultimately that is the deciding factor. To quote Bernie, he once said: 'You can have anything you like, as long as you pay too much for it,' but we can't pay too much for something ... The problem

2970-410: The late 1990s, but Ecclestone emerged on top again in 1997 when he negotiated the fourth Concorde Agreement : in exchange for annual payments, he maintained the television rights. Also in 1978, Ecclestone hired Sid Watkins as official Formula One medical doctor. Following the crash at the 1978 Italian Grand Prix , Watkins demanded that Ecclestone provide better safety measures, which were provided at

3036-438: The next race. This way, Formula One began to improve safety, decreasing the number of deaths and serious injuries along the decades. At the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix , following Ayrton Senna 's fatal accident but while Senna was still alive, Ecclestone inadvertently misinformed Senna's family that Senna had died. Ecclestone had used a walkie-talkie to ask Sid Watkins - who was at the crash scene - about Senna's condition. Over

3102-559: The other domestic appliances." Following Patrick's 2008 victory at Twin Ring Motegi, Ecclestone personally sent her a congratulatory letter. On 7 January 2010, it was announced that Ecclestone had, together with Genii Capital , submitted a bid for Swedish car brand Saab Automobile . On 3 September 2007, it was announced that Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore had bought Queens Park Rangers (QPR) Football Club . In December 2007, they were joined as co-owners by businessman Lakshmi Mittal ,

3168-504: The proceedings ended the following day, Justice Andrew Park announced his intention to reserve ruling for several weeks. On 6 December 2004, Park read his verdict, stating that "In [his] judgment it is clear that Speed's contentions are correct and [he] should therefore make the declarations which it requests." However, Ecclestone insisted that the verdict – seen almost universally as a legal blow to his control of Formula One – would mean "nothing at all". He stated his intention to appeal against

3234-671: The process of building or running their own businesses. Some are widely known in connection with these entrepreneurial activities, others through highly-visible secondary pursuits such as philanthropy , political fundraising and campaign financing, and sports team ownership or sponsorship. The terms mogul , tycoon , and baron were often applied to late-19th- and early-20th-century North American business magnates in extractive industries such as mining , logging and petroleum , transportation fields such as shipping and railroads , manufacturing such as automaking and steelmaking , in banking , as well as newspaper publishing. Their dominance

3300-493: The public's frustration at the resultant six-car race. Despite him not having caused the problem, fans and journalists blamed him for failing to take control and enforce a solution, given the position of power in which he had placed himself. On 25 November 2005 CVC Capital Partners announced it was to purchase both the Ecclestone shares of the Formula One Group (25% of SLEC) and Bayerische Landesbank's 48% share (held through Speed Investments). This left Alpha Prema owning 71.65% of

3366-411: The richest men in the United Kingdom. Ecclestone was replaced by Chase Carey as chief executive of the Formula One Group in 2017. He was subsequently appointed as chairman emeritus and acted as an adviser to the board. Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore also owned the English football club Queens Park Rangers between 2007 and 2011. Over his four-decade career as an executive in Formula One, Ecclestone

SECTION 50

#1732794628460

3432-426: The rights to MotoGP . CVC announced the completion of the transaction on 28 March. CVC acquired Lehman Brothers' share at the end of March 2006. Allsport Management SA , owned by Paddy McNally was also acquired by CVC on 30 March. On 21 July 2007, Ecclestone announced in the media that he would be open to discussing the purchase of Arsenal Football Club . As a close friend to former director of Arsenal David Dein, it

3498-469: The second and final Grand Prix victory of his long career. The win was the second consecutive victory for the privateer Rob Walker Racing Team . Trintignant took the teams newly acquired Cooper T45 to a twenty-second victory over Italian driver Luigi Musso driving a Ferrari 246 F1 with Musso's British teammate Peter Collins (Ferrari 246 F1) was third. Trintignant's win put the superiority of front-engined cars in doubt. Musso's second place put him into

3564-694: The small 16-car Monaco grid, Ron Flockhart was first reserve for the race. Missing from the field was the previous year's winner and reigning World Champion, Juan Manuel Fangio who did not have a full-season drive. Fangio himself was in America, preparing for an ultimately disappointing Indianapolis 500 campaign with the Dayton-Walther team. Future Formula One impresario Bernie Ecclestone entered two Connaught B-Types to be driven by Bruce Kessler and Paul Emery . Neither could qualify complaining of handling problems so Bernie Ecclestone tested one of

3630-405: The son of British fascist leader Oswald Mosley , "would do a super job" as Prime Minister and added "I don't think his background would be a problem." Stephen Pollard , editor of The Jewish Chronicle , said: "Mr Ecclestone is either an idiot or morally repulsive. Either he has no idea how stupid and offensive his views are or he does and deserves to be held in contempt by all decent people." In

3696-516: The start. He led until his brakes failed in his BRM P25 , and Mike Hawthorn swept by in the Ferrari 246 F1 . Moss (Vanwall VW 5) had been duelling with him throughout the race until he retired on lap 38, and Hawthorn followed suit on lap 47 with a broken fuel pump. Graham Hill ( Lotus 12 ) retired from fourth place in his first race on lap 69, after briefly leading. Vanwall pair Brooks and Stuart Lewis-Evans retired, leaving Trintignant to lead home

3762-484: The static of the walkie-talkie, Ecclestone misheard Watkins' response of "His head" as "He's dead". Based on this, Ecclestone told Senna's brother Leonardo, who was attending the race, that Senna had died. Senna in fact remained biologically alive for several more hours. This misunderstanding caused a rift in the hitherto friendly relations between Ecclestone and the Senna family; although Ecclestone travelled to Sâo Paulo at

3828-493: The time of Senna's funeral, he did not attend the funeral itself, instead watching it on television at his hotel. Despite heart surgery and triple coronary bypass in 1999, Ecclestone remained as energetic as always in promoting his own business interests. In the late 1990s he reduced his share in SLEC Holdings (owner of the various F1 managing firms) to 25%, though despite his minority share he retained complete control of

3894-484: The trial. In the weeks following the events of the murder of George Floyd , seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton , F1's only black driver, had launched his own commission to tackle racism and increase diversity, with Formula One launching a We Race As One initiative to fight global inequality. In an interview with CNN , Ecclestone initially praised Hamilton's efforts but then questioned whether it would "do anything bad or good for Formula One", before saying that "In

3960-468: The whole team, which Tauranac eventually accepted. Tauranac stayed on as designer and to run the factory, while Colin Seeley was briefly brought in against Tauranac's wishes to assist in design and management. Ecclestone and Tauranac were both dominant personalities and Tauranac left Brabham early in the 1972 season . The team achieved little during 1972, as Ecclestone moulded the team to fit his vision of

4026-413: Was a Formula One motor race held on 18 May 1958 at Monaco . It was race 2 of 11 in the 1958 World Championship of Drivers and race 2 of 10 in the 1958 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers . The race was the 16th Monaco Grand Prix and was held over 100 laps of the three kilometre circuit for a total race distance of 314 kilometres. The race was won by French driver Maurice Trintignant in

SECTION 60

#1732794628460

4092-416: Was believed that the current board of the north London–based football club would prefer to sell to a British party, this after American-based investment company KSE headed by Stan Kroenke was thought to be preparing a £650 million takeover bid for Arsenal Holdings plc. The revenue sharing with the various teams, the Concorde Agreement, expired on the last day of 2007, and the contract with the FIA expired on

4158-500: Was involved in several controversies . With the birth of his son in 2020, he became the sixth-oldest father in human history . In October 2023, Ecclestone was convicted of tax fraud at Southwark Crown Court , and agree to pay HM Revenue and Customs over £ 650 million in back taxes and penalties; he was sentenced to 17 months in prison, suspended for two years. Ecclestone was born on 28 October 1930 in St Peter, South Elmham ,

4224-1679: Was known as the Second Industrial Revolution , the Gilded Age , or the Robber Baron Era . Examples of business magnates in the western world include historical figures such as pottery entrepreneur Josiah Wedgwood , oilmen John D. Rockefeller and Fred C. Koch , automobile pioneer Henry Ford , aviation pioneer Howard Hughes , shipping and railroad veterans Aristotle Onassis , Cornelius Vanderbilt , Leland Stanford , Jay Gould and James J. Hill , steel innovator Andrew Carnegie , newspaper publisher William Randolph Hearst , poultry entrepreneur Arthur Perdue , retail merchant Sam Walton , and bankers J. P. Morgan and Mayer Amschel Rothschild . Contemporary industrial tycoons include e-commerce entrepreneur Jeff Bezos , investor Warren Buffett , computer programmers Bill Gates and Paul Allen , technology innovator Steve Jobs , vacuum cleaner retailer Sir James Dyson , media proprietors Sumner Redstone , Ted Turner and Rupert Murdoch , industrial entrepreneur Elon Musk , steel investor Lakshmi Mittal , telecommunications investor Carlos Slim , Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson , Formula 1 executive Bernie Ecclestone , and internet entrepreneurs Larry Page and Sergey Brin . 1958 Monaco Grand Prix 43°44′4.74″N 7°25′16.8″E  /  43.7346500°N 7.421333°E  / 43.7346500; 7.421333 The 1958 Monaco Grand Prix

4290-517: Was linked to the sale of a stake in Formula 1. Gribkowsky, the BayernLB bank executive, was found guilty of taking $ 44m in bribes and failing to pay tax on the money. On 14 January 2014, a court in Munich ruled that Ecclestone would indeed be tried on bribery charges in Germany, and on 5 August 2014, the same court ruled that Ecclestone could pay a £60m settlement, without admitting guilt, to end

4356-693: Was rumoured to have been involved in the Great Train Robbery (1963) . In a 2014 interview Ecclestone claimed that this rumour arose from his acquaintance with robber Roy James, the getaway driver who was an amateur racing driver. James later produced the silver trophy given to Formula One promoters. In 1997, Ecclestone was involved in a political controversy over the British Labour Party 's policy on tobacco sponsorship. Labour had pledged to ban tobacco advertising in its manifesto ahead of its 1997 general election victory , supporting

#459540