I'm sorry for the drivers of today

I'm  sorry for  the  drivers  of  today

Bernie Ecclestone in the exclusive ABMS interview for the 1000th Grand Prix. The maker of Formula 1 remembers the rise to mega-sports.

Can you still remember the first race?

Yes. I was present at the first race at Silverstone in 1950 (winner Giuseppe Farina on Alfa Romeo, d. Red.). I'm dangerous in 1958. But I did not qualify for the race. That's why I wanted to help in Monaco.

Help out?

Yes. I wanted faster pilots to ride my helmet to qualify for the race. But the commissioners were too careful.

They bloom properly when you talk about it from earlier...

Yes, because at that time Formula 1 was still a gentleman's sport out of passion, not a profession for making money. Teams and drivers were proud to be part of it. No one thought of dying. That was displaced.

Like the death of your friend Jochen Rindt in Monza in 1970?

Yes. Someone told me that Jochen had a serious accident. I had no time to be afraid. I immediately ran to the scene of the accident to see what was going on. Then I picked up his bloodstained helmet and drove to the hospital. What I learned there: Jochen probably fell off their stretcher, then they drove him to the wrong hospital. Maybe he would have survived otherwise.

What was so special about Rindt?

His character. I told him to get in the car when you got paid. He liked that. He often came to my house in England and showed me the money. Then we played cards all night.

What happened then?

At some point, I became a Brabham team owner. It was so intense that I had to give up all my other business. But I never wanted to win. The important thing was not to lose. So I can never understand why some teams do it all, even though they have no chance.

After that, you made Formula 1 big as a head marketer.

I had many helpers and good people. Colin Chapman for example or Enzo Ferrari. Without Ferrari Formula 1 would certainly not have grown so big. The most important thing was to get television excited about our sport. At that time, they only transmitted Monaco. But I wanted them to show every race and sell them as a package. I have no idea how I succeeded. I was just a used car dealer. I probably sold Formula One like a used car.

They became very rich.

Yes, although I never did things to make money. Making deals was a kind of competition for me. The more I could get out, the better I felt. That I became rich was the result, but not the drive. My inspiration was to make the impossible possible.

They have a famous collection of Formula 1 cars. Which car do you like most?

No special. I have somehow acquired them over the years. They are standing in a hangar at a private airport near London. If I have a little time until departure, I look at them.

Who but Jochen Rindt was still your favorites?

I learned to appreciate Stirling Moss early on. He was extremely talented. A true gentleman, but went next to the big Fangio. Nelson Piquet and Niki Lauda are also two strong characters. They always tell you straight out what they think. Niki is special. He was racing again six weeks after his fire accident, although his blood ran down his face. Ayrton Senna, on the other hand, was completely different. He was extremely good with children. When he called me from Brazil, he talked to my daughter for minutes.

His death at Imola in 1994 must have been a shock.

Yes. Our F1 doctor Sid Watkins immediately told me how bad it was for him. He told me about his extreme head injuries. I told Ayrton's brother that Ayrton will probably not survive. The brother was angry with me, although I could not do anything. That's why I was told not to come to São Paulo for the funeral. I flew anyway and stayed at the hotel, watching the funeral on TV. Accidents like Ayrton's are the biggest shock. Because no one could imagine that something like that could happen to him in the race car. Who knows how many titles he would have won without the accident and whether Michael Schumacher really would be world record champion and not Senna.

(Editor's note: In the seventh round of the San Marino GP 1994 Senna's car came in the fast Tamburello curve from the road and shot, fully braking and with no apparent steering correction, straight over the side strip. On the impact crashed into the barriers boundary wall right front wheel off, with a strut of the wheel suspension piercing through Senna's helmet, which was flown directly from the accident site to a clinic in Bologna, where it was declared brain dead a few hours later.)