Ecclestone Steps Down from F1 Board as Trial Confirmed for Bribery Charges

Formula 1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has stepped down from the F1 board after it was confirmed on Wednesday that he will face trial in Germany for bribery charges later this year.

The 83-year-old, who has been in charge of F1 for the last four decades, will continue however to run the sport on a day-to-day basis ‘subject to increased monitoring’.

Ecclestone has been has been indicted by Munich’s state court on charges of bribery and incitement to breach of trust. They are connected to the alleged payment of a $44 million bribe to German banker Gerhard Gribkowsky.

Ecclestone has insisted he is innocent of the charges made against him and has vowed to ‘vigorously defend the case’.

Ecclestone has, however, stepped down from the board of the holding company which effectively controls F1 with immediate effect.

In a statement released by holding company Delta Topco Limited, it was confirmed: ‘After discussion with the Board, Mr Ecclestone has proposed and the Board has agreed that until the case has been concluded, he will step down as a director with immediate effect, thereby relinquishing his board duties and responsibilities until the case has been resolved.

‘It is in the best interests of both the F1 business and the sport that Mr Ecclestone should continue to run the business on a day to day basis, but subject to increased monitoring and control by the Board. Mr Ecclestone has agreed to these arrangements.’

Ecclestone Looks to Buy Nurburgring

It was also revealed today that Ecclestone has made a bid to buy the Nurburgring race circuit in Germany.

Ecclestone, 83, has told the Handelsblatt and Wirtschaftswoche publications that a decision on the track’s ownership could be made soon.

He said: “We have made an offer and now we wait to learn whether it will be accepted.

“We believe that we can do more for the race track than anyone else.

“An agreement could be reached as soon as the next few weeks.”

The Nurburgring has shared rights to the German GP with Hockenheim since 2007 after the two venues decided to stop holding individual races and share the burden of F1’s high annual hosting fees.

However, the building of an amusement park adjacent to the Nurburgring plunged the venue into financial difficulties and it went into administration last year.

With uncertainty having surrounding both German GP venues for several years, Ecclestone made clear he wants to ensure the country – which is currently represented by four drivers in F1, including World Champion Sebastian Vettel – continued to feature on future calendars.

“We want to make sure there is a Formula 1 race in Germany every year in the future,” he added.

“There are one or two other interested parties. But we will only pay what we believe the Nurburgring is worth.”{jcomments on}