Bernie Ecclestone

British businessman who owned Brabham from 1972 and went on to control Formula One's commercial rights until 2017

Bernie Ecclestone

British businessman who owned Brabham from 1972 and went on to control Formula One's commercial rights until 2017

Bernie Ecclestone left school at 16 to test gas purity in a laboratory, traded motorcycle parts after the war, and raced in Formula Three from 1949. He tried Formula One as a privateer with two Connaughts in 1958 but did not qualify, then turned to managing drivers, among them Jochen Rindt.

During 1971 Ron Tauranac sought a partner for Brabham, and Ecclestone offered £100,000 to buy the entire team instead. He ran it for 15 years, collecting 22 victories and two drivers' titles with Nelson Piquet, and cofounded the Formula One Constructors' Association along the way. The sale of television rights that began in the late 1970s grew into his control of the sport's commercial side, which lasted until 2017. Rarely has a team purchase turned out to be a down payment on an entire sport.

Teams led

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