“I Got More Exposure Than if I’d Committed Murder”: Former F1 CEO Dubs $1200 Gun Debacle ‘Good Publicity’

The former F1 supremo has ended up in the grips of a controversy. He was supposed to fly to Ibiza, from Brazil, last month. However, there was one minor hindrance. Ecclestone was stopped at the Sao Paulo airport for the possession of a firearm. He claimed that the Seecamp 32 pistol was not loaded and ended up in his luggage by accident.

Ecclestone explained how the gun ended up in his bag, “I was mucking about with the gun at home. I was pretending to arrest somebody”. He added, “I put it into my shirt pocket and took the shirt off. I left my things on the bed to be packed and in it went. I never used it, or carried it. It had no bullets.”

He joked about his encounter with the police, “It was a few pleasant hours with the police. We were all good friends in the end,’ he says.” Ecclestone concluded in prime Ecclestone fashion, “It was all good publicity. I got more exposure than if I’d committed murder.”

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The former F1 boss was let go after paying a fine of 6,000 Brazilian reals or  $1,200 for the possession of the unregistered firearm, which was confiscated. Although he dodged this bullet, no pun intended, Ecclestone could not stay out of the limelight with certain comments he made about Lewis Hamilton.

Bernie Ecclestone dishes out strong words for Lewis Hamilton’s season

Lewis Hamilton has struggled majorly this season. His issues with his W-13 have left him languishing in P6 in the driver standings. The Britton is also 34 points behind compatriot and teammate George Russell. This, combined with his cynicism, at times, has prompted Bernie Ecclestone to make some bold claims.

Speaking to the DailyMail Ecclestone said,  “I don’t think he’s trying, do you? Let’s put it another way. Lewis doesn’t seem bothered about losing”. He added, “It’s not like him. He has a competitive nature – but he’s taking losing a bit easy for my liking.”

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However, Hamilton’s results have not been down to his error alone. The W13 struggling with major porpoising also has a lot to do with him sitting right above the midfield.

As things stand, the Briton still has 2 podiums to his name this season. The upcoming British GP, his home race, also looks to be promising with Mercedes making major changes to their car. Will Silverstone spell success for Hamilton?