"I feel sorry for the people in Ukraine"- Former F1 CEO makes a U-turn on his statements supporting Russian President Vladimir Putin

Former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone has made a U-turn with regards to his controversial statements about Russian president Vladimir Putin, claiming that he wasn’t defending the invasion of Ukraine.

Speaking to Sky Sports in an interview during the Austrian GP, Ecclestone apologized for his earlier comments, where he claimed that he would “take a bullet” for Putin and said:

“I think often people come out and say things or do things without really too much thinking. Probably I did the same. I can understand people thinking that I’m defending what he’s done in Ukraine, which I don’t.”

He went on to say:

“I can’t see anyone getting anything out of this, and I think they should get together and get an agreement. I’m sorry if it’s anything I’ve said that’s upsetting anybody because it certainly wasn’t intended.”

Late last month, during an interview with ITV, Ecclestone had labeled Putin as a “first class person” and had claimed that he was willing to take a bullet for him despite Putin’s role in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Ecclestone’s comments subsequently attracted considerable backlash from fans and drivers alike. F1 quickly distanced itself from the Briton, issuing a statement which said that Ecclestone's “personal views” were “in stark contrast” to the modern values of the sport.

---

F1 drivers downplay concerns about visibility due to flares following the 2022 Austrian GP

Several F1 drivers downplayed visibility concerns due to flares at the Austrian GP last weekend after the grandstands erupted with orange smoke during the formation lap. Drivers such as Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen said that visibility was “not too bad” despite the smoke engulfing parts of the track ahead of the race start.

Lewis Hamilton felt that fans should reserve the flares for the end of the race rather than using them at the start, and expressed concerns about their environmental impact. Speaking to Autosport in a post-race interview, the seven-time world champion said:

“On the formation lap you couldn’t see the apex of Turn 7 and at the end of the race you couldn’t see anything through Turn 6. Fortunately, it wasn’t necessarily the case [that we couldn’t see] during the race. Maybe they should just save them also for the end.”

He added:

“I can’t believe they are any good environmentally any good either.”

Despite its commitment to safety and environmental sustainability, F1 currently has no rules preventing fans from using flares at the venues.