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Ecclestone will leave F1 if he doesn't like direction

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Bernie Ecclestone says he will "disappear for sure" if he doesn't like the direction F1 takes in the near future.

The sport is under new ownership following the acquisition by Liberty Media, with American Chase Carey coming in as chairman alongside Ecclestone, who remains CEO. Despite continuing in his role at present, Ecclestone told Sky Sports he will have no problem walking away from F1 if he does not agree on the path it should be taking.

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"Thank God at the moment I don't need the money, I don't need a job," Ecclestone said. "And if by chance things are going what I don't think is the right way, I may well be wrong, then I will disappear for sure."

When it was put to Ecclestone he will have to work with Carey as part of the new ownership structure, the 85-year-old replied: "The only thing I have to do is die and pay my tax. Short of that I don't have to do anything".

Ecclestone has previously stated he has been asked to remain as CEO for another three years by Liberty Media, having helped make F1 such a profitable investment for CVC Capital Partners over the past ten years.

Carey is present in Singapore this weekend, meeting key members from all the teams as he casts his eye over Liberty Media's latest purchase.

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.