Commentary

Formula 1

Ecclestone not worried about Bahrain unrest

"Everything's very normal in Bahrain" - Ecclestone

GMM

Edited: Apr 5, 2013, 1:49 PM

Copy link

Share on Viber

Add as a preferred source

Bahrain and F1 Flags

Apr.5 (GMM) Bernie Ecclestone has played down reports civil unrest could yet again affect the running of Bahrain's Grand Prix.

Ever since the revolutionary Arab Spring of early 2011, Formula One's annual visit to the island Kingdom has been under a dark cloud of controversy and uncertainty.

A report in the Daily Mail this week said there could be problems yet again, with fresh graffiti on a wall west of the capital Manama depicting an F1 car with the words 'No for the bloody formula'.

Bahrain and F1 Flags

Photo by: XPB Images

F1 chief executive Ecclestone, however, said he is not concerned.

"I haven't had any negative reports from anybody there," he told Reuters, ahead of his sport's forthcoming double-header in China and then Bahrain.

"Somebody who actually lives there came to see me yesterday and said everything's very normal.

"I think (the opposing sides) are talking now anyway, so I don't think they'll upset the talks by making protests," the 82-year-old added.

"It didn't help them last year, so if they had any brains they'd just get on with their talks."

Ecclestone also suggested that the long-term future of the controversial race is secure.

"They do a very, very good job of the race, the whole support from the top is good. No problems," he said.

We want your opinion!

What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?

Take our 5 minute survey.

- The Motorsport.com Team

Read and post comments

Share Or Save This Story

Copy link

Share on Viber

Previous article Pirelli seeks 'balance' between sport and show - Brundle

Next article McLaren renew hopes for a better performance in China

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

View More & Comment

Latest news

NASCAR Cup Homestead finale to feature full field of 40 cars

NASCAR Cup

NAS NASCAR Cup

Martinsville II

34 min

NASCAR Cup Homestead finale to feature full field of 40 cars

Data reveals severity of Carson Hocevar's brake-check: "There's no denying it"

NASCAR Cup

NAS NASCAR Cup

Martinsville II

1 h

Data reveals severity of Carson Hocevar's brake-check: "There's no denying it"

Honda Racing US echoes Porsche urgency over unified 2030 rules framework

IMSA

IMSA IMSA 4 h

Honda Racing US echoes Porsche urgency over unified 2030 rules framework

Toto Wolff: Two sponsors left Mercedes after promoting Kimi Antonelli into F1

Formula 1

F1 Formula 1

Mexican GP

4 h

Toto Wolff: Two sponsors left Mercedes after promoting Kimi Antonelli into F1

Feature

Discover prime content

Lewis Hamilton needs “serious talks” with himself and his team-mate

Formula 1

Mexican GP

By Stuart Codling

Lewis Hamilton needs “serious talks” with himself and his team-mate

How Ferrari's loss became Max Verstappen's gain at F1's Mexico GP

Formula 1

Mexican GP

By Jake Boxall-Legge

How Ferrari's loss became Max Verstappen's gain at F1's Mexico GP

The seven moments that defined Kimi Antonelli's F1 title win in 2026

Formula 1

Mexican GP

By Jake Boxall-Legge

The seven moments that defined Kimi Antonelli's F1 title win in 2026

Why lap times in Mexico have been so much closer to the previous F1 era

Formula 1

Mexican GP

By Stuart Codling

Why lap times in Mexico have been so much closer to the previous F1 era

Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.

From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.

You have 2 options:

Become a subscriber.
Disable your adblocker.

Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here

Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page

Manage Alerts