Bernie Ecclestone said he would "take a bullet" for Russian president Vladimir Putin because he is a "first class person" in a bizarre interview on ITV's Good Morning Britain this morning (Thursday 30 June). The former F1 boss was responding to co-host Kate Garraway's question about whether he still classes the Russian leader as a 'friend' since the war was waged in Ukraine.
Mr Putin and Mr Eccleston became firm friends in 2014 after the introduction of the Russian Grand Prix. Mr Eccleston further defended Mr Putin, adding: "What he's doing is something that he believed was the right thing that he was doing for Russia.
"Unfortunately he's like a lot of business people, certainly like me, that we make mistakes from time to time. And when you make mistakes, you have to do the best you can to get out of it."
