By Emmanuel Okogba

Former Formula One chief executive, Bernie Ecclestone has come under severe backlash for saying he will take a bullet for Russia’s president Vladimir Putin over the invasion of Ukraine.

Ecclestone had during an interview called Putin ‘a first-class person’ and insisted he is not to blame for the casualties of the ongoing war that began over four months ago.

Formula One has now condemned the interview granted by the billionaire on Good Morning Britain.

“The comments made by Bernie Ecclestone are his personal views and are in very stark contrast to position of the modern values of our sport.” the statement read.

Several world leaders now describe Putin as a war criminal over Russia’s bombing of hospitals, apartment buildings, a shopping mall and a theatre housing children.

In all of this, 91 years old Ecclestone says he still sees Putin as a close friend and defended the Russian president, claiming he ‘believed he was doing the right thing’ by ordering the invasion.

He further blamed Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky for the lingering crisis, saying a peaceful solution could have been found had he sat down with Putin for talks.

Ecclestone had previously told The Times in 2019 that he would ‘stand in front of a machine gun’ to save the Russian, calling him a ‘good guy’.