Bernie shot down after he vows to ‘take a bullet’ for ‘first-class’ tyrant Putin

EX-FORMULA One chief Bernie Ecclestone was blasted after blaming Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky for the war and not “sensible” Vladimir Putin.

The 91-year-old even told Good Morning Britain he would “take a bullet” for Kremlin dictator Putin.

His outburst drew swift criticism from Foreign Secretary Liz Truss.

And seven-time F1 champion driver Sir Lewis Hamilton said he “can’t believe” what he heard.

He said: “To hear from someone that ultimately believes in the war and in the displacement of millions of people and in the killing of thousands of people, to hear from someone who supports the person who is doing it...that is beyond me.”

Sir Lewis, 37, also questioned why “older voices” who were “not representative of who we are now in the sport” were given a platform.

It follows Nelson Piquet, 69, branding Hamilton the N-word and Ecclestone defending the ex-F1 star.

Asked by ITV host Kate Garraway if he still considered Putin a friend, Ecclestone said: “I’d still take a bullet for him...because he’s a first-class person. What he’s doing is something that he believed was the right thing he was doing for Russia.

“The other person in Ukraine [Mr Zelensky]...if he’d have thought about things, he would have definitely made a big enough effort to speak to Mr Putin, who is a sensible person.”

After Ecclestone’s remarks, Ms Truss told the show his comments were “extraordinary”, adding: “This [Putin] is a man who has perpetrated an appalling war.”

Ecclestone later criticisised Mr Zelensky to TalkTV host Piers Morgan, saying: “He’s looking for a bit of publicity, nobody had ever heard of him before.” Formula One said Ecclestone’s views were a stark contrast to its modern values.