Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone has hit back at claims that he is too old to be in charge of the sport, insisting that he has "a thousand more ideas" to pursue.
Earlier, Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo suggested that at 82 years of age, the Briton may be getting too old to run F1, but Ecclestone dismissed the claims, adding that he was balancing his duties for the FIA World Motor Sport Council with an attempt to save the Turkish Grand Prix, which lost its place on the F1 calendar recently.
"I don't feel 82, and as a matter of fact I'm now going to Geneva, then to Istanbul to see if we can get back the Turkish GP and [will then] participate at the World Council," Ecclestone told Gazzetta dello Sport.
"And I'm not stopping here, I have a thousand more ideas.
"Do I look in such a bad shape, two weeks after the USA GP that I wanted and somehow created?"
"I'm 82 and nobody can deny that. But time ago I used to discuss things with an 88-year-old gentleman when Luca was a 40-year-old. His name was Enzo Ferrari.
"Believe me, at that age he could make me shiver because he was terribly tough, incisive and clear-minded."
Nevertheless, Ecclestone played down the disagreement with the Ferrari boss.
"More than once he has attacked me, but in the end we understand each other. I don't have hard feelings towards him," he continued.
"Anyway, I respect his opinion. It's no drama."
