Bernie Ecclestone’s unusual divorce

The wife of Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone has confirmed she is divorcing her husband after 24 years of marriage, paving the way for the most unusual legal tussle. The reason being, as reported here a week ago, is that Ecclestone is said to have transferred most of his £2.4bn fortune to Slavica (pictured with Ecclestone) for tax purposes.

The money is believed to be held in a trust that also owns almost 10 per cent of Formula One. This has prompted speculation that Ecclestone, 78, could find himself fighting his wife for his share of his own money. Friends of Slavica, 50, said she believed Bernie would be keen to avoid a legal battle in which the details of his affairs would be scruntinised in open court. It is not known if the couple, who have two daughters, Petra and Tamara, signed a prenuptial agreement.

A friend of Slavica told the Times: "She's going to hang on to what she's got. The settlement is going to be kept absolutely hush-hush. She's got so much on him that he will not want to go to court."

The couple met in 1984 when Slavica, who was born in the Croatian region of the former Yugoslavia, attended a Formula One promotional event where she was modelling for Giorgio Armani. She had no idea who Mr Ecclestone was and is said to have given him a false telephone number. Undaunted, and ignoring their age difference and the 10in height difference between them (she is 6ft 2in, he is 5ft 4in), Ecclestome pursued her and they married in 1985.

No other parties are thought to be involved in the breakdown but Ecclestone is known to have resented her husband's workaholic lifestyle. She had wanted him to ease off in recent years, particularly after his triple heart bypass nine years ago.