Ecclestone’s daughter locked in an ugly divorce case

Petra Ecclestone

The husband of Bernie Ecclestone’s daughter Petra called the Formula One boss a “c–t" Wednesday after a judge ordered him out of his marital home.

Millionaire James Stunt, 35, appeared to make a gun gesture in court before he barged into the 86-year-old former king of Formula 1 racing. Stunt then stormed out of the High Court and flipped the bird to photographers.

Ecclestone marched after him before Judge Richard Anelay urged him to sit down.

The judge — who did not appear to hear Stunt’s muttered expletive — said: “Please don’t do that sort of thing in court."

The Central Family Court heard that Petra moved out of the couple’s $97 million West London mansion in February and rented a three-bedroom home, with the pair locked in a bitter $6.5 billion divorce battle.

She now wants to move back in, said her lawyer, David Williams.

Williams claimed Stunt had admitted allegations of abusive conduct and “overdoses" and had described them as “regrettable." He added that Stunt had behaved in a “disgraceful" way recently, but the court heard that Stunt “strongly disputes" his wife’s allegations.

The Ecclestone family’s Bambino Trust owns the mansion the couple and their children had been living in. The family had bought the house for $90 million, spending $32 million to add a new wing featuring a pool, gym and underground parking lot.

The judge ordered Stunt, who muttered and gesticulated throughout the 90-minute hearing, to be out by Friday.

“Petra should be restored to the former matrimonial home forthwith," Judge Anelay said. “He has said on numerous occasions that the children should be there, it’s their home, and that the mother should be there with them as well. He’d like to be there too, but – and I’m not making any judgments – it’s unlikely they could live in peace together at that property."

The couple had signed a prenuptial agreement worth $20 million, with Stunt’s own assets, including a wine collection worth millions of dollars. Other assets expected to be fought over include a multi-million-dollar mansion in Los Angeles.

“I ask that Petra and I are given time and space to work through our difficulties," Stunt said in a statement Wednesday night. “If our marriage were to fail it would be a tragedy. The situation is deeply upsetting for us and for our families."

The couple reportedly met on a blind date in 2006, marrying five years later in a fancy ceremony at Odescalchi Castle in Rome. The bride wore a $100,000 Vera Wang dress, and the ceremony reportedly cost $15 million.

A further two-day hearing is scheduled for October. James Mill/The Sun