Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone is the wealthiest man in motoring

Formula 1 boss Bernie Ecclestone is the wealthiest man in motoring with a fortune of £2,400m – while Britain’s top driver, Lewis Hamilton is the 34th richest under 30.

Ecclestone, who appears in 24th position in the list of Britain and Ireland’s richest, is the chief executive of Alpha Prema, which owns Formula 1.

According to the Sunday Times Rich List 2008, the 77-year-old made his fortune from television rights and spin-offs.

Ecclestone recently purchased Queens Park Rangers football club in partnership with Renault Formula 1 boss Flavio Briatore and his other assets include a yacht, Falcon jet and property.

With his £2,400m fortune, Ecclestone could buy a fleet of 160,000 Ford Focus’.

Italian born Flavio Briatore is 644th on the list, with a fortune of £120m. In 1977 Briatore established the Benetton brand in the US, and was then given the challenge of running a British racing team bought by the Benetton family.

With Michael Schumacher at the wheel, the team took its first Formula One championship in 1994.

In 2000 Renault purchased the Benetton team where Briatore is still boss. He also manages Formula 1 drivers Mark Webber and Heikki Kovalainen.

Joint 644th with a wealth of £120m is the charismatic retired Formula 1 racer, Eddie Irvine.

The Irishman has turned to business and media, and has capitalised on his £40m career earnings by investing in an extensive property portfolio. He has a collection of cars and owns a boat and homes in Ireland, England and Italy.

Ron Dennis, the chairman of McLaren and team boss of the McLaren Formula 1 team, appears 724th on the Rich List with £110m.

Dennis will be hoping to forget 2007 after espionage charges led to his racing team being excluded from the Formula One constructors’ championship and being fined £50m.

He has a 15 per cent stake in McLaren sports cars, based in Woking, worth an estimated £75m.

His mood may be lifted by Lewis Hamilton, his young driving ace who seems destined to appear on the Sunday Times Rich List in the near future.

This year, Lewis does make an appearance as the 34th richest person under the age of 30, with his rapidly growing wealth currently standing at £15m.

Racing driver Jenson Button is the 13th richest under the age of 30, with a fortune of £35m tying him in the same position in the Rich List with Prince William and Harry.

1. Bernie and Slavica Ecclestone            £2,400m              Formula 1 CEO
2. Sir Anthony Bamford and family           £1,950m              Head of JCB group
3. Lawrence Tomlinson                              £400m                 Owner of Ginetta Cars
4. Henry Engelhardt and family                 £370m                 Admiral motor insurance
5. Sir Arnold Clark                                      £365m                 Car sales
6. Jack Tordoff                                            £210m                 Car sales
7. Sir Peter Vardy and family                    £150m                 Car sales
8. Martin Birrane                                         £144m                 Motor racing
9. Keith Bradshaw and family                   £140m                  Car sales
10.Tom Wheatcroft                                    £125m                  Car collector