Bernie Ecclestone has said he sees no difference between becoming a father at 89 or 29 as he revealed the due date for his fourth child.

The former Formula One tycoon is expecting his first son with his wife Fabiana Flosi, 44, in July, which will make him among the world's oldest known new fathers.

He has three daughters, five grandchildren and one great-grandchild from his previous two marriages, with his eldest, Deborah, born to his first wife, Ivy Bamford, in 1955.

Billionaire Mr Ecclestone, staying at his farm near Sao Paulo, Brazil, during the coronavirus pandemic, said age does not affect the qualities of a parent.

“I don't see there is any difference between being 89 and 29,” he told the PA news agency.

“You have got the same problems, I suppose. It is alright. We are in Brazil at the moment, so we have to wait a little while and see whether this little one is going to happen in Brazil or in England.”

Asked what kind of father he will be, Mr Ecclestone said: “We don't know – probably better than before, probably a bit more relaxed.”

He married Ms Flosi, a marketing director from Brazil, at a ski chalet in Switzerland in 2012, three years after meeting her at the Brazilian Grand Prix.

His daughters Petra, 31, and Tamara, 35, who have careers in fashion and reality TV, were born to his second wife, Slavica Radic, a 61-year-old Crotian model. That marriage ended in 2009.

Born in Suffolk, Mr Ecclestone made an estimated fortune of £2.5 billion over his 40 years as chief executive of the Formula One Group.

Speaking to Swiss newspaper Blick, which first confirmed the pregnancy news, Mr Eccleston said: “I just want it to be good with Fabian” during the coronavirus lockdown.

“Fortunately, we never run out of work on the farm. Fabiana also looks after her own coffee plantation,” he added.