Sport.co.uk meets...Martin Brundle
Posted by Sport.co.uk on: 12 January 2011 - 17:01
Author: Sam Rider
The younger Formula 1 fanatics out there will recognise Martin Brundle from his last 15 years of broadcasting for the ITV and BBC providing incredibly intimate insight into the mind of a F1 driver seconds before the lights go out for the start of a grand prix through his trademark pit walks.
For the more seasoned F1 fans Brundle’s name will spark memories of a gifted British driver who jostled for podium finishes over a total of 10 years, partnering former World Champions Michael Schumacher and Mika Hakkinen with Benetton and McLaren respectively.
Yet for the true British motor racing enthusiast Martin Brundle’s name will forever be synonymous with Sportscar racing. In this discipline the exceptionally talented Norfolk-born racer won the 1988 World Sportscar Championship with a record points haul, excelled behind the wheel of his Jaguar and accumulated 18 victories from 67 starts. In 1990 he also went on to win the prestigious Grand Prix of Endurance at Le Mans 24 Hours for the team of the late Tom Walkinshaw.
But in 1988 Brundle also won the gruelling Daytona 24 Hours in Florida with Jaguar and it is that scene of his famous victory that the 51-year-old returns at the end of this month, with the equally impressive Sportscar champion and close friend Mark Blundell, to challenge once again.
Thus Sport.co.uk thought it would be a perfect opportunity to catch up with the man who is quickly becoming known as the voice of Formula 1 to see how he is looking forward to partnering Blundell in facing the physical and mental battles of the Florida track.
We also spoke to the former Williams and Jordan driver on his memories of challenging a young Ayrton Senna in the 1983 F3 Championship, on a horrific injury that severely hampered his F1 career, his experiences keeping up with a wild Michael Schumacher and how his former colleague Murray Walker is the Senna and Schumacher of motor race broadcasting. It’s Go Go GO!
This month sees you and Mark Blundell paired for the first time in a Sportscar at the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona in Florida (29-30 January) for the United Autosports team. You won the race back in 1988 but Mark will be making his debut. Looking forward to it?
We just got back from testing in Florida and it went well. It’s going to be a very competitive field. The top 15 were covered by a second in testing and everybody is driving flat out. It’s a tough track, a tough race. On the bank it’s 33 degree banking and it can get quite humid and there’s nearly 50 cars in the race in a minute and 40 second lap so you’re always overtaking. Sometimes you’re overtaking four or five cars per lap and it gets really busy out there. I have done it a couple times before but it’s a race of attrition, a race of survival. No one’s reinventing the wheel here, it is basically go as fast as you can for as long as you can; stay out of trouble, stay out of the pits unless for scheduled stops and try and be somewhere near the lead lap when the sun comes up on Sunday morning and see what you can do from there.
Along with Mark you’ve enjoyed great success racing in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, winning the prestigious race in 1990. Does that venue hold a special place in your heart?
Yeah I think it does. Le Mans is one of the best known races in the world and we’re both former winners of that and there is something massively satisfying about getting to the end of a 24 hour race in good shape. The teamwork required, the commitment, there are so many aspects to getting to the end of a 24 hour race. Most intimate racing fans have heard of Le Mans 24 Hours.
Looking back on your racing career, you featured for eight teams in Formula 1 during 10 years in the sport but were never truly given the backing that put you amongst the drivers competing for the championship. What were your personal highlights?
The season in 1992 was very strong with Benetton. That was far and away the most competitive car I had. My career started very well with a 5th place in Rio and 2nd place in Detroit very early in my first season just behind Nelson Piquet. Then I smashed my legs up which rather set me back quite a long way. I was on the podium 10 times. Finishing 2nd for McLaren just behind Michael Schumacher at Monaco was a highlight so there are a number of highs. The main success of my career was in Sportscar racing for Jaguar where I had my real glory but obviously Forumla 1 was the most important thing.
In your debut season in Formula 1 back in 1984 with Tyrrell you suffered a horrific injury, breaking both ankles and feet, when crashing in practice at the Dallas Grand Prix – what are your memories of that day?
I had a puncture going into a chicane and tracks were a lot different then, a lot more dangerous. It was basically a park road lined with concrete walls. In the first part of the chicane I had the puncture and the car went a bit sideways. I hit the wall then hit the wall a second time which took the front off the car because they were honeycomb chassis then, they weren’t carbon fibre, so the third time I hit the wall my feet were sticking out in front of it and that’s when I smashed my ankle up. My left ankle and my right foot got quite badly damaged. That put me back obviously that season but gave me two ongoing problems. Firstly I couldn’t run very well so it compromised my fitness, there’s no doubt about it. More importantly I couldn’t left-foot brake which became virtually essential in F1 – especially with the paddle shift gearbox which meant you didn’t need to use your left foot on the clutch any longer so could use it for braking, which I could never do. It was a real shame. It really wrecked my F1 career in many respects.
There are still bad injuries, notably with Felipe Massa in 2009 so how do you feel the sport has evolved in terms of safety and performance in the 26 years since your first forays in F1?
The circuits and the cars are dramatically safer. We used to drive with a self-preservation margin and I think we had to back then because a big crash meant you were going to get seriously injured or even killed. I think they can push the limits more today. It’s still dangerous but Ayrton Senna was the last one to die in an F1 car back in 1994, thank goodness, so it’s evolved dramatically in that respect.
During your time in F1 you enjoyed spells alongside Michael Schumacher with Benetton, Mika Hakkinen with McLaren and Rubens Barrichello with Jordan. Which driver was the best teammate and who did you enjoy racing with most?
The driver I enjoyed driving with the most was Mark Blundell because we were teammates at Ligier and Brabham and we did well and had a lot of fun. We’re good friends today and we’re driving for the first time in the same car at Daytona 24 hours at the end of the month. The most impressive teammate I had was Schumacher.
When teamed with Schumacher your record in 1992 is regarded as the closest any teammate has come to matching the German prior to his comeback last year. What was it like driving in the same team as him? Was he the most ruthless you’ve shared a track with?
He was very good, we got on well actually. He struggled sometimes to draw the line between being hard on the track and being unreasonable. He certainly ran me off the road a couple of times even though I was his teammate. I think he struggles with that even today but I got on fine with him. In fact, Flavio Briatore was quick to point out these days that they didn’t realise just how good Michael was. He was better than me that year, by and large. Although it was a very close call, especially in racing where I could often out-race him because I had greater experience, people underestimated what a good job I did that year because Michael obviously went on to become seven-time World Champion.
Do you expect him to ever reach those highs again in his second spell in F1?
Not the same highs no but I expect him to do better than he did in 2010.
Outside of F1 you cut your teeth in motor racing in the F3 Championship doing battle for the title with Ayrton Senna. How much did you enjoy that time and duel with the Brazilian?
It was great. I was kind of a hobby racer at the time. I’m not sure I ever imagined I would get into F1 but Senna came along and we had a mighty year racing each other and both ended up in Formula 1. I was still a car salesman at my dad’s garage at the time. It was fascinating again. We were racing together at Snetterton and Cadwell Park and tracks like that. Whoever would have imagined a few months later we would both be in Formula 1 and Senna would go on to become a sports icon, a legend all around the world. We raced together for 11 years and he is the most naturally gifted racer I’ve ever come across.
Most drivers who make it into F1 come through the ranks as you did with F3 so how is Britain faring in the divisions outside of F1? Are there some talented individuals you predict big things for?
Obviously we had two World Champions on the bounce with Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button but looking through the ranks there are one or two very good young guys but I don’t know if we have an absolutely guaranteed megastar coming through at the moment. There are a handful of them showing promise, that’s for sure but I think we might be a few more years away from having a fresh British World Champion in F1.
Post-racing you are enjoying a very successful career in broadcasting earning a host of awards for your work with ITV and now with the BBC. You’ve appeared alongside the likes of Murray Walker, James Allen and Jonathan Legard in the commentary box and also worked with David Coulthard and Eddie Jordan. Who have you most enjoyed working with?
I learned a lot from Murray Walker as you can imagine. This coming year will be my 15th year as a broadcaster. People know me more as a broadcaster than a driver in many respects but certainly you’d have to say working with Murray Walker was a great privilege. In broadcasting terms that’s a bit like racing with Senna and Schumacher.
Your pit walks are a highlight of the F1 coverage. If you were to be in their place, getting in the zone to hurtle around a track for an hour and a half at breakneck speeds, how would you react if someone thrust a mic in front of your face?
Probably just as reluctantly as they do but I know them quite well. I don’t really like bothering them on the grid but fans seem to like it and I can understand that. Fans feel they are really involved in the event when we’re literally moments away from sports people delivering up a World Championship or a great victory. That’s unique in sport. You don’t get that in tennis, cricket, football or any other sport where you can really get amongst the participants just before they go into battle. It’s a unique opportunity and experience. I’ve never watched one because I don’t really like watching myself on TV but I get nice feedback from it and it challenges me. It’s live and it’s raw and it’s 10 minutes of unscripted, unrehearsed television in front of sometimes nine million people so it gets my juices flowing.
The last F1 season included four drivers who had lifted the World Drivers’ Championship. This season we can add Sebastian Vettel to that list. Did the season live up to the billing in your eyes?
Last season was great. I really thoroughly enjoyed commentating on it and was disappointed when the flag went down at the end of the Abu Dhabi grand prix because it was such a classic season, the best I’ve watched, and I’m expecting more of the same in 2011.
Looking at the McLaren team of drivers of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button, do you think that partnership is the most conducive to success for the best two British drivers in F1 currently? Would it not be better to have one driver confirmed as the clear number one in the team to guarantee them the best points haul?
Well that’s how McLaren have always operated in that respect and different teams and different drivers need support mechanisms or different environments. It worked better than I thought it would. Jenson is a softer character, more compliant but very fast and quite a wise head and I think Lewis actually grew up a little bit watching Jenson operate. I think we were all surprised just how close Jenson was to Lewis in terms of raw pace. So the dynamics of that work very well and there seems to be a healthy respect. I’m sure it’s not as warm and cuddly as it’s portrayed because they are both very competitive people and they want to win. I think the dynamics for that for where McLaren are at with their car work fine if they are both up for the World Championship. They were in recovery mode for most of the year. If they were both in with a chance to win the World Title in the last race or two you might see a slightly different relationship.
Finally we’ll be interviewing your former colleague in F1 and Sportscar racing, Mark Blundell this week. We plan on asking him this same question about you so bear that in mind: If he were to have been in Sebastian Vettel’s position and car in the final race of last season, requiring a top finish to clinch the championship, how do you think he would have got on?
Mark was a great racing driver and pressure is an amazing thing how it affects you so until you’re in that position you don’t really know. In terms of raw pace Mark, like me, never had a dominant car or the best car in the field in Formula 1, we did in Sportscar racing. I won a World Championship and I think I won 18 Sportscar races; Mark won Le Mans and a lot of Sportscar races. In terms of having the equipment but then handling the situation under pressure it’s an awful lot easier when you’ve got the best car on the track. But who knows, Vettel’s very special. I wouldn’t want to see a headline: Blundell’s as good as Vettel because you make your own chances and make your own luck in these circumstances. The best drivers end up in the best cars.
United Autosports concluded a successful three-day official test at the “Roar Before the Rolex 24” ton Sunday January 9 in advance of the 49th running of the world famous Daytona race later this month.
The United Autosports with Michael Shank Racing entered Riley Daytona Prototype completed a total of over 300 laps around the challenging 3.56-mile, 12-turn combined speedway road course.
All four drivers, Mark Blundell (GB), Zak Brown (USA), Martin Brundle (GB) and Mark Patterson (USA), were present to prepare for this year’s Rolex 24 At Daytona that is staged over January 29-30.