Karun Chandhok recently sang tall praises for legendary F1 commentator Martin Brundle while reflecting on how blessed he is to have had a brilliant career himself, both as a driver and now as a broadcaster. The Indian former driver revealed that it is a privilege for him to commentate for Sky Sports and to work alongside Brundle, who he referred to as the “Adrian Newey of commentary”.
“I am very lucky now. They (Sky) are the biggest broadcasters on the planet,” Chandhok said on the Evo India podcast. “I work with great people and learning from someone like Martin Brundle. Martin is the Adrian Newey of commentary,” he added.
Considering Newey is arguably the greatest aerodynamicist F1 has ever had, it is obviously a huge compliment for Brundle to be compared in the same league as the 66-year-old car designer.
Brundle, who is most famous for his track walks, is one of F1’s oldest commentators, having started his career in 1997, a year after he called time on his driving career. He began his career with ITV Sport in 1997 and worked with them until 2008, following which he joined BBC Sport.
After leaving BBC Sport in 2012, the Briton joined Sky and has worked with them ever since. However, if reports are to be believed, then Brundle’s historic stint with Sky could come to an end after 2025.
Will Brundle also leave Sky after Damon Hill?
Sky Sports has been facing immense criticism in recent times after several fans have accused them of having British bias. Fans have often cited various incidents when Sky F1 experts have been highly critical of non-British drivers when they have made mistakes but seem to be much more sympathetic towards British drivers in similar situations.
In order to tackle this issue, fans believe that Sky decided to part ways with 1996 champion Damon Hill after he severely criticized Max Verstappen for the way he battled Lando Norris last year. Now, a certain section of fans believe that the likes of Brundle and David Croft may face the same fate.
Brundle seems more likely to lose his job at Sky, especially because Verstappen called him and Hill out last year for British bias. When asked to share his thoughts about what he made of Brundle and Hill’s criticisms, the Dutchman replied,
“I know that many people are biased and that I have the wrong passport. I am very happy with my passport, mind you, but in this paddock it is the wrong one”.
Max about the criticism from Damon Hill and Martin Brundle
“If they knew everything so well before their careers, they would all have become champions.”
“I know that many people are biased and that I have the wrong passport. I am very happy with my passport, mind you, but in… pic.twitter.com/xS5WWMcArD
— Verstappen News (@verstappenews) October 31, 2024
Verstappen added that the British broadcasters criticized him all the more last year because they could not say much in 2023 when he had a sublime season. With 19 wins out of 22 races en route to his third championship in 2023, Verstappen barely put a foot wrong and there were rarely any instances when anyone could criticize him.
