I used to work in a restaurant in Cambridge in the late 90's, Martin and Mark Blundell were regulars. Always friendly and chatty, always kind and courteous. Both genuine gentlemen.
I still have a programme from a round of the '83 F3 championship. He was Blisteringly fast. That crash at Dallas took away his ability to brake like he used to and then missed the remainder of the 84 season. It was right there that he went from being a prospective F1 champion who probably would have had his pick of teams in the next few years. To where he ended up. At least he retired alive and kicking unlike his great F3 Rival Senna. Sometimes you have to reassess which things in life are a victory.
Agreed... even when Senna was beating him in the early part of the season, the margins were small. By the middle of 1984 it seemed obvious that the future of F1 belonged to Senna, Brundle and Bellof... like you say, sometimes it's important to re-assess the things you value in life
Exactly. Before Dallas he was 💩hot. Top tier British talent was unlucky from then till the 90s. Martin, Johnny,Martin Donnelly all had careers curtailed one way or another by injury.
If he were to have had his Dallas accident in a different car, he would have walked away. A carbon fibre tub, which McLaren had been using for three years at that point, would have led to a different outcome. Senna's death really affected him.
He's fondly remembered here in the States from his TWR Castrol Jaguar days. MEGA fast w/ Jan Lammers and Davy Jones! He also took a win in the IROC series at Cleveland's Burke Lakefront Airport. A SOLID man, and SOLID shoe. 😎
His achievements in F3 were titanic. His F1 career less so. But he was a great racer. His massive accident in Australia Gp is hard to forget. He is also a very sage commentator
What might have been????? Yes.... But his talent afforded him a lengthy stay in F1. He may not have gotten that elusive win, but people did recognise his talent. So it comes down to "wrong place, wrong time." But MB can be proud of not only his F1 career, but overall racing career. He raced with LEGENDS of the sport and came out alive and smiling...... and he is A GREAT / Important commentator. I have and always will love MB.
Thank you for making this video. YT recommended it to me and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed watching it.😉. I’ve only watched Martin Brundle a few seasons as a commentator and I’ve always liked his work. I knew he had been an F1 driver but not much more than that. I very much like your style. It’s factual and quiet yet captivating. I also liked the photos of all the then young and now legendary drivers. (I’m Dutch so not a native speaker and therefore struggling a bit to find the correct words)
Martin was always in the wrong car at the wrong time and at the end he also got the wrong team mate in up and coming Schumacher. Shame, because he was a brilliant driver.
In my opinion he spent too much time jumping from sports cars to F1 as soon as his profile rose again. Shame that he chose average teams to drive with where as he could’ve built more momentum.
Brundle is alive and still entertaining millions, Senna’s candle burned bright and fast. Just to make it to F1 is an achievement, but to stay in the paddock and on the international circus for 4 decades is amazing.
One day, in Cleveland, in 1996, I stopped at a booth where a lonely Mark Blundell was sitting to sign autographs. the crowd, largely ignorant of who this indy car driver was, didn't crowd around his booth like others, so I managed to spend some time talking to him, having been a Formula 1 fan since the end of the 1990 season. It was a good talk and we discussed Brundle as well as his time at Ligier. I specifically ask about the time he spun in 1993 and Senna and Michael Andretti broke right and left around him as they came out of rainy fog.
How many people casting their ‘expert’ opinions actually saw him race, were at every single F3 race that year with Senna and followed him across Group C and before when he raced the Group 1 Audi 80? 1% of you? So fair to say most of the comments here are from the ‘statistics’ brigade who form their opinions off the back of others. He was a top tier racer, he wasn’t Senna but who was but had lots of bad luck, like those before him. Rest assured at his best in a competitive car he’d be on the podium. To see him compared to Lance Stroll (as one example) shows how little people know about the history of our sport. Being track side, in era, gives you a real view of a driver. Sitting on a sofa reading a website doesn’t.
I met Brundle as we were waiting for our luggage to come through at Budapest airport, grand prix Thursday. Top bloke - and his suitcase arrived before mine, so don't say he never won! 😁
Especially as although Martin's family weren't in anyway short of a few quid the weren't in any way very rich let alone in Stroll class. Martin Brindle was a fantastic racing driver and could still out drive any shitetrumpet on here running him down.
I remember Martin Brundle racing a Toyota Corolla. Other future F1 stars at the time came through FF1600, FF2000, F3 and F2, later F3000. The special trick was to miss out at least one of those steps. Therefore, it surprised me to see him doing so well in F3. He was also good when he got into F1. However, getting to the top in F1 is not simply a matter of talent.
Qualifying was his F1 weakness, couldn't find those crucial last few tenths on a hot lap. On form, his race pace was as good as anybody's. He also admits that he didn't have the same level of self-confidence he felt in other series.
There is a great Senna mini series on Netflix that has an episode that brielfy covers the Brundle/Senna rivalry - definitely worth a look for anyone who enjoyed Rush
Nothing great about it. A load of jingoistic Brazilian crap. As someone that was regularly attending British F3 races in 1983 to see the way the film makers tried to portray us spectators is a complete disgrace. Shame on the entire production.
He had a poor start to 92 but once he got his head round it, he outscored Schumacher in tbd second half of the season despite the fact Schumi won Spa. If Brundle hadn’t been replaced by Patrese in 93 then I think he’d have been damn close to Schumacher.
Because he outraced Michael several times? What you wise arses don't realise that Martin was never the same after his feet injuries in 1984, to have any kind of career, let alone be competitive in top level motorsports was more than impressive.
I’d say if not for the horrific accident Martin suffered in Monaco 84 in his debut season, he may have had a much more Stirling career, he would have won races and possibly have been fighting for the world championship
Almost right but Martin was injured at Dallas, not Monaco. All the clueless chumps talking shite have no idea how good Martin was pre his Dallas injuries
@ yeah, correction my bad. It was a nasty crash at Dallas and potentially destroyed his chances in future years. In terms of raw pace, he was right up there with senna, considering he gave Ayrton a good run for his money in F3.
No, that's just the way the "plank" was mounted to the bottom. The chassis actually ends where that join is, after that it is just a floorplan on which the engine sits. Remember that the engine is the stressed member carrying all the forces.
His “sense of humour “ included ridiculing my haircut (a number two crewcut) from the safety of the top of his FF2000 transporter at Castle Combe. I cursed his career at that point.
Brundle was a very good racer and overtaker. His qualifying pace wasn’t up to it though. He wasn’t the complete package like top drivers and world champions, but deserved to be in F1.
Always rated him, yes i think he probably did underachieve in his f1 career. Just didnt seem to have much luck, which you do need from time to time. Lighting fast on his day though.
Hundreds of drivers in lower formulae can match the greats in those classes. It's only when they get to the top class, that the greats continue to grow and differentiate themselves. The rest make a career as "number two" drivers, and then pundits.
You don't know your arse from your elbow. DESPITE grevious foot injuries that severely hampered his driving Brundle was still competitive at the top levels of circuit racing in several categories. Without those injuries who knows what he would have done but whatever it could have been, it would be even more impressive than the career he had
@@davidgavin7280 I suppose you have explained why he was a number 2 driver, although this is the first I have heard of the injury excuse. Do you have a link to a report of his injuries?
@@davidjones4132 this guy even mentions it in the video, any search engine of choice will lead to the details, even the official F1 website covers them
To answer your last question - he'd trade everything for that one win as he was never happy commentating on races especially up to I think 2001/2 and this is all down to the way it was broken to him that he won't have a job behind the wheel in 1997 - it wasn't Eddie that told him but Louise Goodman. Even now his remark to Vettel that "you're more than free to take my job" shows someone who doesn't enjoy commentary (been stuck in a booth with Crofty is going to limit that enjoyment) so while he provided great insight - he's masked his disappointment as much as he can. It's a shame that his career in F1 panned out the way it did but if anything really damaged his career it would have to be the move to Zakspeed - nevermind the accidents - his career never fully recovered after that. Managed to rebound terrifically but I get the feeling the damage had been lasting as even if he got the chance again, they'd still have those doubts about his decision making. And then with Benetton, if you weren't on Flavio's good books, you were nowhere. At least Flavio, for all his many, MANY flaws, recognised it was a mistake to let Brundle go. Still none of us will ever get to F1 so he's lived a far more charmed life than any of us will ever get. Still, I don't begrudge him for feeling bitter about certain aspects of career, he is human. (Although, I really think he should ditch the grid walk, the whole thing has become boring)
In his Beyond The Grid interview, he states that breaking his legs and always trying to go back to F1 harmed his career, hence the Zakspeed drive. He just wanted to be in F1, so ended up in a few crap cars, but that also hurt his sports car career. Had he committed to that, he could've become a Le Mans great, but the pull of F1 was too strong for him. Tbh, I think he's had the most interesting career of practically anyone, and TV has enabled him to drive more different F1 cars than anyone else
In 1980 when he was a Toyota car salesman in his father's dealership and a part time saloon car racer he would have probably given anything for a shot at F1. Having got there and proved his talent, the desire for more was strong - we're never satisfied with what we have, racing drivers especially so!
Dude, there's no way Brundle would have beaten Schumacher in 1994. He was marginally faster than a rookie MSC in a handful of races in 1992, but by 1994 he'd have crushed him like he'd have done with Hill, hadn't it been for FIA's laughably disproportionate harsh penalties for the Silverstone incident. FIA were hell bent on keeping the WDC open for obvious PR reasons that year, so they went to ridiculous lengths to prevent Schumacher from walking away with the title by the end of the summer.
Schumacher was left foot braking in ‘94 using a two pedal set up. The only other driver who was doing this was hakkinen. This can be confirmed by a live bbc broadcast where Johnathan palmer stated that Hak and brundles cars used different pedal box. Brundle couldn’t left foot brake because of his previous injuries. That was his career over. It would have been interesting to see how fast an injury free Brundle could have been at say, Williams in the 80’s, but you could say the same thing as Warwick.
In equal cars there's no question Schumacher was ahead of Brundle, however I think the Williams was the better car considered across the whole of 1994 and whilst Hill struggled to come to terms with his role as team leader after Senna's death and had some poor races in '94, I think Brundle would have been in a much better position to maximise the car earlier in the season. Would it have changed the result? I don't know - I suspect Schumacher wouldn't have disrespected Brundle in the same way he did Hill at Silverstone, which would have meant he wasn't disqualified and subsequently banned for black flag infringements. Suzuka aside, where Hill was magnificent, I think Brundle would have achieved better results across the whole season. We might also have avoided the travesty which was Adelaide.
@@WhenF1WasReal the ‘94 benneton was the better car in reality. It had better traction at low speed. The Williams was difficult to drive because of its cramped cockpit
@@WhenF1WasReal Yep spot on. In 94 Schumacher won the world championship by 1 point. Given the experience of Brundle he would have probably got more out of that Williams than Hill. Sure there wouldnt have been the same incidents, but there would have been different ones.
Well, in the end, the best part of this story is that “Billy-Bob” Brundle is still with us….. Not the same story with Senna, nor Schumacher. I think Martin Brundle is an excellent F1 commentator and also very astute insights in F1. He can somewhat be compared to Dan Marino with the Miami Dolphins, one of the greatest QB’s in the NFL, that never one a Super Bowl.
One of the best racing car drivers of all time. F1 isn't the only measure. His driving achievement at Le Mans speak for themselves. He is a beast of an endurance racer going longer and faster than anyone around him. Massive respect.
Very true what you say about '94... if Brundle had got the nod at Williams for '93 and think he would have challenged Prost more, but not won... however in '94 if Senna still dies I think Brundle might have beaten Schumacher. Not saying Brundle was better than Hill over their careers, but at that time Brundle would have done a better job (and you had to do a slightly better job).
I always remembered martin from his f3 days, he was top dog and unlucky not to beat sennapod in the end, met brundke a few times over the years and always seemed a decent bloke, never ever cared much for sennapod to be honest, the othe person who should of taken senna down a peg or too was the bold Tommy Byrne, if only he hadn't of been a cocky wee sod at the time....
Brundle seems to be the guy in the right team at the wrong time, 1994 is particularly painful as what rarely gets mentioned is how brilliant the 94 McLaren chassis was. Monaco being great evidence of that, Brundle had a great race but what might Hakkinen have done starting on the front row had he not been taken out by Hill at the start? Same with Hungary, another circuit reliant on good chassis rather than engine... he would have been third even with the electrical issue had Schumi not let Jos Vestappern unlap himself... Had Hakkinen not been serving his (stupid) one race ban who knows where he'd have been!
Eu vejo a carreira do Brundle "meio" parecida com á do Rubens,algumas decisões erradas no início da carreira acabaram influenciando no decorrer dos anos, o lance da Tyrrell em 84 também "queimou" sua imagem e ele deveria ter saído de lá o mais rápido possível mas ainda ficou até 1986.Querendo ou não foi um "tiro no pé".
Lol, so much revisionist history. To quote HOF coach Bill Parcells “You are what your record says you are”. I’ve been watching F1 since ‘74 and Britain has had some great drivers and champions, Brundle is not one of them. He and Mark Blundell were aptly nicknamed “Trundle and Blunder”.
Brundle was not match for Schumacher and Hakkenin. Not even close. He was a good jnr driver but was very average in F1. He was a good no2 and a journeyman!
Actually most drivers fail to live up to expectations in F1, simply because the level of competition is higher than anything they experienced before. Brundle was one of many, and outside of the UK has been mostly forgotten, unless you watch the awful Sky feed.
If was going to be great,, he would have been great simple as that really, how many set backs and accidents did mansell have?? His motto was I'm not here just to make up the numbers, that's what sets the greats apart from the rest.
Hahaha what nonsense he was rubbish. How do you tell a bad driver. Answer they are in the commentary box. Another example: Davidson. What do bad drivers talk about, all the times they crashed or didn't win. What do their sad fans say, it's not fair.
No wonder he stammers and stutters his way thru his commentary these days! Being hit in the head by a stray wheel, as well as landing on it in multiple serious accidents. Not to mention almost losing a foot!? Racing was brutal back then. Now it's overly policed by FIA rules and obvious corruption. I never knew his history in the sport was so competitive, yet hindered by severe injury. Commands my respect. Now it's off to find out why Karun is such a know-it-all gimp!
His accident cost him .nearly lost his feet. He couldn't fitness train properly and left foot brake so was at a disadvantage before the rubbish cars he drove
Brundle's Ralt, run by Jorden, had a more powerful engine in F3. And he still lost to Senna! Trying to suggest Senna's Toleman was a better car than a Tyrrell, simply isn't true. Sure, the Hart, was a turbo engine, but it was the worst turbo engine ever. Brundle was alright, but nothing special. He wasn't in the same league as Senna, suggesting he was just sounds like a list of excuses, from a Brundle fan, because it is.
I have respect for Martin, but with Nigel Mansell amd Lewis Hamiltion who are both world champions, how can you say the Martin was the best British driver since Jackie Stewart? Really?
I think he meant up to that point. Prior to Martin arriving in F1, Brit drivers were few and far between. John Watson and James Hunt being the only other two who had success.
He made some bad decisions about what team to be in, and was also unlucky to have Senna in F1 at the same time - had he been in Lotus or McLaren he would have definitely won races.
Not a fan of the Brundle's. The youngest with a terrible voice to listen to. The older one, too much occupied with stupid rules. Not a real racer mentality, trying to make F1 as boring as possible.
Nothing went wrong for Martin. He is just not good enough to be at the level of Senna Schumacher or Hakkinen. He is probably slightly lower than David Croft but certainly better than Walker.
He was no match to Senna and Schumacher. The contrasting difference between Senna and Brundle when they entered F1 could not be more different. He had a faster car than Senna in F3 and everyone thought he was great, when they entered the big league, Senna was head and shoulders above them all. Brundle never even won a single race in his 11 years in F1.
Mansell was the best British driver of that era, hands down, he would look at himself in the mirror before a race, and say are you prepared to give your all to day, to put your life on the line to win, as he said he wasn't there just to make up the numbers.
I used to work in a restaurant in Cambridge in the late 90's, Martin and Mark Blundell were regulars. Always friendly and chatty, always kind and courteous. Both genuine gentlemen.
Cheer up Martin. You’ve lived a life most of us can only dream of
I still have a programme from a round of the '83 F3 championship.
He was Blisteringly fast.
That crash at Dallas took away his ability to brake like he used to and then missed the remainder of the 84 season.
It was right there that he went from being a prospective F1 champion who probably would have had his pick of teams in the next few years.
To where he ended up.
At least he retired alive and kicking unlike his great F3 Rival Senna. Sometimes you have to reassess which things in life are a victory.
Agreed... even when Senna was beating him in the early part of the season, the margins were small. By the middle of 1984 it seemed obvious that the future of F1 belonged to Senna, Brundle and Bellof... like you say, sometimes it's important to re-assess the things you value in life
Exactly. Before Dallas he was 💩hot.
Top tier British talent was unlucky from then till the 90s. Martin, Johnny,Martin Donnelly all had careers curtailed one way or another by injury.
Survived some really nasty accidents, that’s a win all of its own
True
Absolutely, when you consider Ayrton wasn’t so lucky…
If he were to have had his Dallas accident in a different car, he would have walked away. A carbon fibre tub, which McLaren had been using for three years at that point, would have led to a different outcome. Senna's death really affected him.
Pity
Senna and Schumacher won races but Brundle won life.
Yeap absolutely. You never know if the fortunes of today are going to be the misfortunes of tomorrow
He's fondly remembered here in the States from his TWR Castrol Jaguar days. MEGA fast w/ Jan Lammers and Davy Jones! He also took a win in the IROC series at Cleveland's Burke Lakefront Airport. A SOLID man, and SOLID shoe. 😎
I also recently heard about his possible '93 Williams seat consideration. WOW, can you imagine!
Davy Jones being the third man in that 1983 season.
Thanks for an interesting and informative video.
His achievements in F3 were titanic. His F1 career less so. But he was a great racer. His massive accident in Australia Gp is hard to forget. He is also a very sage commentator
What might have been????? Yes.... But his talent afforded him a lengthy stay in F1. He may not have gotten that elusive win, but people did recognise his talent. So it comes down to "wrong place, wrong time." But MB can be proud of not only his F1 career, but overall racing career. He raced with LEGENDS of the sport and came out alive and smiling...... and he is A GREAT / Important commentator. I have and always will love MB.
Brundle is none of those things.
...and he is a World Champion too, of course, in the TWR Jaguar.
Great video
Thank you for making this video. YT recommended it to me and I’ve thoroughly enjoyed watching it.😉.
I’ve only watched Martin Brundle a few seasons as a commentator and I’ve always liked his work. I knew he had been an F1 driver but not much more than that.
I very much like your style. It’s factual and quiet yet captivating. I also liked the photos of all the then young and now legendary drivers.
(I’m Dutch so not a native speaker and therefore struggling a bit to find the correct words)
Martin was always in the wrong car at the wrong time and at the end he also got the wrong team mate in up and coming Schumacher. Shame, because he was a brilliant driver.
You're right, a common story of those drivers who we consider the nearly men of Formula One.
In my opinion he spent too much time jumping from sports cars to F1 as soon as his profile rose again. Shame that he chose average teams to drive with where as he could’ve built more momentum.
Brundle is alive and still entertaining millions, Senna’s candle burned bright and fast. Just to make it to F1 is an achievement, but to stay in the paddock and on the international circus for 4 decades is amazing.
One day, in Cleveland, in 1996, I stopped at a booth where a lonely Mark Blundell was sitting to sign autographs. the crowd, largely ignorant of who this indy car driver was, didn't crowd around his booth like others, so I managed to spend some time talking to him, having been a Formula 1 fan since the end of the 1990 season. It was a good talk and we discussed Brundle as well as his time at Ligier. I specifically ask about the time he spun in 1993 and Senna and Michael Andretti broke right and left around him as they came out of rainy fog.
His sense of humour is almost as good as his f1 career
How many people casting their ‘expert’ opinions actually saw him race, were at every single F3 race that year with Senna and followed him across Group C and before when he raced the Group 1 Audi 80? 1% of you? So fair to say most of the comments here are from the ‘statistics’ brigade who form their opinions off the back of others. He was a top tier racer, he wasn’t Senna but who was but had lots of bad luck, like those before him. Rest assured at his best in a competitive car he’d be on the podium. To see him compared to Lance Stroll (as one example) shows how little people know about the history of our sport. Being track side, in era, gives you a real view of a driver. Sitting on a sofa reading a website doesn’t.
I met Brundle as we were waiting for our luggage to come through at Budapest airport, grand prix Thursday. Top bloke - and his suitcase arrived before mine, so don't say he never won! 😁
Where can i learn about this?
Especially as although Martin's family weren't in anyway short of a few quid the weren't in any way very rich let alone in Stroll class. Martin Brindle was a fantastic racing driver and could still out drive any shitetrumpet on here running him down.
@@RoBertsBanis also check out his Beyond the Grid interview on here.
I remember Martin Brundle racing a Toyota Corolla. Other future F1 stars at the time came through FF1600, FF2000, F3 and F2, later F3000. The special trick was to miss out at least one of those steps. Therefore, it surprised me to see him doing so well in F3. He was also good when he got into F1. However, getting to the top in F1 is not simply a matter of talent.
Martin Brundle is a legend ... simple as that.
Well told. Brundle is a legend.
Not unlike comedy, motor racing depends heavily on timing.
He is a Legend ! Fast , skilled, Clever , Just -Unlucky
He was so good that he is now in sky sport,simply Lively.
Martin never took out a rival deliberately and justified it by admitting that was the quickest way to win a title. We all know who did that, though.
Qualifying was his F1 weakness, couldn't find those crucial last few tenths on a hot lap. On form, his race pace was as good as anybody's. He also admits that he didn't have the same level of self-confidence he felt in other series.
There is a great Senna mini series on Netflix that has an episode that brielfy covers the Brundle/Senna rivalry - definitely worth a look for anyone who enjoyed Rush
Nothing great about it. A load of jingoistic Brazilian crap. As someone that was regularly attending British F3 races in 1983 to see the way the film makers tried to portray us spectators is a complete disgrace. Shame on the entire production.
Martin brundle is now a f1 commentator
he was as special behind the wheel as he is unbiased behind the mic.
Excellent as usual sir.
I think if your name was Martin in F1 you were fated to be seen as good but unlucky.
Brundle was a good No2 driver no more than that.
How could he be a match for Schumacher and Hakkinen when he never once out qualified either.
He had a poor start to 92 but once he got his head round it, he outscored Schumacher in tbd second half of the season despite the fact Schumi won Spa.
If Brundle hadn’t been replaced by Patrese in 93 then I think he’d have been damn close to Schumacher.
Because he outraced Michael several times? What you wise arses don't realise that Martin was never the same after his feet injuries in 1984, to have any kind of career, let alone be competitive in top level motorsports was more than impressive.
@@adamlaker2917 But he was outscored by Schumacher over the whole season and outqualified at every Grand Prix.
@@davidgavin7280 How do you know he wasn’t the same after his 84 accident?
All these if’s and but’s I prefer to comment on facts
He had some of the most incredible teammates; Bellof, Schumacher, Hakkinen.
1:31 Bootiful!! 😂😂
Wished he could of won a race or 5 ;-) But wasn't to be, wrong car wrong time, as many have said. We know you were a top driver Martin.
Great upload but you don't need to eat the microphone while speaking into it
Same here.
Thank you so much. I always thought Brundle in a decent car would have had a better career including at least one win
Indeed, he was cursed to always jump into the right car at the wrong time...
I’d say if not for the horrific accident Martin suffered in Monaco 84 in his debut season, he may have had a much more Stirling career, he would have won races and possibly have been fighting for the world championship
Almost right but Martin was injured at Dallas, not Monaco. All the clueless chumps talking shite have no idea how good Martin was pre his Dallas injuries
@ yeah, correction my bad. It was a nasty crash at Dallas and potentially destroyed his chances in future years. In terms of raw pace, he was right up there with senna, considering he gave Ayrton a good run for his money in F3.
21:50 is the chassis snapped in half in that pic? 😮
No, that's just the way the "plank" was mounted to the bottom. The chassis actually ends where that join is, after that it is just a floorplan on which the engine sits. Remember that the engine is the stressed member carrying all the forces.
He may have not made his mark in F1, he DID win the 12hrs Sebring, 24hrs Daytona, 24hrs LeMans and was World Champion in WSC (WEC now)
Spent some time with him at Donningtons GP Live event, a total gent and so technical.
Did you know Steve Reddington?
@triumphnz1 nope sorry
His “sense of humour “ included ridiculing my haircut (a number two crewcut) from the safety of the top of his FF2000 transporter at Castle Combe. I cursed his career at that point.
Wellllllll, ya did look a right tit to be fair.
Brundle was a very good racer and overtaker. His qualifying pace wasn’t up to it though. He wasn’t the complete package like top drivers and world champions, but deserved to be in F1.
Brundle was a legend on his own league, just as many others such as DeCesaris, Alboretto, Warwick, Johansson, DeAngelis, etc.
Utterly unremarkable drivers like Patrese and Boutsen getting consistently better cars than Brundle was odd at the time and odd in hindsight.
Always rated him, yes i think he probably did underachieve in his f1 career. Just didnt seem to have much luck, which you do need from time to time. Lighting fast on his day though.
Could not agree more with the comments on this video. One of the best drivers not to win a race i would say one of the best not to win a championship.
Hundreds of drivers in lower formulae can match the greats in those classes. It's only when they get to the top class, that the greats continue to grow and differentiate themselves. The rest make a career as "number two" drivers, and then pundits.
Good comment. ) yes it's like, the great's move up a Gear.
You don't know your arse from your elbow. DESPITE grevious foot injuries that severely hampered his driving Brundle was still competitive at the top levels of circuit racing in several categories. Without those injuries who knows what he would have done but whatever it could have been, it would be even more impressive than the career he had
@@davidgavin7280 I suppose you have explained why he was a number 2 driver, although this is the first I have heard of the injury excuse.
Do you have a link to a report of his injuries?
@@davidjones4132 this guy even mentions it in the video, any search engine of choice will lead to the details, even the official F1 website covers them
MY FAVORITE DRIVER
Norfolk legend
Martin Brundle is undoubtedly one of the greatest drivers in the history of F1.
He is one of the greatest drivers but his biggest achievements weren't in F1 which is no slight on his ability.
To answer your last question - he'd trade everything for that one win as he was never happy commentating on races especially up to I think 2001/2 and this is all down to the way it was broken to him that he won't have a job behind the wheel in 1997 - it wasn't Eddie that told him but Louise Goodman. Even now his remark to Vettel that "you're more than free to take my job" shows someone who doesn't enjoy commentary (been stuck in a booth with Crofty is going to limit that enjoyment) so while he provided great insight - he's masked his disappointment as much as he can. It's a shame that his career in F1 panned out the way it did but if anything really damaged his career it would have to be the move to Zakspeed - nevermind the accidents - his career never fully recovered after that. Managed to rebound terrifically but I get the feeling the damage had been lasting as even if he got the chance again, they'd still have those doubts about his decision making. And then with Benetton, if you weren't on Flavio's good books, you were nowhere. At least Flavio, for all his many, MANY flaws, recognised it was a mistake to let Brundle go.
Still none of us will ever get to F1 so he's lived a far more charmed life than any of us will ever get. Still, I don't begrudge him for feeling bitter about certain aspects of career, he is human. (Although, I really think he should ditch the grid walk, the whole thing has become boring)
In his Beyond The Grid interview, he states that breaking his legs and always trying to go back to F1 harmed his career, hence the Zakspeed drive. He just wanted to be in F1, so ended up in a few crap cars, but that also hurt his sports car career. Had he committed to that, he could've become a Le Mans great, but the pull of F1 was too strong for him. Tbh, I think he's had the most interesting career of practically anyone, and TV has enabled him to drive more different F1 cars than anyone else
In 1980 when he was a Toyota car salesman in his father's dealership and a part time saloon car racer he would have probably given anything for a shot at F1. Having got there and proved his talent, the desire for more was strong - we're never satisfied with what we have, racing drivers especially so!
Dude, there's no way Brundle would have beaten Schumacher in 1994. He was marginally faster than a rookie MSC in a handful of races in 1992, but by 1994 he'd have crushed him like he'd have done with Hill, hadn't it been for FIA's laughably disproportionate harsh penalties for the Silverstone incident.
FIA were hell bent on keeping the WDC open for obvious PR reasons that year, so they went to ridiculous lengths to prevent Schumacher from walking away with the title by the end of the summer.
Schumacher was left foot braking in ‘94 using a two pedal set up. The only other driver who was doing this was hakkinen. This can be confirmed by a live bbc broadcast where Johnathan palmer stated that Hak and brundles cars used different pedal box. Brundle couldn’t left foot brake because of his previous injuries. That was his career over. It would have been interesting to see how fast an injury free Brundle could have been at say, Williams in the 80’s, but you could say the same thing as Warwick.
Fuck did he crush hill. He cheated and drove into him.
In equal cars there's no question Schumacher was ahead of Brundle, however I think the Williams was the better car considered across the whole of 1994 and whilst Hill struggled to come to terms with his role as team leader after Senna's death and had some poor races in '94, I think Brundle would have been in a much better position to maximise the car earlier in the season.
Would it have changed the result? I don't know - I suspect Schumacher wouldn't have disrespected Brundle in the same way he did Hill at Silverstone, which would have meant he wasn't disqualified and subsequently banned for black flag infringements. Suzuka aside, where Hill was magnificent, I think Brundle would have achieved better results across the whole season. We might also have avoided the travesty which was Adelaide.
@@WhenF1WasReal the ‘94 benneton was the better car in reality. It had better traction at low speed. The Williams was difficult to drive because of its cramped cockpit
@@WhenF1WasReal Yep spot on. In 94 Schumacher won the world championship by 1 point. Given the experience of Brundle he would have probably got more out of that Williams than Hill. Sure there wouldnt have been the same incidents, but there would have been different ones.
Well, in the end, the best part of this story is that “Billy-Bob” Brundle is still with us….. Not the same story with Senna, nor Schumacher. I think Martin Brundle is an excellent F1 commentator and also very astute insights in F1. He can somewhat be compared to Dan Marino with the Miami Dolphins, one of the greatest QB’s in the NFL, that never one a Super Bowl.
A great commentator - I'm assuming your overall comment is looking for responses engaging with you. I'll give it a miss.
One of the best racing car drivers of all time. F1 isn't the only measure. His driving achievement at Le Mans speak for themselves. He is a beast of an endurance racer going longer and faster than anyone around him. Massive respect.
Very true what you say about '94... if Brundle had got the nod at Williams for '93 and think he would have challenged Prost more, but not won... however in '94 if Senna still dies I think Brundle might have beaten Schumacher. Not saying Brundle was better than Hill over their careers, but at that time Brundle would have done a better job (and you had to do a slightly better job).
Indeed. 👍👍
I always remembered martin from his f3 days, he was top dog and unlucky not to beat sennapod in the end, met brundke a few times over the years and always seemed a decent bloke, never ever cared much for sennapod to be honest, the othe person who should of taken senna down a peg or too was the bold Tommy Byrne, if only he hadn't of been a cocky wee sod at the time....
Brundle is still allive & enjoying life, unlike Senna...
James may said he said the mercedes 190 cosworth was the best chassis he ever driven.
He would have beaten and out qualified many world champion team mates like Michael Schumacher, Mika Häkkinen easily if he had been faster.
Brundle seems to be the guy in the right team at the wrong time, 1994 is particularly painful as what rarely gets mentioned is how brilliant the 94 McLaren chassis was. Monaco being great evidence of that, Brundle had a great race but what might Hakkinen have done starting on the front row had he not been taken out by Hill at the start? Same with Hungary, another circuit reliant on good chassis rather than engine... he would have been third even with the electrical issue had Schumi not let Jos Vestappern unlap himself... Had Hakkinen not been serving his (stupid) one race ban who knows where he'd have been!
Easy one to answer Dallas 84 when he smashed his legs.
Just another proof that you need a car in addition to talent. In a good car even Ralf Schumacher can win races
A match?
Not even close.
He could well be the best driver never to have won a race.
Wow. That's delusional.
Why does the story teller sound like the love child of Jake Humphrey and Liam Neeson?
I'm not sure if it was meant to be, but I'll take that as a compliment 😀
@WhenF1WasReal I just noted it that's all 😛 Was that your real voice?
Yes he was fast but nothing exceptional. Over the years a lot of fast drivers at that level have raced in F1.
Eu vejo a carreira do Brundle "meio" parecida com á do Rubens,algumas decisões erradas no início da carreira acabaram influenciando no decorrer dos anos, o lance da Tyrrell em 84 também "queimou" sua imagem e ele deveria ter saído de lá o mais rápido possível mas ainda ficou até 1986.Querendo ou não foi um "tiro no pé".
A match for Schumacher and senna? Not according to the record.
Lol, so much revisionist history. To quote HOF coach Bill Parcells “You are what your record says you are”. I’ve been watching F1 since ‘74 and Britain has had some great drivers and champions, Brundle is not one of them. He and Mark Blundell were aptly nicknamed “Trundle and Blunder”.
Brundle was not match for Schumacher and Hakkenin. Not even close. He was a good jnr driver but was very average in F1. He was a good no2 and a journeyman!
Wrong? He was in F1 being paid huge sums for 12 years when nowadays he wouldn't have lasted an afternoon!
Actually most drivers fail to live up to expectations in F1, simply because the level of competition is higher than anything they experienced before. Brundle was one of many, and outside of the UK has been mostly forgotten, unless you watch the awful Sky feed.
Because everyone around him was faster or favored his teammate over him.
better reporter than driver......
If was going to be great,, he would have been great simple as that really, how many set backs and accidents did mansell have?? His motto was I'm not here just to make up the numbers, that's what sets the greats apart from the rest.
If you only consider his F1 career. His achievements at Le Mans and Daytona speak for themselves.
Hahaha what nonsense he was rubbish. How do you tell a bad driver. Answer they are in the commentary box.
Another example: Davidson.
What do bad drivers talk about, all the times they crashed or didn't win.
What do their sad fans say, it's not fair.
No wonder he stammers and stutters his way thru his commentary these days! Being hit in the head by a stray wheel, as well as landing on it in multiple serious accidents. Not to mention almost losing a foot!? Racing was brutal back then. Now it's overly policed by FIA rules and obvious corruption. I never knew his history in the sport was so competitive, yet hindered by severe injury. Commands my respect. Now it's off to find out why Karun is such a know-it-all gimp!
His accident cost him .nearly lost his feet. He couldn't fitness train properly and left foot brake so was at a disadvantage before the rubbish cars he drove
Like a lot of others, bright junior career, F1 flop. Well he wasnt a flop just didnt live up to his junior hype
Brundle's Ralt, run by Jorden, had a more powerful engine in F3. And he still lost to Senna! Trying to suggest Senna's Toleman was a better car than a Tyrrell, simply isn't true. Sure, the Hart, was a turbo engine, but it was the worst turbo engine ever. Brundle was alright, but nothing special. He wasn't in the same league as Senna, suggesting he was just sounds like a list of excuses, from a Brundle fan, because it is.
I have respect for Martin, but with Nigel Mansell amd Lewis Hamiltion who are both world champions, how can you say the Martin was the best British driver since Jackie Stewart? Really?
I think he meant up to that point. Prior to Martin arriving in F1, Brit drivers were few and far between. John Watson and James Hunt being the only other two who had success.
You're Joking .... Right?
Martin Brundle was good, if you ask him, he will tell you. And modesty was his finer point. Worst case of little man syndrome ever. 😂 😂
He made some bad decisions about what team to be in, and was also unlucky to have Senna in F1 at the same time - had he been in Lotus or McLaren he would have definitely won races.
Brundle was always in the wrong car at wrong time. Luck of the draw.
They all think they could have been the fastest.
I noticed Martin's bias from the start. His jealousy of Schumacher was obvious.
Not a fan of the Brundle's. The youngest with a terrible voice to listen to. The older one, too much occupied with stupid rules. Not a real racer mentality, trying to make F1 as boring as possible.
Nothing went wrong for Martin. He is just not good enough to be at the level of Senna Schumacher or Hakkinen. He is probably slightly lower than David Croft but certainly better than Walker.
Lower than Croft?????????????????
Cause he cheated in F3 to be fast?
If Bumble was as fast as his mouth he would have been 8 times world champion. He was an average driver who kept running out of talent.
This is a zero winner man…….
Who is martin brundle?
who are U
Saying Brundle was on a par with Senna, Schumacher and Hakkinen is like Saying Lance Stroll will be the next F1 Champion!?
Not at all
You utter dingleberry, rewatch, listen then go a lick a window with Stroll 🙄
Speak normaly, for gods sake. Not like you're on your death bed.
Brundell and Herbert are two ex F1 drivers. Talent probably like an ordinary driver. Nothing special. FACT.
He was no match to Senna and Schumacher. The contrasting difference between Senna and Brundle when they entered F1 could not be more different. He had a faster car than Senna in F3 and everyone thought he was great, when they entered the big league, Senna was head and shoulders above them all. Brundle never even won a single race in his 11 years in F1.
He was good but not elite
Could have been elite but that nasty crash in Detroit crew all.
Average. Good second driver. Just as good now as an average pundit
@@joaom2057 wasn't it at Dallas?
@@joelapilainen you are right, it was Dallas...
Fair comment.
So wrong ? Big lol
Great second of Senna in F3
Matching Schumacher perfs in bennetton but in qualis
Try to do the same.....
Never won a single GP. I've heard all his excuses.
Mansell was the best British driver of that era, hands down, he would look at himself in the mirror before a race, and say are you prepared to give your all to day, to put your life on the line to win, as he said he wasn't there just to make up the numbers.
@chrisroberts5668 Yes, and Mansell absolutely did put his life on the line, especially on qualifying laps at Silverstone.
Monotonous delivery
Could have been good, but the knob sitting in his mum's basement who created it was too sneering towards Brundle.
Brundle was just nog good enough, a fair driver but not even close to being a champion. Professional amateur level
You’re nog that good either I see🙄🤣🫠
@@E4RLIES Don;t see the connection, you must be either british or a Brundle fan, or both lol
Professional in WSC which is hardly little league.
@@robmanueb. still an F1 amateur