A rule dubbed ‘the Martin Brundle clause’ was broken in Sunday’s British Grand Prix.
Max Verstappen of Red Bull won his sixth straight race to extend his lead in the Formula One drivers’ standings to 99 points, however veteran Sky Sports presenter Brundle’s treatment by supermodel Cara Delevingne was the center of attention at Silverstone.
The 64-year-old, who previously worked for the BBC and ITV, is renowned for interviewing A-listers, drivers, and team bosses on the Grid Walk before races.
Brundle approached Delevingne over the weekend, but her bodyguard informed Brundle that “she doesn’t want to talk.”
In response, the former McLaren and Williams driver said, “That’s the deal now, everybody talks on the grid,” and he made an effort to strike up a brief conversation.
Delevingne refused to speak, shaking her head and adding, “I can’t hear anything, sorry,” after later alleging that an F1 representative had told her to decline.
Brundle chuckled sarcastically, then said, “Okay, well, I’m sure it would have been extremely interesting,” and went away. However, he did speak with people like Brad Pitt, Florence Pugh, Pep Guardiola, Liam Payne, and Sam Ryder, who engaged Brundle in wholesome conversation while they were on the grid.
One popular incident of Brundle’s numerous memorable experiences on the grid happened when he questioned Megan Thee Stallion for any F1-related raps.
Security around the “WAP” artist attempted to push him away, but she gave off the impression that she was eager to chat even though she claimed to have “no raps today.” When one of her entourage members intervened and said, “You can’t do this,” Brundle said, “I can do that because I did.”
In the aftermath of that incident at the United States Grand Prix in 2021, according to Brundle F1 executives modified the grid rules. Additionally, Brundle has stated in the past that he enjoys criticizing some of the celebrities who “don’t really have a passion” for the sport and just happen to be exploiting the grid.
After learning about the Delevingne scandal, his colleague Karun Chandhok claimed “rude” people shouldn’t be given grid tickets at F1 events.
Brundle started 158 races as an F1 driver until he began to cause trouble on the grid. He capped off his career with nine podium finishes.
