Martin Brundle names his greatest ever Formula 1 driver after ‘brutal’ Lewis Hamilton and Ayrton Senna choice

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Trying to decide who the greatest Formula 1 driver of all time is can prove to be an almost impossible task.

Looking back at how five-time world Juan Manuel Fangio drove in the 1950s compared to the way Lewis Hamilton won his seven championships is virtually impossible.

Almost every aspect of racing has changed in that time including how safe the cars are and how long each season is.

For example, the likes of Jackie Stewart and Jim Clark were multiple world champions and had incredible win ratios, but because the seasons were so much shorter, they never feature in the lists of F1’s most successful drivers.

Stewart claimed Clark was unlike any other driver and his record would be even greater had he not been killed during a Formula 2 race in 1968.

Martin Brundle raced in Formula 1 for more than a decade and grew up watching the stars of the 1960s and 1970s, raced against the best drivers from the 1980s and 1990s and has been analysing the sport in his role as a commentator ever since.

In an interview with the Daily Mail shared on TikTok, Brundle was asked to decide between some of the sport’s finest drivers.

It came down to a decision between Hamilton and the seven-time world champion’s hero Ayrton Senna.

Martin Brundle chooses between Lewis Hamilton and Ayrton Senna for F1’s greatest-ever driver

Brundle was asked to play a game of Winner Stays On when he would be presented with two drivers and have to choose which he preferred.

He started with Nico Rosberg and Sebastian Vettel, choosing the former Red Bull and Ferrari driver.

Vettel was then up against Niki Lauda and Brundle chose Lauda before being presented with Senna and he chose the Brazilian.

READ MORE: All to know about Ayrton Senna including Alain Prost rivalry and Imola crash

Brundle declared it was a ‘tough’ choice between Senna and the next driver Nigel Mansell but went with the triple world champion again before choosing Senna once more over his arch nemesis Alain Prost.

Senna was then selected over Fernando Alonso and Max Verstappen and he quickly dismissed seven-time world champion and former teammate Michael Schumacher too.

The final choice was between Senna and Hamilton which left Brundle with a ‘brutal’ quandary before simply ending with, ‘I’m a Senna fan.’

Lewis Hamilton fulfils the Ferrari dream Ayrton Senna never realised

Hamilton has just started his 19th season in Formula 1 but his first with the iconic Ferrari team.

It was a disappointing debut for Hamilton but he’ll be confident that he can make a success of what’s likely to be the final move of his F1 career.

Senna raced for Toleman, Lotus, McLaren and Williams during his career, winning three championships in the space of four years (1988, 1990, 1991).

READ MORE: Ferrari driver Lewis Hamilton’s life outside F1 from net worth to family

However, Hamilton has lived out Senna’s dream of racing for Ferrari which he never got the chance to realise.

Alain Prost secretly blocked Senna’s Ferrari move after their less-than-harmonious time as teammates at McLaren.

Brundle may have to change his mind about which driver he thinks comes out on top if Hamilton achieves an eighth title with the Scuderia.

The very early signs for 2025 suggest he might struggle to do that this year.