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Martin Brundle has proved during his prestigious broadcasting career that he’s got a keen eye for spotting talent.
At the conclusion of the 2025 F1 season, Brundle suggested he was ‘absolutely certain’ that Oscar Piastri is a future world champion after narrowly missing out to Lando Norris in Abu Dhabi.
The man who split those two drivers was Red Bull star Max Verstappen; the Dutchman was unable to match Michael Schumacher’s record of winning five consecutive championships.
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Verstappen is widely regarded as the most talented driver currently on the Formula 1 grid.
Martin Brundle appears to have spotted that talent just three races into his F1 career at the 2015 Chinese Grand Prix.
Brundle called Verstappen a ‘megastar’ after his drive that day, and made an eerily accurate prediction that came true the following season.
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During the Sky Sports F1 coverage of Verstappen’s first race in Shanghai, Brundle said: “We’ve got a megastar on our hands in the making here.
“What confidence in the car!
“Verstappen will be at a world championship-winning team before he is 20. He is showing all the hallmarks of a Senna, of a Schumacher, in my view.
“He’s a young guy, but with an old head on his shoulders.
“He is calm. He will make mistakes, of course, he will make mistakes, but he has the speed, and he is just not showing a lack of experience.”
Formula 1’s official X account described Verstappen as making ‘three of the finest passes in Shanghai’ as he moved up to eighth.
Verstappen wasn’t able to hold onto eighth after qualifying P13, narrowly ahead of Toro Rosso teammate Carlos Sainz.
The Dutchman suffered a drivetrain failure with just a handful of laps remaining and failed to take the chequered flag despite being classified in 17th.
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Speaking after the race, Verstappen said: “It’s a disappointing way to end what was being a great race.
“To be running in the points positions but then have to stop the car so close to the end of the race is very frustrating.”
A 17-year-old Verstappen pulled off two brilliant moves on Marcus Ericsson and Daniil Kvyat in particular as he made his way into the points before suffering a mechanical failure.
“I think the one on Ericsson was quite nice, it was very late braking!,” Verstappen said.
“It was good. I enjoyed all the moves.”
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His Toro Rosso team boss, Franz Tost, said after the race: “He [Verstappen] drove very competitively and showed a great performance by overtaking and controlling his direct competitors.
“Unfortunately, with four laps to go, we had an issue with the drivetrain, which meant he had to retire. We now have to investigate what the exact reason is.”
Brundle’s prediction quickly came true, as Red Bull promoted Verstappen into Kvyat’s seat just five races into the 2026 campaign.
He defeated Sainz by 31 points during his debut campaign and won on his Red Bull debut at the Spanish Grand Prix.
The rest, as they say, is history. But Brundle knew within a few race weekends that Verstappen was something special.
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