Why Martin Brundle didn’t feel ‘safe’ driving Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes

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Martin Brundle is a veteran of more than 150 Grands Prix, having made his debut in 1984 and retired in 1996. Nowadays, he’s best known as a pundit and commentator for Sky Sports.

In the course of his long-running broadcasting career, which began immediately after he left F1, he’s driven race-winning cars from every decade between the 1950s and 2010s. Few people in the world can say the same.

And yet Brundle still struggled to adjust to driving one of Lewis Hamilton’s old Mercedes cars for a recent feature. He admitted as much as part of an ‘Ask Me Anything’ appearance on Reddit.

Brundle has covered Hamilton’s entire Formula 1 career from the commentary box. He stood alongside James Allen at ITV when his compatriot won his first-ever title in 2008, becoming the first British champion for 12 years.

He then watched him make history at Mercedes, where he won six more titles and became the most successful driver the sport has ever seen. And he’ll now cover his sensational move to Ferrari in 2025.

It’s quite possible that this is the final chapter of both of their careers. Brundle is now 65, while Hamilton is naturally approaching retirement at the age of 39.

Martin Brundle explains why he felt ‘trapped’ driving Lewis Hamiton’s Mercedes

Brundle says he felt somewhat constricted as he sat in the cockpit of Hamilton’s car. The various safety features limited his space.

These include the halo, the cockpit protection device introduced in 2018. It has already saved the life of Charles Leclerc, absorbing the impact of Fernando Alonso’s airborne McLaren at the Belgian Grand Prix six years ago.

Much as they were unnatural to him, Brundle welcomed the innovations. He suspects that the drivers are ‘used’ to them and feel more comfortable.

“I recently drove one of Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes and you’re buried inside the car with the halo and the headrest and the hands device around your neck,” he said. “And I didn’t actually feel particularly safe – I felt more trapped.

“But I think the drivers these days get used to that and feel quite safe. So it’s what it’s about – we don’t want to see people killed or badly injured in the name of sport.”

How Lewis Hamilton felt about driving for Ferrari in post-Abu Dhabi test

It’s likely that Brundle and Sky were filming a package to mark the end of Hamilton’s time with Mercedes. He only has six races left before he departs the Silver Arrows to join Ferrari.

He won’t make his first appearance for his new team until 2025, however. There had been some talk that he could represent them in the post-season Abu Dhabi test.

But Hamilton didn’t request permission to test for Ferrari. He instead plans to leave Abu Dhabi shortly after the season finale.

This doesn’t mean he’ll have to wait until winter testing to drive for the Scuderia, though. Hamilton could run at Fiorano, Ferrari’s private test track, in old machinery or in a filming day capacity for the 2025 car.