Simon Fearn
Sky Sports’ F1 commentator Martin Brundle has had some toe-curlingly awkward celeb interactions during his grid interviews, enjoying car-crash interviews with Ozzy Osbourne and Cara Delevigne.
But Jimmy Kimmel may have just taken the title for his most bizarre one yet.
Brundle was covering the Miami Grand Prix on Sunday (3 May), which ultimately saw Mercedes' Kimi Antonelli triumph over McLaren's Lando Norris.
To fill some time during live sports broadcasts, Brundle often corners A-list F1 fans for a chat, and this time he ran into late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel - who seemed to be in quite an enthusiastic mood.
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Kimmel looked like all his Christmases had come at once when Brundle sidled up to him, exclaiming: “Oh my God! Martin Brundle!”
Considering the number of A-listers Kimmel meets on his show, I’d take this as a compliment if I were Martin.
Kimmel continued: “What do you need? Can I get anything for you? Are you having fun?”
Brundle quipped back: “I need some funny lines. I need everything. A cup of British tea.”
But Kimmel seemed to have stopped listening at this point, taking the foam cover of Brundle’s mic between his teeth and chewing on it.
Putting it back, Brundle said: “You can keep that if you like.”
Getting the interview back on track, Brundle asked Kimmel if it was his first time at the Miami International Autodrome.
Kimmel said: “First time here. It’s nuts! Crazy! I’m loving it!”
He then said he was backing Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who went on to have a disappointing race, finishing fifth and being hit with a five-second penalty for crossing the white line at the pit-lane exit.
But that was unlikely to spoil Kimmel’s fun, as he continued: “Good restaurants! Good people! Good fun! It’s loud! It’s exciting! It’s crazy!”
Turning and pointing at Brundle, he said: “I’m so excited to see you! This is the highlight right here!”
Brundle beat a hasty retreat, saying: “Do not take my mic sock again. Bye, bye, bye.”
The F1 commentator took the encounter in good humour, later tweeting: “In 30 years of broadcasting I’ve never wondered what a branded microphone sock tastes like. There’s some very funny people around.”
But others were less impressed, with one writing: “Nearly as cringe as Jack Black. You could singlehandedly improve F1 by ignoring celebrities on the grid…”
Another said: “Worst part of US Grand Prixs. Celebrities and influencers.”
While a third said: “Jimmy Fallon scaring the s**t out of Martin Brundle.”
Not everyone was so negative though, with one F1 fan writing: “It’s so lovely when Martin Brundle is treated so nicely on the race track before a race. Sometimes a lot of the celebs get snobbish and sometimes he can be annoyingly pushy too. But it’s always nice when it culminates into a lovely moment.”
It’s far from the only time things have got a bit awkward when Brundle has interviewed celebs on the F1 grid.
When he tried to talk to Cara Delevingne, she simply said ‘no’, later claiming that an ‘F1 representative’ told her not to talk to Brundle.
Meanwhile, a memorable interview with the late Ozzy Osbourne at the 2003 Canadian Grand Prix had to be abandoned after Brundle asked how Ozzy’s dogs were, and the Black Sabbath singer said: "They’re all at home s**tting.”
Tyla has contacted a representative for Jimmy Kimmel for comment.