F1 with 10 teams is not 'enough of a show', opines former British driver-turned-commentator

Martin Brundle reckons ten F1 teams on the grid is not enough of a show especially if there's a possibility of having more teams on the grid.

In a video segment on Sky Sports F1, Brundle discussed about the Red Bull-Ford announcement and the ongoing battle between FOM and the FIA.

There has been a very clear opposition to having an 11th team on the grid by the current teams. Teams like Mercedes, Haas, and Red Bull have been very vocal against having an 11th entrant, as that would dilute the pie the teams receive at the end of the season.

Giving his take on the matter, Brundle, though, said that ten teams are a bit too less on the F1 grid:

“Getting more teams in is a logistical thing as well as a financial aspect, you know, will they fit in the pit lane, the paddock, on the grid? How many cars do we need? I think 24 cars will be great personally, we’ve got 29 races this season, 23 grands prix and six sprint races with 20 cars on the grid. I don’t think it’s quite enough of a show, personally, and opportunity."

Talking about the Red Bull-Ford association, Brundle said:

“But if you look at the Ford thing, it’s a halfway house really – it’s an interesting one. Red Bull had Infiniti on for a while, then it had Aston Martin on the side of it for a while before Aston got their own team, so this is a branding thing."

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Eyeballs on F1 is one of the main attractions for Ford - Martin Brundle

Talking about the Red Bull-Ford alliance, Brundle touched on how the American automotive talked about innovation and technology as the motivating factors.

Eventually, though, it all came down to the eyeballs on the sport as the main reason behind the brand's induction to F1. He said:

“What I find most interesting here is all of the world’s car manufacturers are totally focused on electric cars, EVs, coming up. And yet if you look at the Ford announcement today, they love the idea of the technology, sustainability, sustainable fuels and the opportunity and then, basically, eyeballs – the number of people who are watching Formula 1 now who are not watching other formula with just battery power, for example."

Brundle added:

“So it’s interesting that they’re even wanting to be involved in Formula 1, but it’s just the might that it has at the moment. So they’re coming in different ways.

The ongoing battle for and against having an 11th team on the F1 grid is expected to drag into the season. It will be interesting to see if Andretti or any other new team gets the nod.