F1 pundit shares why a Lewis Hamilton pre-race chat has become 'near impossible'

Martin Brundle is a regular face when it comes to grid walk ahead of the Grand Prix race. The renowned F1 commentator takes his boom mic and a camera, with which he speaks to guests, drivers and team officials. However, there is one driver Brundle finds hard to speak to ahead of the race — Lewis Hamilton.

Brundle, a renowned face and a former F1 driver, started his grid walk back in the 1997 British Grand Prix. From then on, the grid walk has become a customary tradition before the lights go out. Even though the tradition remained the same, things have changed drastically in nearly three decades.

Speaking about his grid walk prior to the race, Brundle said how easy it was to approach drivers and speak to them. He recalled how he once got Michael Schumacher and Gerhard Berger speaking to him at the same time before the race.

However, it is no longer the case, as the grid has turned from being deserted, to being crowded with around 200 people, all at the same time. Drivers, engineers, team principals, race officials, media persons, VIPs and guests, have increased the numbers altogether.

“I am really disappointed if I don’t get to see some drivers, which is getting near impossible, actually, to find a driver on the grid," Brundle said (via the Sky F1 podcast). "A lot of them, like Lewis [Hamilton] and George, go back to the stations in the garage and do a debrief, I mean, on headphones."

“And a lot of the drivers do. They got off the grid if it’s hot especially. They need to go and drink. They need to go to the bathroom. And they don’t want to be bothered on the grid,” he added.

As is seen normally, Martin Brundle speaks to team officials, guests and VIPs, and it is very rare to meet the drivers before the race. In a nutshell, the grid walk's reach has decreased with the increase in the number of personnel on the track.

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Lewis Hamilton keeping an eye on his future team ahead of 2025

Lewis Hamilton of the Mercedes F1 team during the F1 Grand Prix of Brazil - Source: Getty Images

Lewis Hamilton is all set to move to Ferrari next season. The seven-time world champion signed a multi-year contract with the Prancing Horse, a deal that will see him leave Brackley at the end of this season. Prior to his move to Maranello, the Brit is already keeping an eye on his future team.

"I'm very interested in my future, of course, and so, in that respect, keeping an eye, yeah," Lewis Hamilton told the media. "And it's been quite incredible to see the McLaren rise and then the Ferrari in the last few races, to see their progress and just trying to keep an eye on everyone's car and what they're changing and what they're adding."

Scuderia Ferrari have made remarkable progress this season. They went from P3 last year to P2 currently, and are challenging McLaren for the top spot. The Italian team has claimed three victories and three podiums in the last six races, and are 36 points behind the Papayas.