18 December 2023 , 17:53
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Martin Brundle insists he has no plans to retire from his Formula 1 punditry work any time soon.
His own F1 racing career ended in the mid-1990s and it wasn't long before he was a regular on the ITV coverage of the sport in the UK. First alongside the legendary Murray Walker and then James Allen, Brundle quickly became a fan-favourite as a co-commentator.
And that continues to be the case today. He has worked with Sky Sports since the broadcaster first bought the rights to show the sport more than a decade ago, and remains the most regular sidekick to lead commentator David Croft, as well as a well-respected pundit.
Aged 64, though, there will come a point where the global travel will become too much. Fans will be delighted, though, to know that the man himself doesn't anticipate ending his punditry career any time soon.
In a question and answer session with fans on the Sky Sports website, Brundle was asked about when he might retire. And he responded by making it clear he will still be on our screens next season and, potentially, for many more years to come.
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He said: "Goodness knows, I'm 64! So, when do you retire? I don't know. I'm around in 2024, put it that way, and then and hopefully far beyond!"
Brundle did, though, hint at the strain of the schedule as he responded to another question about how Sky decides which pundits will attend what races. He added: "It's something I get involved in with my 16 races - they kind of choose themselves, really.
"The beginning and the end of the season, the high-profile races, obviously the British Grand Prix, the primetime races in North and South America, they choose themselves for me. Twenty-four races next year is going to be brutal on everybody and the thought of trying to do all 24 is tough.
"I'd always be happy to do a behind the scenes, to show you what we do. That would be nice, actually. Come out on track with me and then do some of our production meetings - there's a lot that goes into it.
"It always fascinates me when a Nico Rosberg or a Mark Webber or a Jenson Button comes along into the TV compound and I'm like, 'They're mega-stars'. I wonder how they’re going to cope with this and, of course, they always cope with it extremely well because we're as sharp as a Formula 1 team in many respects."