Sky Sports’ Martin Brundle says he ‘dislikes’ doing his pre-race grid walks after he mixed up NFL star Patrick Mahomes with a 19-year-old basketball player at the Miami Grand Prix.
The commentator, who’s been covering F1 since 1997 having previously been a grand prix-winning driver, ended up confusing 2020 Super Bowl champion and Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Mahomes with Duke Blue Devils basketball star and NBA hopeful Paolo Banchero – with the pair seeing the funny side. Yet after the race, Brundle responded to the honest mistake on Twitter, saying: ‘There’s a reason why I’ve never watched back an F1 gridwalk in quarter of a century of doing them.
You have no idea how much I dislike doing them but somehow those crazy moments have defined my professional career. Oh well, that’s the way it is.’
Trackside reporter Brundle spoke to several A-list celebrities at Sunday’s showpiece, including former First Lady Michelle Obama, David Beckham, Venus and Serena Williams, DJ Khaled and Pharrell Williams.
Brundle thought he had bumped into another household name in Mahomes, after chasing him and yelling out ‘Patrick’.
He eventually managed to get to his target, asking him about the atmosphere at the event, which was being attended by around 250,000 people.
He replied: ‘This is crazy. I’ve never been to an F1 race so this is spectacular,’ before adding: ‘You can see, they’re locked in. It reminds me of myself.’
At that point, Brundle was told in his ear that he had made an honest mistake and was actually interviewing Banchero.
‘It’s not Patrick, that’s why he ignored me,’ a bemused Brundle told a Sky Sports camera that followed him into the crowd next to the race track.
‘What is your name, sir?’ he then asked, before apologising: ‘Well I thought I was talking to somebody else, I’m sorry about that.’
After the awkward moment had spread on social media, Banchero took to Twitter to describe his mood: ‘I’m just vibing right now man.’
And although it remains unclear if Mahomes knew of the interaction before the tweet was shared, he reacted by adding: ‘Bro ain’t no way,’ followed by four laughing emojis.
Brundle, 62, is well known for walks along the grid preceding Formula 1 races, interviewing drivers and team bosses, but the inaugural race in Miami attracted a host of high-profile names.
One giveaway for the producers in Brundle’s ear would have been the heights of the two men: Mahomes stands at 6ft 2ins, while Banchero is a huge 6ft 9ins.
Mahomes inspired a dramatic comeback in Super Bowl LIV two years ago to seal the Chief’s first victory in the competition since 1970.
Banchero is an Italian-American basketball player, who’s been plying his trade in college basketball for the Duke Blue Devils during the 2021-2022 season.