His departure, which he has been mulling over for months, is a blow to the
BBC, who had hoped the lure of speaking to millions on terrestrial TV would
see him commit to a new deal.
Last Friday Brundle told his Twitter followers that he had had offers from
both the BBC and Sky and would be taking the weekend to “consider my
future”.
The 52 year-old former driver is believed to have been persuaded not only by
the double-your-money offer from Sky but by the promise that he will be the
star of its F1 coverage, heavily involved with much of the extra programming
it is planning in an effort to convince fans to sign up to its subscription
service.
Sky, which has been chasing Formula One for years, is desperate to make a big
statement from the outset. Although its productions budgets, like the BBC’s,
have been trimmed, it still has a sizeable sum to spend on talent and
programming.
The Daily Telegraph understands that Simon Lazenby, long-standing
presenter of The Rugby Club, will likely present Sky’s coverage,
while veteran sports presenter Steve Rider has been offered the chance to
return in some capacity, possibly to front a feature looking at past drivers.
Sky is also understood to be keen on the BBC’s pit-lane reporter Ted Kravitz
who was seen in discussions with Sky executive producer Martin Turner in
Singapore.