David Croft proposes new Olympic sport with drivers from 'around the world' ahead of British GP
The time has just gone past 8:40am on Thursday morning, and Sky F1's David Croft has sat down after watching 300 people run a lap of Silverstone ahead of the British Grand Prix.
"Do you know what? Early start, but what a start," he says.
The reason for Croft's early start on Thursday was Gatorade's 'Run The Circuit' challenge, where the aforementioned 300 people were given exclusive access to the Silverstone circuit to run a single, 5.891-kilometre lap of the iconic track.
Croft was the guest starter for the run and called the action as the runners set off, before jumping in a van to join the leaders at around the halfway point at Brooklands.
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Those in attendance were offered Hydration Booster sachets that are designed for rapid hydration and to help replenish lost fluids, as well as avoid the two per cent loss of fluid that can impact performance.
The carbohydrate and electrolytes drink mix sachets contain an advanced blend of electrolytes and B vitamins intended to reduce fatigue.
"To get 300 people, on the Lewis Hamilton Straight, running the track... there were some seriously impressive times in there," Croft tells SPORTbible.
Did everyone complete the full lap? "Yeah, they did. There was one guy I was a bit worried about - he had jeans on, and he had some serious chafing issues - but he came up to me at the end and said he was fine.
"Everyone got round. Everyone encouraged each other as well, which was really nice. It was a properly good fan event. The fans have got a chance to go on the track before the drivers get a chance, and they don't normally get a chance until after the race finishes on Sunday.
"We went to meet the runners at Brooklands, so just about halfway round. But by the time we got in the van to drive us there, I think the top 10 had already gone through. The winners were about 21 minutes - massively impressive. That's what you get by using F1-grade electrolytes. It's like an active aero boost that comes to life."
With the first event of the weekend all done, it's time for the race that many Formula 1 fans will look out for first when the calendar gets unveiled each year.
An F1 record crowd of over 175,000 fans is expected through the Silverstone gates on Sunday morning, which will make those first few corners on race day even more special as leading Brits Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris and George Russell hopefully jostle for the early places.
"I think the crowd cheer so much here that you can hear them over the noise of the engine," Croft says.
"I was actually watching back 2021 the other day. Martin [Brundle] and I kind of dovetailed really well on that. There was so much action - Max [Verstappen] taking the lead, and then Lewis trying to get him into Brooklands, getting a better exit out of Village, and then obviously it all ended with Max's crash at Copse.
"It just reminded me of the free-flowing nature of this circuit, that it does promote overtaking. One of the things about the British Grand Prix, for me, is that I think Silverstone's the best track that we go and race on. It just allows the drivers and the machines to push themselves to the limit. Some of the most iconic corners there are on the calendar, and overtaking possibilities throughout. With the new regulations, we might get even more overtaking possibilities because overtakes go on longer and longer, as Lewis and Max proved in Austria last week."
'Thank you for spoiling it!' - Croft reveals how he was told of Hamilton's Ferrari win
As far as Hamilton is concerned, Croft has had the privilege of commentating on all nine of his British Grand Prix victories, dating back to 2008.
What he hasn't yet done is commentate on Hamilton winning at Silverstone in a Ferrari - something he says he 'would dearly love' to do this year, with all due respect to the other 21 drivers."
He also didn't commentate on Hamilton's maiden win with Ferrari at the Barcelona-Catalunya Grand Prix last month.
Croft, like the rest of the Sky Sports F1 broadcasting team, is operating on a reduced schedule as the Formula 1 calendar continues to grow. One of his three - or potentially two, according to various reports - planned absences was in Barcelona.
He instead attended the Download festival on his week off, and Harry Benjamin stood in throughout the weekend to call one of Hamilton's most memorable victories.
Rather than watch the action at home, however, Croft was instead walking around the festival venue at Donington Park - another iconic British race track - when a fan approached him and told him the news.
"I had the best time at Download," he says. "I got to introduce Skindred - I love them. Ragga metal. They're just the best.
"And then the minute Skindred finished their set, we were hanging out backstage with some fans, who were asking for some pictures. And this guy came up and said, 'What do you reckon of the result in Barcelona?'
"I went, 'What do you mean?' He said, 'Lewis won, it's incredible!' I went, 'Yeah, well, thank you for spoiling it!' I was also only joking, don't worry. 'Lewis really won?' He was like, 'Yeah, he has.'
"I was like, well, that's just fantastic. That's put an absolute cherry on the top of the cake for today. I had to watch the race on the way to Austria. Because I had two hours, just to watch the race and not be disturbed.
What is it like to watch the races rather than commentate? "It's different. I'm not saying I enjoy it, but it's nice to do things with the family. It's nice to go to things like Download, which I hadn't done for a few years, and to just be a rock and roll star for a weekend.
"I watched so many bands, and I met so many mates from bands. I had the greatest time, I really did."
Croft's motorsport resumé doesn't just cover Formula 1, even though that has been his primary job for over 20 years across spells at Sky Sports and BBC Radio 5 Live.
While delving through his archives, I came across an article published on the BBC in 2005, in which Croft wrote about the impact of what was ultimately the short-lived A1 Grand Prix series.
He described it as a 'very watchable concept', adding that 'fans will have noticed some contrasts with Formula One'.
All of the 25 'franchises' used a single chassis, with drivers representing a single nation in races rather than their teams specifically.
The driver roster for the opening 2005/06 season included future F1 drivers Nelson Piquet Jr and Adrian Sutil, future two-time IndyCar champion Will Power and Max Verstappen's father Jos.
Season two saw Nico Hulkenberg and Sergio Perez both join the roster, as well as 2012 IndyCar champion Ryan Hunter-Reay.
A1GP lasted until 2009 before the series folded, and while the nations concept lives on through the Race of Champions, it hasn't yet made its way across to other motorsports.
With the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles nearing ever closer, it was reported by Reuters three years ago that the organising committee was considering the inclusion of motorsport as a new Olympic sport.
The proposal never came to anything, but Croft believes that there could be room for a karting or electric car-based Olympic sport that invites the very best from across F1, the World Endurance Championship and other series.
"If we're going to have some sports, some new sports in the Olympic Games, we should have karting in the Olympic Games," he says.
"I would love to see electric cars. A men's singles, a ladies' singles, men's doubles, ladies' doubles. And a mixed event as well. All in the same electric cars. Nations around the world.
"How they decide who the best drivers are, I don't know. It could be from WEC, from F1 Academy, F2, F3. It could be from F1. World Touring Cars, sports cars. There's some real fine talent.
"Wouldn't it be great to bring all the drivers together, to represent their countries? You've got the summer break when the Olympics is on, in F1. To do that and have a great motorsport event, in a stadium, that we can all get behind.
"This is my 400th Grand Prix as an F1 commentator. I would love to commentate on something like that, at the Olympic Games. Can you imagine Max Verstappen and Lewis Hamilton, going for gold for their nations at the Olympic Games?
"We're hear to talk about hydration boosts, but what a boost that would be for motorsport fans around the world. Men, women, cars. Bosh. Done."
Topics: Sky Sports, Formula 1, Spotlight, Lewis Hamilton
Ryan Smart