F1 star teams up with Sky Sports pundit to drive world champion's iconic car

Sky Sports pundit and former F1 driver Karun Chandhok just teamed up with a star of the F1 grid to pilot a historic car once driven by Ayrton Senna.

Senna is one of motorsport's most loved figures and is an idol to many of the drivers on today's grid including seven-time champion Lewis Hamilton and fellow Brazilian racer Gabriel Bortoleto.

But it was Haas F1 star Ollie Bearman who was trusted to drive the 1985 Lotus 97T this week, the very model that Senna won his first ever grand prix in at Estoril Circuit in Portugal.

Senna made his F1 debut in 1984 with Toleman Hart before moving to Lotus to replace Nigel Mansell for the 1985 championship.

It was here that the future three-time champion would drive cars that, to this day, are still regarded as some of the most recognisable pieces of F1 machinery thanks to the iconic black and gold John Player Special livery.

When Senna took his legendary first grand prix victory in 1985, he helped prove that Lotus still had what it took to be a competitive outfit without the late Colin Chapman among their ranks.

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Sky F1 pundit 'overwhelmed' by Senna drive

Having been granted the privilege of driving Senna's Lotus alongside Bearman, Chandhok took to social media platform 'X' to share videos and pictures from the pair's memorable track day at Silverstone, the home of F1's British Grand Prix.

The accompanying caption read: "One of the most special days I have ever had at a race track with Ollie Bearman.

"Getting to drive the 1985 Lotus 97T in which Ayrton Senna won his first ever GP in Estoril.

"Being in the same chassis & seat as Ayrton was a really overwhelming feeling even before the remarkable turbo engine kicked in. What a car! What a day!

"Big thank you to everyone at Classic Lotus, Sky Sports F1 and Silverstone UK for making it happen."

One of the most special days I have ever had at a race track with @OllieBearman …. Getting to drive the 1985 Lotus 97T in which Ayrton Senna won his first ever GP in Estoril.

Being in the same chassis & seat as Ayrton was a really overwhelming feeling even before the… pic.twitter.com/StS8o3styD

— Karun Chandhok (@karunchandhok) June 17, 2026

When is the F1 2026 British Grand Prix?

The European leg of the 2026 calendar continues next time out at the Red Bull Ring, with the Austrian Grand Prix kicking off a double-header that concludes with the British Grand Prix.

This year's event at Silverstone will be the ninth round of the championship thanks to both of April's races in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia being cancelled.

The good news for British F1 fans is that Silverstone is hosting a sprint weekend this year.

On Friday, July 3, proceedings will kick off with the one and only practice session of the weekend at 12:30 BST before sprint qualifying commences at 4:30pm.

Saturday, July 4 will then jump straight into the action with the sprint race at midday before qualifying for the main event takes place at 4pm.

On Sunday, July 5, lights out for the British GP will then take place at 3pm.

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Written by

Kerry Violet - F1 News Editor

Having graduated from the University of Sheffield with a 2:1 in Journalism in 2022, Kerry continued her pursuit of finding a full-time position in motorsport through work with the F1 Arcade in London, where she got to meet true fans of the sport and make a live grand prix watch party memorable for them. It was here that she confirmed her dream of combining her background in journalism and love of motorsport, going on to volunteer with the female-led platform Empoword Journalism. Having completed stints as a screen editor and sports editor, Kerry landed her first F1-specific editorial role with GPFans and has thoroughly enjoyed continuing to work closely with the sport ever since. The access GPFans offers Kerry has allowed her to interview big names such as Naomi Schiff and David Coulthard and given her experiences she could only have dreamt of as a young F1 fan.

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