Former Formula 1 driver David Coulthard has expressed admiration for Colin Farrell’s impressive knowledge of the sport after the actor’s energetic appearance on the grid at the Miami Grand Prix. Farrell caught attention during the Sky Sports F1 grid walk when he greeted Martin Brundle warmly, saying, “It’s lovely to meet you. After all these years, you don’t write, you don’t call. Look at this shirt. Old school.” He then shared his first F1 memory: “The first race I went to was ’98, Monza, on a package holiday. Me and two lads and a dodgy hotel, sharing rooms, flying Ryanair. The V10s back then. Schumacher brothers first and third, and Eddie Irvine finished second.” Farrell also predicted that Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli would win in Miami, adding, “It’s mega to be here.”
While the grid was packed with celebrities including Jimmy Fallon and DJ Khaled, it was Farrell who left a lasting impression on Coulthard. “I didn’t meet him [Fallon], but I did meet Colin and I didn’t realize I had met him back in 1994, and he remembered—I was slightly embarrassed because he’s the Hollywood A-lister and I’m just an old has-been,” Coulthard said on the Up To Speed podcast. “But I did an interview with him and it got to the point where we almost needed to wrap up. It doesn’t normally happen with celebrities, but he is truly enthusiastic about motorsports and very proud of his Irish heritage. He talked about Eddie Jordan and Eddie Irvine—it was great to see people come and enjoy the sport.”