Former BBC Formula 1 presenter Jake Humphrey has admitted on social media that he’s “coming round to the idea” of returning to the F1 paddock, 11 years on from his BBC exit.
Humphrey was the face of the BBC’s live F1 coverage from 2009-2012, when the broadcaster lost the main broadcasting right to Sky Sports.
The BBC had gotten them off ITV for the 2009 season, which saw British driver Jenson Button storm to title glory.
The BBC’s four-year stint as F1’s main broadcaster in the UK received a lot of praise, with Humphrey, ex-F1 driver David Coulthard and ex-F1 team owner Eddie Jordan having formed a popular presenting trio.
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Whilst the BBC continued to air a highlights package from 2013-2015, Humphrey left the BBC for BT Sport, where he was the face of the channel’s Premier League coverage and football coverage in general.
Humphrey remained at BT Sport – now known as TNT Sports – for a decade, before announcing in June at the Champions League Final that he’d be leaving the broadcaster.
Away from television, Humphrey is the co-founder of the Whisper Group production company, who interestingly are behind Channel 4’s F1 highlights show.
The 44-year-old is also the host of the incredibly popular High Performance Podcast, which has seen several stars from not just the sporting world share their stories.
Fernando Alonso and Haas boss Guenther Steiner have both recently featured on the podcast, with their episodes proving to be very well received.
The F1 paddock clearly holds a very strong place in Humphrey’s heart, to the point that he’s becoming more open to the thought of returning to the championship.
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A fan tweeted an image of him interviewing the late Sir Frank Williams alongside the legendary Murray Walker in 2011, to which Humphrey commented: “What a job that job was. Still feels like unfinished business.”
A fan then insisted that the presenter should return to F1, to which Humphrey replied: “I’m coming round to the idea.”
Based on that, perhaps F1 viewers will soon be seeing Humphrey make a return to the championship, which reigning World Champion Max Verstappen is currently destroying.