F1 lore: Ozzy Osbourne’s chat with Martin Brundle is still iconic 22 years later

Ozzy Osbourne, the legendary singer and godfather of the heavy metal movement who turned into a reality television star later in life, passed away Monday at the age of 76. Osbourne battled medical issues in his later years, including Parkinson’s disease, which he disclosed in 2020, later indicating that he had been dealing with the condition since 2003.

Tributes for the Black Sabbath singer poured in from all over the world, including the sporting world. The New England Patriots, who for decades took the field as “Crazy Train” blared from the stadium sound system, shared this message on social media:

Osbourne’s passing also reminded Formula 1 fans of this incredible moment from the 2003 Canadian Grand Prix. Former racer-turned-broadcaster Martin Brundle, known for his pre-race “grid walks” that have become the stuff of legend, happened upon Osbourne ahead of that race.

Hilarity ensued:

Brundle, who was with ITV at the time, initially asks Osbourne about his wife Sharon, and the metal legend immediately pivots to talking about a “Rasputin musical” he was working on.

Brundle responded, “I will try to think of a question for that answer,” before coming up with another question.

“Did you bring the dogs with you?”

“No, they’re all at home shi**ing,” came the response from Osbourne.

At that point, Brundle excused himself and moved on.

Years later, the F1 analyst would name that encounter as one of his favorites from his years of grid walks.

“Ozzy Osbourne in Montreal,” said Brundle in 2021 when asked for his favorite grid walk moment.

“He wasn’t fully with it, shall we say. I asked him a question and he gave me a very long, incomprehensible answer. I said to him ‘I’ll try and think of a question to that, but in the meantime how are the dogs?’ And he said ‘they are at home s******* on the carpets’,” continued Brundle.

“It went out live to millions of people and I got in trouble because I was supposed to have known he would swear if I asked that question.”

Osbourne last performed on July 5 at a Black Sabbath farewell show, his first appearance with the band in over 20 years.