Grapevine: Brundle Rates Schumacher and Hakkinen

Former Formula One driver and current ITV commentator Martin Brundle believes Mika Hakkinen is more talented than Michael Schumacher, though the German is, in general, a better driver.

In an interview with ITV, Brundle admitted the late Ayrton Senna was the best driver he has ever seen, but he also admitted current world champion Schumacher and rival Hakkinen were very close to the great Brazilian.

Brundle, who will competed in this year's Le Mans 24 Hours with the Bentley team, was Schumacher's teammate at the Benetton team in 1992 and Hakkinen's at McLaren in 1994.

"I know both men pretty well," Brundle said. "So who's better, in my view? Well, it's a close call. Michael is unbelievably confident, always was. He's a nice man off the track, but he has always been ruthless on it. He tried to have me off the track several times in '92.

"Mika is a very different animal. I didn't have a great relationship with him in '94. We didn't get on that well and a lot of it was my fault, I now admit.

"There are two Mika Hakkinens, you see. There's the press conference Mika, the taciturn one, and the private Mika. And the private Mika is a bit of a party animal, to be honest.

"People who don't know him sometimes think he's thick, but he's far from thick. He's a quiet thinker. He's highly intelligent, in fact ­ you don't win two world drivers' championships without being extremely bright."

But as much as Brundle rates both men highly, he still thinks Senna was the best by far.

"Let me put it this way. Of all the drivers I've raced against, the best was Senna. No question. In terms of the whole package, Michael runs him pretty close, with Mika a close third. In terms of raw, God-given talent, Senna is still number one but it's Mika, not Michael, who comes closest.

"If Michael Schumacher and Mika Hakkinen were in the same Formula One team, with the same equipment, during qualifying, in the dry, and you asked me to stake my kids' building society accounts on who would bag the pole, I'd put my money on Mika. But Michael would win the race."