Paddy McGuinness says Richard Hammond wished him luck for ‘Top Gear’.
The 45-year-old star will front the new series of the BBC motoring show alongside Freddie Flintoff, 41, and Chris Harris, 44, and he revealed one of the programme’s former hosts – who presented alongside James May and Jeremy Clarkson until the trio’s exit in 2015 – has given him some support.
He told the BBC: ""I bumped into Richard Hammond at the Pride of Britain Awards. And, he was like ‘good luck with [‘Top Gear’], I think you’ll do an amazing job’.
"And, I thought, fair play to him, that’s nice to hear."
Finding the right balance for the presenting team has been a tough task for producers since Clarkson, Hammond and May departed and went on to host ‘The Grand Tour’ for Amazon.
And despite the mix of personalities and backgrounds, Chris has suggested bosses have found the perfect blend.
He added: "When people saw the names, they probably went, ‘hang on, a cricketer and a comedian?’
"But why not? If you had three people like me, people would fall asleep. I think we’re a good, broad team, we cover a lot of bases."
Meanwhile, Chris recently revealed his former co-star Matt LeBlanc was gutted to have to quit the show.
He said: "He’s gutted he couldn’t carry on doing it – it’s not because he didn’t want to do it.
"The geography of his life didn’t allow him to do it… You could argue he put himself out there for too long to carry on doing it. The travel for him was extraordinary."
‘Top Gear’ returns to BBC Two on Sunday (16.06.19).
Paddy McGuinness: Richard Hammond’s Top Gear well wishes
