Revealed: The Secret Mental Battles – Are Today’s Drivers Tough Enough?

In the ever-evolving narrative of Formula One, where the stories of rivalry, resilience and the relentless pursuit of excellence are etched into the annals of motorsport history, we find ourselves revisiting the saga of men versus boys on the grand stage.

This compelling exploration into the psyche and fortitude of Formula One’s elite athletes comes courtesy of Carlo, a name familiar to our readers as a former contributor to this platform and someone who has felt the pulse of racing first-hand as a former Formula Ford competitor. Carlo brings us a fascinating article that delves into the realms of human psychology, history and the indomitable spirit of competition that defines the world of high speed racing.

Enjoy.

 

 

Men versus Boys

By Carlo

If I could have my time again, I’d imagine archaeology, palaeontology or psychology would all be high on my list of careers to pursue. To this day, history remains a passion but I’m also intrigued by human psychology and its rapid growth since its nascent days to the continuous evolving standards. 

Elite level sports people have always fascinated me with their strength of mind in competition and in adversity. I’m not simply referring to dangerous sports which can be life-threatening, but any endeavour that requires dedication to the cause. 

Self belief or self-confidence are almost prerequisites at the top level of any undertaking and I’m constantly dumbfounded by a human’s potential when truly pushed to the limits.

Tennis players, golfers, boxers, Olympic athletes all appear to share a common trait and as has often been quoted 85-90% of winning is mental. How often does a winner elevate themselves from their toughest test to reap the rewards. 

 

 

The state of modern F1 drivers

Looking at the current generation of drivers, I’m fairly comfortable making the assertion that Sergio Perez was mentally broken by Max Verstappen last year; in a similar manner to Bottas version 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 etc when teamed against Lewis Hamilton.

Additionally I doubt that I’d get any argument about Hamilton being a greater driver than Nico Rosberg but a quick look at the records reveal Rosberg was quicker than Hamilton over the course of the 2014 season throughout qualifying. 

11-7 in qualifying against somebody who erroneously is considered the greatest qualifier of his generation. The qualities of Hamilton as a race driver in comparison to Rosberg were laid bare with Lewis winning eleven to Nico’s five.

Fast forward a season and Rosberg floundered on both counts with four fewer pole positions and victories against Hamilton’s title winning campaign. And another reset was necessary. 

For 2016, every distraction was removed from his life and he employed every tactic that was available to him yet the mental strength it required to defeat Hamilton over a season was such, that emotionally and physically drained from the exertion, he retired as undefeated world champion. 

A few years back, Talksport radio hosted a programme about the greatest come backs in sporting history; following a victory by Tiger Woods, in a championship, after having been out for some years following several surgeries. 

I appreciate that the stations listeners are predominantly football, golf,  cricket and boxing orientated, therefore most of the volunteered recommendations from callers were amongst these fields. 

 

 

Niki Lauda’s Comeback: Triumph Over Tragedy

Yet not one person offered the name of Niki Lauda, or, British motorbike legend, Barry Sheene. I’d actually texted in my contribution but it appears that it was lost within their comms systems…

The 1st August 1976 was my eighth birthday and it was also when Niki Lauda crashed at the fearsome Nurburgring. News reports later that day showed pictures of the car, the driver and circuit but these were all historic pictures and film because television wasn’t yet the all encompassing monolith that it’s become in the 21st century, and the 14 mile circuit wasn’t covered by multitudes of cameras that captured every incident on instant replay. 

Even the accident, if you choose to find it on YouTube, is a grainy video from a young lad filming with an 8mm handheld camera – the footage of which was only available to the television productions weeks after the accident. 

Anyone who has seen the 2013 film ‘Rush’ would have seen the special effects replicate the accident and the ensuing days spent in a hospital recovering. Some of the scenes are unsettling as Lauda is psychologically driven to his eventual return but the film does not capture fully his irrepressible spirit. Only his autobiographies fully detail his mindset upon receiving the last rites in hospital. 

 

 

 

The Mental Edge: What Separates the Greats?

Six weeks after having almost died, he once again strapped himself into his Ferrari at Monza. Despite wounds that were still bandaged and bleeding, he qualified 5th fastest ahead of his team-mates Carlos Reutemann and Clay Regazzoni and on the Sunday would finish the race in fourth. 

The 70’s had ushered in an era of F1 that was developing faster and faster cars and names such as Jochen Rindt, Roger Williamson, Francois Cevert, Helmut Koinigg and Mark Donohue were all annual fatalities that preceded the Lauda crash. 

Only months later, when Lauda returned to take his first post crash victory, Tom Pryce would pay the ultimate price in a shocking collision with a track marshall. 

I’m not advocating a return to these dangerous eras. I am still haunted by memories of the weekend when Ayrton Senna and Roland Ratzenberger lost their lives and I’ve never endorsed returning to a period that Stirling Moss reminisced about in the post war years before guardrails ‘ruined’ the challenge!

As we advance through the 21st century, technology continues to advance rapidly and risks to competing drivers has almost disappeared, to the point there’s almost a nonchalance about serious high speed accidents. 

 

 

 

The Role of Sports Psychology in Modern Racing

For newcomers to the sport, Romain Grosjean’s fireball accident in 2020 was a shocking vision across every media platform, as danger is consistently neutered by improving safety standards. Yet to anybody who’s watched F1 for a few decades, it was a sickening fear of witnessing another drivers death. 

A few weeks back, there was an article on thejudge13 about a podcast featuring David Coulthard and Eddie Jordan. The topic of team-mates was discussed and the subject of Malaysia 1999 came up and how Michael Schumacher hadn’t supported Eddie Irvine’s chase of the drivers title. 

The narrative appeared to suggest that both Eddies believed that the German superstar had had no interest in helping his Irish wingman to take the elusive title Maranello had been craving for two decades. 

Now hindsight’s a wonderful thing but I well remember that, as a Ferrari fan, I didn’t feel Irvine was worthy of being the champion. I completely understood the reasoning behind Schumacher’s drawn out recovery.

At the end of 1995, Schumacher had been hired to lead Ferrari at $25 million a year – with bonuses and merchandising rights that dwarfed his ‘basic’ salary. 

To all intents and purposes Irvine was hired to comply with FIA requirements that a team has to field two cars, and irrespective of his formidable talents, that was a step too far even for Schumi.

The team was built around the German and through injury and misfortune he would play second fiddle to a self-confessed playboy? After having narrowly missed out on the 1997 and 1998 titles? Yeah right!!

 

 

 

Are today’s drivers ‘tough’?

My thoughts drive me to all manner of conclusions and todays direction is reminded of last year when F1 raced in Qatar. Post race practically all drivers felt compelled to criticise the running of the race in these extreme conditions, and other similar nonsense. Now I’ve been a fan of F1 since the 70’s and listening to these pampered athletes..

Previously, Singapore was called the toughest race on the calendar, high humidity, high temperatures and a tough street circuit run under lights which command complete concentration. Although that particular gripe has seemingly disappeared since its debut back in 2008.

And before it became a historic event in F1, Malaysia was always regarded as the most extreme challenge faced by the teams and drivers. Stifling humidity mixed with scorching temperatures which showcased itself on anyone’s clothing that was being interviewed on camera.

1999 was the debut year for what I consider the greatest Tilke circuit. Nothing else he designed has come anywhere close in regards layout or racing and for a number of years, at the turn of the century, the only driver who seemed to be enjoying the Asian circuit was Michael Schumacher. The young German had proven an immense athlete from when he entered the top echelons of the sport in 1991. 

 

 

 

Setting the stage for modern F1 standards of fitness

In the 80’s Ayrton Senna had changed the face of F1. His intensity in regards every aspect of the sport humbled most opposition or forced a revaluation of the commitment required to succeed. When Schumacher arrived, it was his remarkable fitness that raised the benchmark for the coming generations.

He had a contract with Technogym who supplied a transporter with a mobile gym for his exclusive use throughout a GP weekend. He had scientists who would take blood samples during testing sessions and over the course of a race weekend. 

This new use of sport’s science technology was allied to nutritionists which meant his body was always functioning at its maximum efficiency. Commentators spoke of Schumacher’s skin almost having a glow because he looked so healthy and it was being noticed that in spite of the atmospheric conditions – he never sweated!

Michael arrived in Malaysia for its 1999 inaugural event tasked with getting Ferrari’s championship campaign back on track. He had broken his leg in an accident at Silverstone after hitting a wall during the first lap of the race. 

The recuperation had taken from 11 July until 17 October, and an enforced absence from six races, which had removed MSC from the title challenge. But his team-mate Irvine was still in the frame.

For some time Michael had been in too much pain to return and legend has it that Luca de Montezemolo, the Ferrari president, had called his home to ask about his well-being. His daughter answered and replied that ‘daddy was outside playing football’.

 

 

 

Bottom line

I repeat, I’m a Ferrari fan – Italian to boot – and it had been almost twenty years since we had celebrated a driver’s title. Michael refusing to help his team-mate out, the obnoxious Eddie Irvine, was completely understandable to me. But I would say I’m a little unusual in what I see as fandom. 

Senna – Mclaren driver, taking Prost – Ferrari driver, off the road in Suzuka 1990 made perfect sense to me. It’s about passion, desire and justice.

What I found saddest about the saga is I believed he could have returned many races before and still fought for the title. If a bike racer is injured, like Valentino Rossi in 2010, they are back in action in ridiculous time, seemingly irrespective of injury. It is a mind-set that stretches back to the pioneers of motor-bike racing.

Yet a mere 23 years between Ferrari legends, Schumacher had to be ‘forced’ back into a car because his child had answered the phone.