| The Grand Prix Formula One race at Fuji | | | | him and his car spun off the track. It was a tense |
| Speedway, Japan, the first in 30 years, was a | | | | moment and a relief to see him steer the car |
| lesson in mastery and a thrilling race that will | | | | back onto the track again. |
| probably be talked about and analysed by fans | | | | Fortunately, although Hamilton said he could hear |
| for years to come. It was particularly sweet for | | | | an ominous vibration in his car which persisted |
| Lewis Hamilton (McLaren) who, with his win, | | | | throughout the remainder of the race, any |
| opened up a 12 point lead over his nearest rival | | | | damage that was caused was not serious enough |
| and team mate Fernando Alonso. | | | | to force him to make a premature departure |
| Heavy rain that hardly abated throughout the | | | | from the race but the incident did result in him |
| duration of the race made the racing track so | | | | dropping temporarily to sixth place. So what was |
| treacherous that the race started behind the | | | | it he said? |
| safety car. The incessant downpour made the | | | | "The last few laps the team were telling me to |
| track a living thing whose surface was continually | | | | slow down as I was a second faster than anyone |
| changing. | | | | else but I was going as slow, really, as I felt |
| Mist obscured sections of the track so that even | | | | comfortable doing." |
| the commentators had difficulty in seeing the | | | | For a non-racing driver hurtling along at speeds in |
| action clearly. The driver's helmets were foggy. | | | | excess of 100 mph in such wet conditions where |
| Their side mirrors were rendered useless and | | | | you often cannot even see the other drivers |
| they could hardly see what was in front of them. | | | | would seem suicidal. But for Hamilton it was a thrill. |
| A Formula One driver has to use his senses of | | | | You could see it in his face afterwards, not simply |
| sight, hearing and touch when driving. Yet even | | | | because he won the event but because, in so |
| bringing these senses to a heightened state of | | | | doing, he had passed another test and |
| awareness was often to no avail. These | | | | demonstrated his prowess as a racing driver. |
| exceptionally skilled and conditioned drivers were | | | | Team Manager, Ron Dennis, said over the radio: |
| often just along for the ride as their cars even | | | | "So we can tick off racing in the wet, then?" |
| though equipped with Bridgestone's extreme wet | | | | David Coulthard (Red Bull) sums up this particular |
| tyres still couldn't shift enough water to enable | | | | Grand Prix experience beautifully and honestly: |
| their deep treads to get a grip on the slippery | | | | "That was very, very difficult. It's a crazy thing to |
| surface. | | | | be a racing driver. On the one hand you're scared, |
| All of the drivers experienced moments when | | | | but on the other you're having the time of your |
| their car aquaplaned and they were rendered | | | | life because every moment you're right on the |
| passengers trapped inside their technical | | | | edge even on the straights." |
| masterpieces. Aquaplaning caused Alonso to crash | | | | When you become a master at something it |
| out at Turn 6 leaving a trial of debris across the | | | | becomes easy. Hamilton has not only mastered |
| track. The collision brought out the safety car for | | | | Formula One racing but he has also conquered his |
| a second time. And, for Alonso, any thoughts of | | | | mindset. It is this that enables him to give |
| breaking that elusive 100-point barrier were put | | | | outstanding performances under the most |
| on hold. | | | | demanding of conditions. There were some |
| It was something that Hamilton said after the | | | | drivers who felt that the race should not have |
| race which he admitted felt like the longest race | | | | been held at all. That's up for debate but a true |
| of his life that made me reflect on the subject of | | | | champion likes to be tested. |
| mastery. He had never driven in wet conditions | | | | When you achieve mastery, creating outstanding |
| before and it was a tribute to his natural talent a | | | | performances time and time again and achieving |
| racing driver how well he drove during that | | | | outstanding results will become the norm. It will |
| dramatic race. It was like watching a master-class | | | | seem effortless. You will find that to perform at |
| although even he was not to escape unscathed. | | | | anything less than this level will actually be more |
| At Turn 14, Robert Kubica (BMW) side-whacked | | | | demanding. You too will not want to slow down. |