BEN EDWARDS @benedwardstv PICTURES
HOW TO DEVELOP A CHAMPION’S MINDSET
As F1 drivers take a break from racing, the next few of months provide opportunities to refresh and rejig the mental aspects of being among the most focused and identified motorsport heroes in the world. Triple world champion Max Verstappen’s mindset has been in a remarkable zone for several years, backed up by technical excellence from Red Bull and the unique relationship he has with race engineer Gianpiero Lambiase.
As Le Mans winner and former F1 driver David Brabham said to me recently, “Max has got a very strong and stable mental approach to the whole weekend; he doesn’t allow any sort of negativity to come through – if it does it doesn’t last long. He’s extremely driven by perfection; he matured very quickly from when he first came in. I’ve been super impressed by how quickly he became a race winner with the mindset to become a world champion.”
Son of three-time champion Sir Jack Brabham, David began his career in the late 1980s and delivered a superb victory in a support race at the Australian GP by getting himself into a mental state which took him to a whole new level. That understanding of the brain input became a key part of his success in sportscar racing as he worked closely with mind coach Don Macpherson.
“He would get me into a meditative state where I could visualise, where I could create the scenario, the result and how I wanted to be prior to an event. So I was then able to go there and think, “OK, I know what’s going to happen,” so bang, off I go.”
Earlier this year, George Russell confirmed his appreciation of working with mental experts through an interview with Men’s Health. He feels that mental and physical health work together and talking to a professional has lifted him in a way that prepares him for taking on almost any challenges – while also helping him avoid some of the negatives.
Some years ago at McLaren, Russell’s team-mate Lewis Hamilton worked with Dr Kerry Spackman, a man who started his career combining electronic technology with cars before becoming involved with motorsport, developing a role working with drivers as a cognitive neuroscientist. His initial connection with F1 was through Sir Jackie Stewart, another three-time champion who had already developed a remakable mental strength. Especially when you consider how he struggled at school wi
