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It's race week. You've got a flight to catch. You need to score points this weekend or you might lose your seat. Fans want selfies at the airport. Your engineer needs your thoughts on car set-up. A pundit just said something about you on a podcast. Your Team Principal is calling you...
This is the high-pressure life of a Formula 1 driver. To cope, they need to be mentally strong. How do they train their brains to handle the demands of racing at the very top, and who helps keep their minds in shape?
Christian puts your questions on this to an expert on how F1 drivers' brains work. Dr Tommy Wood is Lead Scientist for Motorsport at Hintsa Performance - a company which provides coaches and sports psychologists for many drivers on the grid.
Tommy tells us how F1 drivers block out distractions and focus on their on-track performance and explains the coaching which helps them do it. Does age affect a driver's mental abilities? And do off-track friendships between drivers have an effect when battling wheel-to-wheel?
F1 Explains is here to answer your F1 questions
Send emails or voice notes to [email protected]
Listen to more Official F1 Podcasts
In-depth conversations with big F1 names on F1 Beyond The Grid
Expert opinion every race weekend on F1 Nation - find the latest episode here on this podcast feed
This November, F1 takes over Las Vegas
The Las Vegas Grand Prix returns November 19 - 21, 2026 — and tickets are on sale now! Be there for the fastest weekend of the year. Click here for tickets
By Formula 14.5
677677 ratings
It's race week. You've got a flight to catch. You need to score points this weekend or you might lose your seat. Fans want selfies at the airport. Your engineer needs your thoughts on car set-up. A pundit just said something about you on a podcast. Your Team Principal is calling you...
This is the high-pressure life of a Formula 1 driver. To cope, they need to be mentally strong. How do they train their brains to handle the demands of racing at the very top, and who helps keep their minds in shape?
Christian puts your questions on this to an expert on how F1 drivers' brains work. Dr Tommy Wood is Lead Scientist for Motorsport at Hintsa Performance - a company which provides coaches and sports psychologists for many drivers on the grid.
Tommy tells us how F1 drivers block out distractions and focus on their on-track performance and explains the coaching which helps them do it. Does age affect a driver's mental abilities? And do off-track friendships between drivers have an effect when battling wheel-to-wheel?
F1 Explains is here to answer your F1 questions
Send emails or voice notes to [email protected]
Listen to more Official F1 Podcasts
In-depth conversations with big F1 names on F1 Beyond The Grid
Expert opinion every race weekend on F1 Nation - find the latest episode here on this podcast feed
This November, F1 takes over Las Vegas
The Las Vegas Grand Prix returns November 19 - 21, 2026 — and tickets are on sale now! Be there for the fastest weekend of the year. Click here for tickets

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