ALLAN MCNISH

I try to get away from the pits as quickly as I can. I speak to my engineer when I get out of the car, usually there's some press to do, then I will go off and have a shower and get my dry, clean overalls and clothing on. I'll have a massage, stretch and something to eat. I don't sleep, but I try to close my eyes for a while.

I don't do much driving - about 5,000-6,000 miles a year. And most of that is to the airport and to the racing circuits.

The main factors in terms of how tiring a season can be are governed by the number of races and the length of time between the first and the last.

When it's wet, you're much more tense on the steering wheel, you have to dance with the throttle and the brakes more. Each lap is a different scenario, so you're really on the edge of your nerves. One mistake could cost you the entire race.

Especially with sports cars, when you have got so many cars on the track with various degrees of competitiveness, then something will happen. It's the nature of racing, the law of averages. If you want to be a front-runner then you are going to have to push very hard, and collisions can happen.

We're involved in racing because there's that element of competition. But there's that desire to push yourself beyond the natural comfort zone and the boundaries that are preset if you like, and to be better than the rest.

I clipped a Ferrari, hit the gravel trap at a fair old speed, which lifted the car up into the barrier, and then rolled a few times. I had no injuries or anything - I just had to wait for the marshals to right the car before I could get out.

My motto is to do everything absolutely flat out and to the best of your ability.

It was not until I started racing for car manufacturers that I found a car I could really get attached to. I am the son of a car dealer, so up until then, cars just came and went.

I just feel we are extremely lucky that when we wake up, we get to go to work and do something we love. Honestly, we can't call it work. We're living the dream, really. If you start thinking about the dangers too much, it's time to stop.

It is hard to be number one, and it is even harder to stay there because everyone is trying to knock you off the top.

To be a racing driver it's essential you have very good eyesight, and that's especially relevant at night. Your senses are heightened, you're travelling over 200mph, you need to focus on that 110-metre braking point and you have to have absolute faith and commitment in your driving.

We're involved in racing because there's that element of competition. But there's that desire to push yourself beyond the natural comfort zone and the boundaries that are preset if you like, and to be better than the rest.

My motto is to do everything absolutely flat out and to the best of your ability.

I have been listening to sport and watching sport on the BBC since I was a tiny boy.

It was not until I started racing for car manufacturers that I found a car I could really get attached to. I am the son of a car dealer, so up until then, cars just came and went.

I think music can really affect people's emotions and, when I am about to get into a race car, I definitely listen to music with a good beat - that's when you've got the adrenalin pumping. And the time before you go into a race weekend, you have a lot of emotion and adrenalin, and a lot of focus.

I don't do much driving - about 5,000-6,000 miles a year. And most of that is to the airport and to the racing circuits.

I have been waiting to win a world championship since 1985. I've had three cracks at a world title - in karting, I finished third at Le Mans; that hurt because it was very close, but then in Formula One there wasn't really an opportunity to finally crack it, so it's third time lucky.

When it's wet, you're much more tense on the steering wheel, you have to dance with the throttle and the brakes more. Each lap is a different scenario, so you're really on the edge of your nerves. One mistake could cost you the entire race.

I clipped a Ferrari, hit the gravel trap at a fair old speed, which lifted the car up into the barrier, and then rolled a few times. I had no injuries or anything - I just had to wait for the marshals to right the car before I could get out.

I think that texting and driving is a 100 percent no-go. I think it should be banned everywhere because you cannot be focused on looking ahead, in the mirrors, being aware of what's around you, and to type on a small keyboard and a small screen.

The main factors in terms of how tiring a season can be are governed by the number of races and the length of time between the first and the last.

My very first car was a grey Alfa Romeo Alfasud, which I got in 1987. But, in our family, all cars were for sale - so they might be there in the morning and were gone at night. In the mid-90s, I joined Porsche and the Carrera was the car, and the Carrera 4S was the one they gave me. As a wee boy from Dumfries, I couldn't believe it.

As a driver you enjoy winning races, and if you win in the easiest way possible, fine, but in reality we all remember the fights to the end, the nip and tuck stuff.

The most dangerous part of the race is early evening and especially early morning. It's the twilight zone. Either you're going into darkness and the sun is dropping down, or you're coming out of the darkness and the sun is coming up. At the same time, you've got new drivers coming in and feeling their way around the circuit.

What I like is when you can hear the heart and soul of music and can feel the energy coming out of it, because that's what it's like when you drive.

Especially with sports cars, when you have got so many cars on the track with various degrees of competitiveness, then something will happen. It's the nature of racing, the law of averages. If you want to be a front-runner then you are going to have to push very hard, and collisions can happen.

I try to get away from the pits as quickly as I can. I speak to my engineer when I get out of the car, usually there's some press to do, then I will go off and have a shower and get my dry, clean overalls and clothing on. I'll have a massage, stretch and something to eat. I don't sleep, but I try to close my eyes for a while.

I just feel we are extremely lucky that when we wake up, we get to go to work and do something we love. Honestly, we can't call it work. We're living the dream, really. If you start thinking about the dangers too much, it's time to stop.

I get moments where you slide and there's an adrenaline shoot, but the moment you scare yourself is the moment you give up. I think what probably scares me more, is that you're involved in something that is quite surreal and you have to be able to bring yourself back down to earth and that's where when you come home and your kids are just excited to have daddy home and tell you about their day, that's one of the greatest things to bring you back down to earth.