My Championship Year Book

Damon Hill's account of the year he finally achieved his dream of becoming Formula One World Champion is a testament to the wonders one person can achieve if they really put their mind to it.Hill himself was a latecomer to the sport, finally getting a drive with the Brabham team at 32 years old--an age when most F1 drivers are beginning to consider how much longer they can go on. The son of two-times world champion Graham sped his way into his dream team Williams at the end of 1993 and the following season--only his second in grand prix racing--was pipped to the title by German champion Michael Schumacher. The same fate was to befall Hill a year later when he again finished second to Schumacher's Benetton, and this is where Hill takes up the tale of his championship year. Hill won the final race of 1995 and admits that this taste of victory was the one that stayed with him throughout the close season rather than the bitterness of defeat in the drivers' competition. He was hungry for more and determined to come second to no-one in 1996. Hill came out for the new campaign super-fit, well-rested and refreshed, with a new outlook on life and a more laid-back attitude to the circus that is grand prix racing. It was to pay off and Hill stormed to the top of the podium for the first race of the season in Australia. Hill, the driver who had captured the imagination of motor racing fans worldwide in his epic tussles with the hard-headed and clinical Schumacher, takes us through each race of the season in crystal clear detail.The man who succeeded in replacing F1 legend Nigel Mansell in the hearts of the British public makes it easy to see the pressures which a driver can find himself under and tells the story of his year with an understated honesty. The reader is given a taste of the roller-coaster ride of Hill's season--from the euphoria of winning races to the devastation the driver felt when he was told he would not be required to drive for Frank Williams' team the following year, and then back again to the pinnacle of motor racing--being crowned world champion. Given Hill's decision to retire from the sport at the end of the 1999 season, this unique insight into the world of the F1 driver will be a book that every fan of motor sport--any sport for that matter--will want to have in their collection. --Lucie NaylorRead More