The Transformation from Gentleman to Gladiator

“How do you switch from your natural personality to the on-track warrior needed to be successful?”

Are you not entertained?…

This week, a driver reached out with this question: It’s an honest question that many drivers need to answer if they want to hit the front:

“How do you switch from your natural personality to the on-track warrior needed to be successful?”

He’s a fast and capable driver, no doubt, but when it comes to racing – especially during critical moments like starts and overtaking – he struggles to summon that immediate, killer instinct.

This driver, a real gentleman off the track, is wrestling with a core challenge that many face in this sport. It's about recognizing that the friendly, approachable persona that might win you sponsors and support off the track is not what's going to clinch you victories on it.

There’s no magic wand to wave, no mystical words to chant that’ll instantly morph you into this on-track warrior. The transformation is a process, a journey of building and honing a part of yourself that's as real and tangible as your off-track self.

So, how do you start? It’s about confidence, but not the kind that’s floating in the clouds, untethered from reality. Racing isn’t a boardroom where bluffs and bravado can carry you through. This is about raw speed, concrete risks, and physical danger. Your confidence needs to be grounded in genuine skills, honed through sweat, practice, and experience.

When you’re hurtling down at 70 mph, surrounded by a pack of racers each with their own warrior mode engaged, there's no room for empty self-talk.

In essence, to switch on this warrior mode, you have to create it first, nurture it, and then – and only then – can you call upon it when the visor goes down, and the lights go out. It’s about setting the foundation for this transformation long before you even approach the starting grid. That's where the real race begins, in the quiet hours of preparation, in the decisions you make when no one’s watching, and in the small victories you claim against yourself, day after day.

Create the Warrior First, So You Have Something Real to Call On

We all have a natural ability to gauge our preparedness for a situation. You can't just tell yourself, "Right, I can do this. Let's do this," and expect to go out there, and dominate just because you think you can.

This kind of confidence, the kind that actually makes a difference on the track, has to be based on facts, on real experiences that you've lived and learned from.

It's confidence that's rooted in reality, in the actual skills and abilities you've developed through practice and persistence.

How to Create the Warrior During the Week

1. One More Push-Up: Creating the Warrior at Home by Pushing Yourself Hard

When it comes to fitness training, I bet most of you are already on it. That’s great, but it’s just the starting point. The real deal here is using your fitness regime to carve out a psychological edge. It's about busting through those barriers, pushing yourself way beyond what you think you can handle. You know that point where every alarm bell in your body is blaring, screaming at you to stop? That's exactly where you need to push harder.

Think you’ve done enough for the day? Met your target? That might be fine for mere physical development, but if you’re using these milestones as an excuse to stop, you're basically sabotaging your racing psyche. On the track, you need to feel like a killer, a complete badass. And obviously warriors, real warriors, don’t just stop because they've hit some arbitrary limit.

So, you go for that extra push-up, that additional pull-up. You push yourself harder than you ever thought possible. Sure, you don’t want to injure yourself – there’s a fine line there, and it’s your job to know where it lies. But never fall into the trap of thinking, “That’s enough for today.” You’ve got to challenge yourself, break those self-imposed limits, because that’s exactly what you’ll be facing on the racetrack.

You’re chilling at home, comfy in front of the TV? That’s the perfect time to remind yourself that you're supposed to be a badass, not a couch potato. Get up, get moving, do some training. It’s about developing that mindset, the one that says “I don’t sit back, I push forward.” That’s the mentality you need when you’re facing the heat of the race, when you need to switch into warrior mode and power through every limit you once thought you had​​.

2. Do Stuff You Don't Fancy Doing - Don't Undermine Your Race Day Confidence by Putting It Off and Being Weak

Doing things you don't fancy is where the real warrior building happens.

Take getting sponsors, for example. The easy route? Slapping a Facebook post together, showcasing your results, and hoping someone bites. That's the weak way out.

The warrior's path? You've got to get out there, talk to people, make real connections. It's about confronting the discomfort, the stuff that makes you hesitate and think, "Nah, I don’t fancy that." That's the stuff you need to bulldoze through.

You need to be kicking doors down, doing the gritty work when every fibre of your being screams against it. This is how you start crafting an extra persona inside yourself that’s capable of more, that's fearless.

3. Aligning what you do on the track with how you operate at home.

If you've got the guts to put yourself on a track, you're already ahead of the game. You're cool, but now it's time to evolve from cool to warrior.

How? By transforming your 'pretty good' into 'blindingly good', or even 'frighteningly good'. You want people to start noticing, maybe even worrying that you're pushing too hard. That's the level of intensity you need.

Doing stuff you don’t fancy during the week is a different ballgame from the track. Racing is about split-second decisions….

But at home you've got more chances to back out, making it actually harder than being on the track. At home, you can watch your brain trying to wiggle out of these challenges. This is the slow-motion version of what happens on the track, and it's tougher to catch it live during a race. But at home, you can see it, confront it, and defeat it.

So, what's the bottom line? Don't be weak. Don't put off the hard stuff. Confront the discomfort. Overcome it. It’s in these moments, away from the track, where your true warrior is forged. This is how you ensure that when race day comes, you’re not just showing up – you’re ready to dominate​​.

4. How to Use Your Simulator or Games Console to Build the Warrior

Alright, let's get one thing straight. When it comes to using a simulator or any old computer game, it's not just a leisure activity; it's an opportunity to build your warrior. This is where you need to start taking things seriously. No more messing about. You're not just playing a game; you're training your mind to become a badass on the track.

You hop onto your simulator, and what do you do? You just switch it on and start driving, right? But here’s the thing – even if you’re trying to bury it, you know you're just messing about. Now, it’s time to change that. Look at the articles I’ve written on how to use a simulator properly. This is not about discipline for the sake of being boring; this is about self-imposed rigor. It’s about doing it properly, pushing yourself, finding the time, and getting organized.

The temptation to just mess around and not push yourself – that's exactly what you need to overcome. Use your simulator sessions to start building a psychological warrior mindset. Think, “I can push myself. I can put myself through discomfort.” This is what being a warrior is all about – not minding discomfort, embracing it.

So, you need to be uncomfortable, a lot. Get used to it, overcome it. Find those higher limits where you start to get uncomfortable because that’s where you become a more powerful warrior. This isn't just about improving your racing skills; it’s about strengthening your mental game.

If you're not doing this at home, and then you show up at the track expecting some magic words to summon the warrior within, forget it. It's not going to happen. There’s no warrior to summon if you haven't gone through the graft. If you're backing down in your practice, your self-doubt will find you. That's what will surface, and that's what will make you lift off the throttle when you should be hammering it.

Cover all bases. Do the hard work. Build your warrior at home so that when you get to the track, it's not about hoping for some miracle to happen. It’s about knowing that you’ve already done the work, that you've built that warrior, and now you're ready to unleash it on the track​​.

How to Create the warrior in the kart