Pressure: How the people who power Formula One thrive at the limits

Brought to you by Penguin.

As lead presenter for Sky Sports Formula One live coverage, Simon Lazenby is at the centre of Grand Prix race-weekend action. In this book, he takes us off camera to give us exclusive, behind-the-scenes access to the people who power this multi-billion-pound sport.

Drawing on over a decade’s accumulated first-hand knowledge and connections across the paddock, Simon talks to key experts and professionals within the teams and the overall organisation, who each reveal how they operate, how they compete, the skills they've learnt to navigate the challenges they face.

Among the insiders who let us into their world are Max Verstappen's race engineer, whose voice we hear on the driver's cockpit radio communicating key strategic decisions, and the Aston Martin mechanic who oversees the team responsible for assembling the F1 car from 14,500 different components before each GP. There's the performance coach, who has to ensure that the drivers' necks can withstand the equivalent of 24kg of weight (helmet + head + G force) and Giorgio Piola whose sketches of F1 cars have been revered since the late 1960s. George Russell talks about life at Mercedes as their new lead driver. And at the top of pyramid are Zak Brown, CEO of current contenders McLaren, and James Vowles, team principal of Williams, who are breaking through. In all, we get insight for some 27 separate roles up and down the paddock.

We see split-second, mid-race decision-making at the pit wall, lightning physical and technical efficiency in the pit lane, high-level politics and boardroom manoeuvres, emergency medical interventions, genius design innovation and much more inside track action. This is a unique, first-hand insight into human performance under extreme pressure at the highest level of motorsport, bringing man and machine together to compete at speeds of 200 miles per hour.

© Simon Lazenby 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025