Staying on Track: The Autobiography

by Nigel Mansell

'EXTREMELY ENTERTAINING...REMARKABLY FRANK' DAILY TELEGRAPH 50 GREATEST SPORTS BOOKS OF ALL TIME After finishing as runner-up three times in the drivers' world championship, in 1992 Nigel Mansell finally secured the title. It was the crowning achievement of a hugely successful career, in which he won 31 Grand Prix, a record for a British driver that stood until Lewis Hamilton overhauled him in 2014. Always an aggressive driver, his exciting style meant he was hailed as a hero by his millions of fans in the UK and around the world. Out of the car, he was outspoken and charismatic, which merely served to enhance his reputation. Now, 20 years after he retired from F1, Mansell looks back on a stellar career in which he battled against many legends of the sport, from Niki Lauda through the Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost years and on to Michael Schumacher. He provides vivid insights into what it was like to race against those greats in an era when the risks to drivers were enormous. He explains what motivated him to get to the top, and takes the reader behind the scenes to give an unrivalled insight into the sport and the key moments of his career. Still closely involved in Formula One, Mansell assesses how F1 has changed, and gives his authoritative verdict on the sport, the cars and the drivers. It is an unmissable account from one of Britain's greatest sporting heroes.THE MASSIVE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER.

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Autobiography, Sports

368 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 2, 1995

About the author

Nigel Ernest James Mansell is a British former racing driver who won both the Formula One World Championship (1992) and the CART Indy Car World Series (1993). Mansell was the reigning F1 champion when he moved over to CART, becoming the first person to win the CART title in his debut season, and making him the only person to hold both the World Drivers Championship and the American open-wheel National Championship simultaneously.

Reviews

[Ibrar Malik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Useful research for my upcoming book www.1994f1.com

Nigel was driving in the days before PR managers and young driver schools. He pushed himself to the limits, and beyond. I always like Nigels determination so I'm biased to enjoying this book very much. The details and stories of our Nige against the establishment reinforce the lengths he went to in order to succeed. It was a long and difficult battle, certainly not for the feignt hearted. Driving with considerable injuries would not be allowed today but he did so and triumphed.

He was a great sportsman, lifting the British crowds at Silverstone and genuinely rising to the occasion to produce one of the most memorable finishes in his Williams. F1 now sorely misses personalities such as Mansell. At a time when cars where hugely physical to drive and racing in perhaps the greatest era he showed us all that determination and a hell of a lot of hard work can get you to the top. I have heard that there are fewer Formula 1 champions than Presidents of the United States. Truly an exclusive club. Truly a driving legend. And you don't see moustaches like that anymore.

[Paul · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was never a huge fan of Mansell, but I did respect him, and it was good to see a British driver doing well.

Written in conjunction with James Allen, it covers his entire career from karts at nine, to the final attempt at formula 1 in the 1995 McLaren. He was a bold and courageous driver, not just in terms of racing, but also taking financial risks to pursue his dream of becoming a F1 driver. He had a lot of talent, and was picked up by Lotus, before going to Williams. He had a brief spell at Ferrari, and then went back to Williams again his first and only championship.

He was a fast and sometime unforgiving driver, and in this book he makes very sure that you are aware of his point of view for all the events that happened, controversial or otherwise. And because of that it did grate a little reading this, hence two stars.

[Alexandru Siclovan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's very insightful to place this book in a mirror with Frank Williams' perspective (narrated in the movie), Adrian Newey's biography and Alain Prost's recollection of the era. A title in that era is worth more than many other easy championships won afterwards. Mansell really is a model in some terms - having got the seal of approval from Colin Chapman, Enzo Ferrari and Frank Williams. A young racing driver should definitely read this one, as it might help him take a few decisions here and there.

Being a fan of Mansell should never influence your opinion on the book.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some great anecdotes, but often feels very cursory with only a brief snapshot of each season.

[SJ Rusty · Rating 2 out of 5]

Great racing driver but a massive whinger and a total drama queen. His book reflects this perfectly and really started to annoy me after a while.

[Ben Twoonezero · Rating 4 out of 5]

A interesting book about a very competitive person, who seemed to push himself and his body too far in many occasions.

[G · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a legend, his honest accounts of rising to the top of 2 of the most prestigious racing categories were excellent

But the wee bits exposing Prost and Senna were also excellent

[Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this many years ago before I started using the Internet regularly for Formula 1 news and information. So from that perspective I couldn’t put this book down, it was quite an excellent read. I have a feeling my opinion would change now knowing what I know (James Allen being the ghostwriter for one) but at the time it was great. Many books written by biographers who have no access to their primary target have this hollowness to them, but this one didn’t to me. From what I remember of it, it was very typical of Nigel Mansell himself, very self-serving, justifying everything he did, and chock full of whinging. Ah… many may not like it for that reason but come on, its Mansell we’re talking about here. Surely you didn’t expect anything more? Mansell provides us with his interpretation of his career and it’s quite an entertaining book from that perspective, his driving career was hardly boring! Mansell (to me anyway) didn’t appear like your typical driver, he always looked like some regular bloke off the street who somehow found his way into a race car, like a mate’s Dad you see at a BBQ every now and then. All those injuries he sustained throughout only added to it. I guess that’s why so many people around the world loved him. If you were/are a Mansell fan I say give it a shot.

[Akari Winter · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought that this book was interesting book, Mansell talks about how he got to where he is now and what incidents have happened in his life. It was a fascinating autobiography, he talks about his secret to success, and how his wife Rosanne helped him with his racing and without her it wouldn't be possible. He also explains about how his father and mother influenced him to lean towards a racing career.

Nigel had many friends that were racers too some died but were competitive. Mansell was also financially struggling too, apart from being a great racer he also had problems too. In the end Mansell became a happy world racing champion with a wife and kids.

Mansell was a great racer but I thought he also looked like any guy off the street and probably wouldn't be recognized by people who don't know him. Nigel is actually a good writer, and this book was very informative abut his physiology of racing and his technique to be successful.

In conclusion I really thought this was interesting because it's the first autobiography that i have read and enjoyed.

[Riccardo Paterni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mansell is The unique F1 Lion, period. Always driving at 10/10 to his limit (most of the time matching the one of the car). The book is somewhat a self celebration, at times fully deserved, other times not properly so. A man with a huge talent, incredibly prone to silly yet dramatic accidents (even domestic ones!), incredibly courageous in so many ways, incredibly living and feeling on the victim side of living. A common man with an incredibly (mostly for his British roots) emotional side. This book is filled with true passion for motor racing and let's not forget he was the only one never over psyched by Senna... Forza Leone! Go Nigel Go!

[Gowtham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nigel Mansell is a true sportsman. His sportsmanship is the main reason he is not popular like Lauda / Hunt. The F1 arena is sportsmanship + Money + Politics + Influence and it was conveyed every chapter and every nook. Boring in the middle quite a long read.

[Paul Mccarthy · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my many sporting boyhood heros so maybe i'm a little biased on this.

[Brian D'Souza · Rating 5 out of 5]

Buy this book. It's amazing and gives you perspective on how to achieve something truly great in life.

[Carl Smith-owens · Rating 2 out of 5]

9.2003