Nigel Mansell - My autobiography

"I was told at the beginning of my career that with a name like Nigel Mansell I would never make it to Formula 1 or make anything of myself in life." "My Autobiography," written by Nigel Mansell -the most successful British driver in history, tells us (with the help of James Allen) how he stuck a sock in the mouth of his critics and came through to be a worthy winner.

Mansell Monaco 1981 © Sporting Pictures

As the shining star of the Midlands karting scene, and against his father's wishes, Nigel pushed forward into the adult racing world of Formula Ford and then Formula 3 during the 1970's. With an engineering qualification under his belt and cash from window cleaning and selling his home, the determined slog continued towards Formula 1 where Nigel secured a test driving role for Lotus for the 1980 season. A great relationship developed between the boss Colin Chapman and Our Nige' and he was finally allowed to race, but the wins didn't develop. After a switch to Williams cars, the chance came to really compete at the sharp end and the moustached British Lion never looked back!

Page after page, we feel Nigel's strength and determination to succeed and how he deals with all the obstacles placed in his way. Such obstacles in the shapes of Alain Prost and Nelson Piquet Snr who are described as being amongst the lower end of God's creatures! Nigel is certainly not one to shy away from confrontation with such folk, and as a big bloke, he's quite happy to tell people face to face in the paddock that he's not one to be messed with. On the other hand, we also feel Nigel's admiration and softer side for the likes of Keke Rosberg and Gilles Villeneuve, and respect for arch rival Ayrton Senna, and are invited into the cockpit to see his techniques at how he took them on with his ragged edge on-the-limit driving style. Driving is really Nigel's passion, and he justifies his romantic approach to racing throughout the book, as it is often at odds with the more political goings-on in the world of F1.

Mansell, Senna 1992 © Autosport

Mistakes and accidents on track are explained with emotional, practical and philosophical reasoning, against the onslaught of criticism that Nigel received, not just from the media but from his own team personnel, would you believe! One of whom famously stated "Mansell will never win a Grand Prix as long as I have a hole in my arse." Well, the bottom line was that Nigel was good enough to win, proving it many times on his way to the elusive World Championship title, before starting a new challenge in the United States in the IndyCar series.

The layout of Mansell's book is split into three sections. The first of which is "The Secret of Success," where he shares insightful overviews on his philosophy of racing, and his perspective on life. The second section "The Greasy Pole" follows a more chronological approach from childhood and continues into the third "Winning," which discusses battling for championships. Furthermore at the end of each chapter are several telling tributes from drivers, team personnel and colourful characters from around the paddock who knew Nigel as a good mate. The hardback edition hit the shelves in 1995, and has 32 pages showing plenty of glossy snapshots of Nigel's highs and lows at the track, and away from it. The paperback edition treats us generously to an extra chapter, bringing the tally up to hefty 480 pages, whilst for the serious collector there is in fact an audio book version out there on good old cassette tape, read by one of Nigel's greatest admirers -Murray Walker.

Mansell Brazil © Formula One Pictures

Colin Chapman once said "In adversity we strive," and in "My Autobiography", Nigel Mansell has told a gritty and often humorous tale, of how he's taken Chapman's spirit and carried on regardless to reach the top step. It's inspiring stuff.

• Published by HarperCollins 1994.
• Hardback RRP £10.99. Paperback RRP £5.99.
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