1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000 Downloaded from YTS.MX 2 00:00:05,000 --> 00:00:08,119 (RHYTHMICAL MUSIC) 3 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000 Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX 4 00:00:17,400 --> 00:00:21,680 The 1992 season kind of felt like Nigel's last chance 5 00:00:21,720 --> 00:00:24,000 to win that elusive world championship. 6 00:00:24,040 --> 00:00:27,560 At 39, it was now or never for Mansell. 7 00:00:27,600 --> 00:00:29,080 The '92 car, wow. 8 00:00:29,120 --> 00:00:31,080 You look at it and you just immediately think 9 00:00:31,120 --> 00:00:33,400 that car has to be quick. 10 00:00:33,440 --> 00:00:35,120 Nigel was finally gonna do it. 11 00:00:35,160 --> 00:00:38,160 Red 5 ran through the first five Grand Prixs of the season, 12 00:00:38,200 --> 00:00:41,880 won every single one, dominated every single one. 13 00:00:41,920 --> 00:00:45,800 Came to Monaco where pole position is absolutely essential 14 00:00:45,840 --> 00:00:49,040 and nailed it by an historic margin. 15 00:00:50,560 --> 00:00:52,400 Track position is everything in Monaco. 16 00:00:52,440 --> 00:00:54,080 Normally if you get on pole and get in the lead, 17 00:00:54,120 --> 00:00:55,840 nothing goes wrong, you should win. 18 00:00:55,880 --> 00:00:58,160 The noise was incredible, the excitement. 19 00:00:59,720 --> 00:01:02,480 Disappeared into the distance, built a 30-second lead. 20 00:01:02,520 --> 00:01:05,239 He was way out of front, leading the race, 21 00:01:05,280 --> 00:01:06,800 looking dominant. 22 00:01:08,080 --> 00:01:11,920 Then he started to hear a vibration from a rear wheel. 23 00:01:11,960 --> 00:01:13,480 Was it a puncture? Was it a bearing? 24 00:01:13,520 --> 00:01:15,680 I had to come and make an unscheduled stop. 25 00:01:15,720 --> 00:01:18,400 OK, we put new boots on, which gave me grip. 26 00:01:18,440 --> 00:01:20,960 To be honest with you, I dunno whether he had a puncture or not 27 00:01:21,000 --> 00:01:22,640 or whether it was a loose wheel nut. 28 00:01:22,680 --> 00:01:26,360 But when he went back out, he was in second behind Ayrton Senna. 29 00:01:28,840 --> 00:01:32,360 The closeness of the finish became an epic. 30 00:01:36,160 --> 00:01:38,520 To overtake at Monaco, you need some luck. 31 00:01:38,560 --> 00:01:41,960 To overtake in Monaco with Ayrton Senna in front of you, 32 00:01:42,000 --> 00:01:43,920 you need a miracle. 33 00:01:43,960 --> 00:01:47,960 He was so quick there, the way he was just darting behind Senna. 34 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:49,920 Defence from Ayrton Senna, 35 00:01:49,960 --> 00:01:52,680 amazing weaving attack from Nigel Mansell. 36 00:01:52,720 --> 00:01:54,080 We never touched, we never hit. 37 00:01:54,120 --> 00:01:55,759 With the current rules today, 38 00:01:55,800 --> 00:01:58,200 Ayrton would've got stop-go penalties for blocking. 39 00:02:00,000 --> 00:02:02,960 It should have been a Nigel victory. 40 00:02:03,000 --> 00:02:05,280 He was way faster than Ayrton. 41 00:02:05,320 --> 00:02:08,639 On the last few laps, he tried everything to get past Ayrton 42 00:02:08,680 --> 00:02:10,400 but there was just no way. 43 00:02:14,720 --> 00:02:16,800 He never won the Monaco Grand Prix. It's crazy. 44 00:02:16,840 --> 00:02:20,640 And the winning streak came to an end, but what a fantastic duel. 45 00:02:20,680 --> 00:02:22,320 It wasn't to be. 46 00:02:22,360 --> 00:02:24,920 He'll look back and that was the one that got away. 47 00:02:24,960 --> 00:02:27,600 If you had to sum up Mansell and Williams 48 00:02:27,640 --> 00:02:30,400 between '86 and '91, 49 00:02:30,440 --> 00:02:33,760 the '92 Monaco Grand Prix actually does that. 50 00:02:33,800 --> 00:02:37,120 He was nearly there once again and then snatched defeat 51 00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:38,800 from the jaws of victory. 52 00:02:42,400 --> 00:02:45,440 You started to think, "Right, he's won the first five of the season, 53 00:02:45,480 --> 00:02:48,560 but now Ayrton Senna is on the top step of the podium. 54 00:02:48,600 --> 00:02:51,560 Is it all gonna unravel once again for poor old Nige?" 55 00:02:53,400 --> 00:02:54,520 (RHYTHMICAL MUSIC) 56 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:03,960 (CAR ZOOMS) 57 00:03:07,240 --> 00:03:09,920 (CLICKING) 58 00:03:14,560 --> 00:03:16,160 This is fantastic. 59 00:03:16,200 --> 00:03:18,280 This is the reboot, isn't it, of Williams? 60 00:03:18,320 --> 00:03:21,079 It's a very young-looking Frank Williams in his suit. 61 00:03:21,120 --> 00:03:24,760 You know, Frank had lost his team to the Canadian oil baron 62 00:03:24,800 --> 00:03:28,840 billionaire Walter Wolf, and he's had to restart again. 63 00:03:28,880 --> 00:03:32,000 And this is really the beginning of Williams' Grand Prix engineering 64 00:03:32,040 --> 00:03:33,720 as we know it now. 65 00:03:33,760 --> 00:03:35,720 Motor racing was his life. He loved it. 66 00:03:35,760 --> 00:03:38,120 I mean, and I'm sure all the members of the family 67 00:03:38,160 --> 00:03:42,000 would agree, motor racing first, everything else second. 68 00:03:42,040 --> 00:03:43,800 He was so determined. 69 00:03:43,840 --> 00:03:47,520 We were on the steps to the Sao Paulo Hilton 70 00:03:47,560 --> 00:03:50,960 before the Brazilian Grand Prix in '77 and he said, 71 00:03:51,000 --> 00:03:53,400 "I've had enough, Peter, I've had enough. I can't do this anymore." 72 00:03:53,440 --> 00:03:56,280 And what he meant was working for Walter Wolf 73 00:03:56,320 --> 00:03:58,440 and he said, "Oh, I'm gonna start again. I'm gonna start again. 74 00:03:58,480 --> 00:04:01,680 And I'm gonna have engineering in the title of my next race team. 75 00:04:01,720 --> 00:04:04,440 'Cause Formula One's future is about engineering." 76 00:04:04,480 --> 00:04:06,200 I always remember him saying that. 77 00:04:06,240 --> 00:04:09,240 And then very soon afterwards he contacted Patrick Head. 78 00:04:09,280 --> 00:04:12,240 He'd seen in Patrick this gem of a brain. 79 00:04:12,280 --> 00:04:15,360 Patrick Head is one of the great figures in Formula One 80 00:04:15,400 --> 00:04:17,560 technical history. Came from a military background, 81 00:04:17,600 --> 00:04:19,920 which is what gave him a very stiff spine. 82 00:04:19,959 --> 00:04:22,079 But he had a very, very clear understanding 83 00:04:22,120 --> 00:04:24,280 of the whole of a Formula One car. 84 00:04:24,320 --> 00:04:26,760 And I think Patrick loved Frank's 85 00:04:26,800 --> 00:04:29,560 just burning fire of enthusiasm, 86 00:04:29,600 --> 00:04:31,360 and very quickly he got it together. 87 00:04:31,400 --> 00:04:34,880 He did a deal with the Didcot local council who, at that stage, 88 00:04:34,920 --> 00:04:38,400 they had a very large train terminus, if you like. 89 00:04:38,440 --> 00:04:40,520 That was a mainline thing to London. 90 00:04:40,560 --> 00:04:43,400 But nobody wanted to live in Didcot or work in Didcot. 91 00:04:43,440 --> 00:04:46,040 And so they gave Frank an amazing deal to set up 92 00:04:46,080 --> 00:04:48,280 a little race shop under the arches 93 00:04:48,320 --> 00:04:50,040 of the railway line, actually. 94 00:04:50,080 --> 00:04:53,040 You always had the sense of Frank Williams being this figure 95 00:04:53,080 --> 00:04:55,280 in the background, just looking for opportunities, 96 00:04:55,320 --> 00:04:58,640 commercial opportunities, sporting opportunities. 97 00:04:58,680 --> 00:05:01,480 The famous, you know, wearing out a pair of shoes every month 98 00:05:01,520 --> 00:05:04,720 because he was just walking everywhere and would never stop. 99 00:05:04,760 --> 00:05:07,520 (SPEAKING IN ITALIAN) 100 00:05:07,560 --> 00:05:09,160 Then, of course, on top of that, 101 00:05:09,200 --> 00:05:12,520 he had this amazing ability to pick up languages. 102 00:05:12,560 --> 00:05:14,120 (SPEAKING IN ITALIAN) 103 00:05:14,160 --> 00:05:16,040 And very quickly became multilingual. 104 00:05:16,080 --> 00:05:19,880 We were all aware that Frank was in the Middle East a lot. 105 00:05:19,920 --> 00:05:23,920 You know, "I'm gonna show the Middle Eastern community 106 00:05:23,960 --> 00:05:26,960 that they can be the best in the west if they race with me." 107 00:05:27,000 --> 00:05:28,800 So Frank being Frank, 108 00:05:28,840 --> 00:05:32,320 had the brand-new Williams '06 liveried up 109 00:05:32,360 --> 00:05:35,560 in Saudi Arabian Airlines colours 110 00:05:35,600 --> 00:05:38,360 and had it towed to the Dorchester Hotel 111 00:05:38,400 --> 00:05:41,680 where he knew where the key Saudi prince was staying that week. 112 00:05:41,720 --> 00:05:44,120 Had to bribe a traffic warden 113 00:05:44,159 --> 00:05:46,200 to be able to park there on Park Lane. 114 00:05:46,240 --> 00:05:50,840 Rushed into the lobby and rang the prince's room and said, 115 00:05:50,880 --> 00:05:52,320 "Have a look out the window." 116 00:05:52,360 --> 00:05:54,800 Looked down, saw Frank waving next to the car 117 00:05:54,840 --> 00:05:58,040 and the guy sort of gave the thumbs up and that was the deal done. 118 00:05:58,080 --> 00:06:01,360 We're in the Middle East now. Big time in Formula One, 119 00:06:01,400 --> 00:06:03,520 but Frank was the first guy to go there. 120 00:06:10,600 --> 00:06:12,640 (INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER)) 121 00:06:12,680 --> 00:06:15,840 I thought I was gonna be a fighter pilot, an astronaut, 122 00:06:15,880 --> 00:06:17,520 various things. 123 00:06:20,080 --> 00:06:23,360 But then police officer brought me back to my home. 124 00:06:23,400 --> 00:06:27,320 I was driving a one-wheeled JLO faster car 125 00:06:27,360 --> 00:06:30,640 down the pavement. Not what you did. 126 00:06:30,680 --> 00:06:32,960 I thought, "Oh, I'm gonna be a race car driver." 127 00:06:33,000 --> 00:06:34,320 (LIGHT MELODIC MUSIC) 128 00:06:34,360 --> 00:06:35,960 (CLICKING) 129 00:06:42,000 --> 00:06:45,320 Maybe you're born with a silver spoon in your mouth 130 00:06:45,360 --> 00:06:46,920 where you never have to worry. 131 00:06:46,960 --> 00:06:49,600 I'm afraid I was right at the other scale 132 00:06:49,640 --> 00:06:54,240 where we didn't really have no... anything to rub together. 133 00:06:54,280 --> 00:06:58,120 So we worked really hard to actually achieve whatever we did. 134 00:06:59,159 --> 00:07:01,880 Birmingham, England in the 1960s and '70s 135 00:07:01,920 --> 00:07:04,760 where Nigel grew up was very much an industrial town. 136 00:07:04,800 --> 00:07:08,560 Britain's second city automotive kind of capital, really. 137 00:07:08,600 --> 00:07:10,520 A bit like Detroit in the US. 138 00:07:10,560 --> 00:07:13,120 His father was a professional. He was an engineer with Lucas. 139 00:07:13,160 --> 00:07:14,960 His mother ran a tea shop. 140 00:07:15,000 --> 00:07:17,200 Not terribly glamorous and not really the sort of place 141 00:07:17,240 --> 00:07:19,200 you'd expect a Grand Prix star to come from. 142 00:07:19,240 --> 00:07:21,560 ANNOUNCER: If you've never driven a go-kart, have a go. 143 00:07:21,600 --> 00:07:24,320 It's great fun and there are many tracks open to the public. 144 00:07:24,360 --> 00:07:26,560 In fact, it's becoming increasingly popular 145 00:07:26,600 --> 00:07:28,080 as a competitive sport. 146 00:07:28,120 --> 00:07:31,480 I really persuaded my father when I was six-and-a-half, 147 00:07:31,520 --> 00:07:32,960 seven to take me. 148 00:07:33,000 --> 00:07:35,960 It was to Shenington, a kart track, 149 00:07:36,000 --> 00:07:38,640 and I thought, "I know I've got this." 150 00:07:38,680 --> 00:07:40,400 It was terrifying. 151 00:07:40,440 --> 00:07:42,840 And then I had a terrible rude awakening 152 00:07:42,880 --> 00:07:45,360 because every time I did one lap and I thought I was really quick, 153 00:07:45,400 --> 00:07:47,000 everyone else had done two laps. 154 00:07:47,040 --> 00:07:49,120 In the next practise, I went out 155 00:07:49,159 --> 00:07:51,360 and I went down the straight and everything went quiet. 156 00:07:51,400 --> 00:07:53,840 And obviously I came to a standstill and had the marshals 157 00:07:53,880 --> 00:07:56,120 running over to me, said, "You're OK, you're OK." 158 00:07:56,159 --> 00:07:58,520 I said, "Yeah, the chain's fallen off." 159 00:07:58,560 --> 00:08:00,920 And he looked at me, he said, "You got a bit more of a problem 160 00:08:00,960 --> 00:08:03,800 than the chain falling off. The whole engine fell off." 161 00:08:03,840 --> 00:08:07,000 And so my engine and chain was down the road. 162 00:08:07,040 --> 00:08:08,280 (CHUCKLES) 163 00:08:08,320 --> 00:08:11,280 I remember having a tear in my eye then and my dad saying, 164 00:08:11,320 --> 00:08:13,320 "Well, we'll try and get a better engine 165 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:14,960 and a better kart for you." 166 00:08:17,960 --> 00:08:19,800 I think it was about my third event 167 00:08:19,840 --> 00:08:22,200 was the British Championships. 168 00:08:22,240 --> 00:08:24,880 The British team manager was there watching 169 00:08:24,920 --> 00:08:27,600 to pick a team to go and race in Holland and Sweden 170 00:08:27,640 --> 00:08:29,480 and go to the world championships. 171 00:08:29,520 --> 00:08:30,520 (ENGINE ROARING) 172 00:08:34,159 --> 00:08:36,200 And I went from the back of the grid, 173 00:08:36,240 --> 00:08:39,919 which was about 33 karts, up to third in one race. 174 00:08:39,960 --> 00:08:43,240 He picked me as one of the drivers to actually do that. 175 00:08:43,280 --> 00:08:46,680 We were obviously very thrilled but incredibly disappointed 176 00:08:46,720 --> 00:08:49,680 because we didn't have the finances to go and get another engine. 177 00:08:49,720 --> 00:08:53,000 It was my grandparents, when they heard that I'd been picked 178 00:08:53,040 --> 00:08:54,600 for the British team, 179 00:08:54,640 --> 00:08:56,720 they brought me a complete new engine - 180 00:08:56,760 --> 00:08:59,160 I'll never forget 'cause it's 34 pounds, 181 00:08:59,200 --> 00:09:01,240 which was about $50 back then - 182 00:09:01,280 --> 00:09:04,320 to allow me to go racing and represent myself 183 00:09:04,360 --> 00:09:07,000 and the British team, which was truly fantastic. 184 00:09:08,280 --> 00:09:09,280 (CLICKING) 185 00:09:12,040 --> 00:09:14,000 I was training as an engineer at Lucas Aerospace 186 00:09:14,040 --> 00:09:15,720 and I wanted to go racing. 187 00:09:15,760 --> 00:09:17,760 I didn't want to go karting anymore. 188 00:09:20,200 --> 00:09:23,120 He raced karts. But if you really wanted to show your talent, 189 00:09:23,160 --> 00:09:25,280 you got into Formula Ford 1600. 190 00:09:25,320 --> 00:09:27,400 35 car grids, 191 00:09:27,440 --> 00:09:29,960 incredibly competitive, wide track cars, 192 00:09:30,000 --> 00:09:33,680 narrow tyres, no wings, just sliding all over the place. 193 00:09:33,720 --> 00:09:36,000 It was the category, really. 194 00:09:36,040 --> 00:09:39,040 'Cause it's mostly down to what the driver can do in the car, 195 00:09:39,080 --> 00:09:40,720 not the package he's driving. 196 00:09:40,760 --> 00:09:43,440 If you could win the British Championship in Formula Ford, 197 00:09:43,480 --> 00:09:45,880 you know, you had a future in front of you 198 00:09:45,920 --> 00:09:47,920 if you could find the funding. 199 00:09:47,960 --> 00:09:50,800 And my father, Eric Mansell did a deal with me and said, 200 00:09:50,840 --> 00:09:54,560 "Look, finish your qualifications. It takes three or four years. 201 00:09:54,600 --> 00:09:57,400 Once you get your degree and you're an engineer, 202 00:09:57,440 --> 00:10:00,440 fully fledged and you got an engineering job at Lucas Aerospace," 203 00:10:00,480 --> 00:10:02,280 he says, "Then we'll go racing." 204 00:10:02,320 --> 00:10:05,560 19-and-a-half, 20, I got my results and I was elated. 205 00:10:05,600 --> 00:10:06,720 I passed. 206 00:10:06,760 --> 00:10:10,200 I didn't get a first class pass, but I got a pass. 207 00:10:10,240 --> 00:10:13,360 Right, let's go racing, you know? Really, really good. Really happy. 208 00:10:13,400 --> 00:10:15,920 And then my dad laughed at me 209 00:10:15,960 --> 00:10:18,840 and I didn't appreciate him laughing at me 210 00:10:18,880 --> 00:10:21,880 and I didn't understand it and I said, "Why are you laughing, Dad?" 211 00:10:21,920 --> 00:10:24,440 He said, "Well, where do you think we're gonna get money from 212 00:10:24,480 --> 00:10:26,160 to go racing? We can't go racing." 213 00:10:26,200 --> 00:10:28,360 I said, "You promised me." He said, "Yes." 214 00:10:28,400 --> 00:10:30,040 He said, "I did that for you. 215 00:10:30,080 --> 00:10:32,040 So you made sure you get your qualifications. 216 00:10:32,080 --> 00:10:34,400 I had to give you a goal to achieve." 217 00:10:34,440 --> 00:10:35,880 And we fell out. 218 00:10:35,920 --> 00:10:39,040 I fell out with my parents and my dad at that point, 219 00:10:39,080 --> 00:10:41,800 which is a bit sad for me to even share that with you now 220 00:10:41,840 --> 00:10:45,360 because I didn't speak to him for a fair bit of time. 221 00:10:46,760 --> 00:10:48,840 He really didn't have any money, you know, 222 00:10:48,880 --> 00:10:50,880 and he had to work really hard and... 223 00:10:50,920 --> 00:10:52,840 to make ends meet and get out there. 224 00:10:52,880 --> 00:10:55,880 And he was determined but, but underprivileged, 225 00:10:55,920 --> 00:10:58,040 I think you should say. 226 00:10:58,080 --> 00:11:01,400 Nigel's wife, Roseanne, is one of the great figures, 227 00:11:01,440 --> 00:11:03,680 actually, in the story. 228 00:11:03,720 --> 00:11:05,360 They'd met when they were young. 229 00:11:05,400 --> 00:11:07,480 I mean they would sleep in the back of a van 230 00:11:07,520 --> 00:11:11,120 at the racetrack rather than spend the money on a B&B or a hotel. 231 00:11:11,160 --> 00:11:14,160 She basically gave all of her salary 232 00:11:14,200 --> 00:11:16,920 as a British gas demonstrator to him to go racing. 233 00:11:16,960 --> 00:11:19,760 I mean, few wives would just believe in this crazy 234 00:11:19,800 --> 00:11:22,280 pipe dream that Nigel seemed to have at the time, 235 00:11:22,320 --> 00:11:24,760 but she stuck with him through thick and thin. 236 00:11:24,800 --> 00:11:25,800 (BRIGHT MUSIC) 237 00:11:25,840 --> 00:11:27,320 (CLICKING) 238 00:11:28,600 --> 00:11:32,400 Well, my first Formula Ford car was dug out of a garden. 239 00:11:32,440 --> 00:11:34,160 It was a Javelin JL5 240 00:11:34,200 --> 00:11:37,040 and it had flowers and weeds growing out of it. 241 00:11:37,080 --> 00:11:39,960 My car was going down the straight about 140. 242 00:11:40,000 --> 00:11:42,080 The back end just dropped down a little bit 243 00:11:42,120 --> 00:11:43,960 and I saw this wheel go flying past 244 00:11:44,000 --> 00:11:46,160 and realised it was my wheel that had come off, 245 00:11:46,200 --> 00:11:48,400 and so I didn't race that car anymore. 246 00:11:48,440 --> 00:11:51,400 I borrowed, then, a Crosley 25 247 00:11:51,440 --> 00:11:53,640 and I went and won straight away, first time out. 248 00:11:53,680 --> 00:11:55,600 Even then he had this inner belief 249 00:11:55,640 --> 00:11:57,960 that he was the fastest guy on the racetrack. 250 00:11:58,000 --> 00:11:59,560 Really, really quick. 251 00:11:59,600 --> 00:12:01,600 So you could see him on the track with other drivers 252 00:12:01,640 --> 00:12:03,280 and they'd be going into the chicane 253 00:12:03,320 --> 00:12:05,560 and Nigel would be the one coming in a little bit earlier, 254 00:12:05,600 --> 00:12:07,920 a little bit softer with his transitions. 255 00:12:07,960 --> 00:12:11,400 Nigel had an incredible year in '77 in Formula Ford. 256 00:12:11,440 --> 00:12:15,000 He entered 42 races and won 33 of them. 257 00:12:15,040 --> 00:12:16,720 It's an incredible record. 258 00:12:16,760 --> 00:12:18,960 We won, ended up winning the championship, 259 00:12:19,000 --> 00:12:22,040 which was wonderful, but it sort of took off from then. 260 00:12:22,080 --> 00:12:25,040 But what I didn't realise, once you became champion in one series, 261 00:12:25,080 --> 00:12:28,240 you step up to another series, you start all over again. 262 00:12:29,680 --> 00:12:30,680 (CLICKING) 263 00:12:33,080 --> 00:12:35,800 '78 was a bit of a nightmare for Nigel. 264 00:12:35,840 --> 00:12:38,640 I mean, it was the worst time of my life, really. 265 00:12:38,680 --> 00:12:42,040 The step from Formula Ford to Formula Three is huge. 266 00:12:42,080 --> 00:12:43,920 You know, we had a home then, our first home 267 00:12:43,960 --> 00:12:45,960 and it cost just over £4,000 268 00:12:46,000 --> 00:12:48,160 and we sold everything we own - 269 00:12:48,200 --> 00:12:51,680 books, pictures, furniture and the home - 270 00:12:51,720 --> 00:12:54,000 and went into a rented accommodation 271 00:12:54,040 --> 00:12:57,080 to be able to buy a works drive, 272 00:12:57,120 --> 00:12:59,120 which was March Engineering. 273 00:12:59,160 --> 00:13:02,440 The works team at Formula Three is essentially one that's backed by 274 00:13:02,480 --> 00:13:05,960 one of the factory engine suppliers or chassis manufacturers. 275 00:13:06,000 --> 00:13:09,120 So they typically end up being the best teams 276 00:13:09,160 --> 00:13:11,960 with the best engines, the best setups, 277 00:13:12,000 --> 00:13:14,280 and in the end the best drivers. 278 00:13:14,320 --> 00:13:16,480 And they said, "Look, if we give them all this money, 279 00:13:16,520 --> 00:13:19,160 we feel sure that after a few races I'd get some results 280 00:13:19,200 --> 00:13:22,320 and they'd guarantee they'd be bring a sponsor for us on board." 281 00:13:22,360 --> 00:13:25,120 In six weeks, they took all the money and fired me. 282 00:13:25,160 --> 00:13:27,880 He only did five races that year and the money ran out. 283 00:13:27,920 --> 00:13:31,200 A guy that good, what a crying shame. 284 00:13:31,240 --> 00:13:34,320 You know, she was working, I was doing a window cleaning job. 285 00:13:34,360 --> 00:13:37,760 I'd live away from home, sometimes six weeks at a time. 286 00:13:37,800 --> 00:13:40,440 He had a belief in his own ability, 287 00:13:40,480 --> 00:13:44,160 and him and his wife were happy to put everything 288 00:13:44,200 --> 00:13:45,400 on the line for that. 289 00:13:45,440 --> 00:13:50,560 But then I managed then to get the Unipart Drive in 1979 290 00:13:50,600 --> 00:13:52,880 and that's when my career took off again. 291 00:13:54,120 --> 00:13:55,800 ANNOUNCER: No change in the order. 292 00:13:55,840 --> 00:13:59,240 Andretti, Peterson, Scheckter, Alan Jones, the Australian. 293 00:13:59,280 --> 00:14:02,680 Williams had an incredible start to their time in F1. 294 00:14:02,720 --> 00:14:04,000 (CLICKING) 295 00:14:07,680 --> 00:14:10,200 Yeah, the 07 was a quick car 296 00:14:10,240 --> 00:14:12,080 from the minute it turned the wheel 297 00:14:12,120 --> 00:14:14,480 and the grip of the car was just in another world. 298 00:14:14,520 --> 00:14:17,640 With these ground effect cars, we have very much more cornering force, 299 00:14:17,680 --> 00:14:19,600 but they're just as quick down the straight. 300 00:14:19,640 --> 00:14:21,880 It's one of those things. We all dream about something for nothing. 301 00:14:21,920 --> 00:14:24,040 Ground effect was a strange idea 302 00:14:24,080 --> 00:14:27,400 where you had skirts that pretty much touch the ground around the car 303 00:14:27,440 --> 00:14:29,360 but then sucked it down to the ground, 304 00:14:29,400 --> 00:14:31,760 which meant you could go around the corners more quickly. 305 00:14:31,800 --> 00:14:34,760 And certainly going into the 1979 British Grand Prix, 306 00:14:34,800 --> 00:14:36,720 Williams were really good at this. 307 00:14:39,240 --> 00:14:41,200 When they turned up at Silverstone, 308 00:14:41,240 --> 00:14:43,520 they were a second faster than anything else. 309 00:14:43,560 --> 00:14:45,440 They'd done a few tweaks to the aerodynamics 310 00:14:45,480 --> 00:14:48,040 and wow, they had hit the magic spot... 311 00:14:49,560 --> 00:14:51,640 ..and they were up and running. 312 00:14:51,680 --> 00:14:53,400 '79 British Grand Prix. 313 00:14:53,440 --> 00:14:56,440 Frank got his first win and it was at Silverstone, 314 00:14:56,480 --> 00:14:59,440 not that by Monday, Frank was thinking much about Sunday. 315 00:14:59,480 --> 00:15:02,040 He was already thinking of the next race, typically Frank. 316 00:15:02,080 --> 00:15:04,240 But that was an interesting crossover 317 00:15:04,280 --> 00:15:07,080 of Nigel and Williams that day 318 00:15:07,120 --> 00:15:10,400 because he was in the Formula Three race in the Unipart car. 319 00:15:10,440 --> 00:15:13,360 I was very close friends with Carlos Reutemann, 320 00:15:13,400 --> 00:15:16,480 who at that point was at Lotus and Colin Chapman. 321 00:15:16,520 --> 00:15:19,760 ANNOUNCER: It seems a pity that with a British car like this, 322 00:15:19,800 --> 00:15:22,960 there apparently isn't a British driver good enough for it. 323 00:15:23,000 --> 00:15:26,960 We would be the first team to consider new talent coming along 324 00:15:27,000 --> 00:15:29,800 and we are always constantly on the lookout. 325 00:15:29,840 --> 00:15:32,800 So I drag Carlos and Colin to watch Nigel. 326 00:15:34,080 --> 00:15:36,400 Carlos took one look at him and turned to me and said, 327 00:15:36,440 --> 00:15:38,120 "Yeah, yeah, he's got it for sure." 328 00:15:38,160 --> 00:15:41,800 And he was saying to Colin, "Look, this guy is really good." 329 00:15:41,840 --> 00:15:43,720 We did an interview with Colin Chapman. 330 00:15:43,760 --> 00:15:47,040 He was already world champion with Mario Andretti and so on. 331 00:15:47,080 --> 00:15:49,720 Where is the next British world champion coming from? 332 00:15:49,760 --> 00:15:52,120 And he said, "I've heard a lot of good things 333 00:15:52,160 --> 00:15:55,280 about a young lad called Nigel Mansell." 334 00:15:55,320 --> 00:15:57,320 It'd always stuck with me that he got the pronunciation 335 00:15:57,360 --> 00:15:59,280 of the surname wrong, Nigel Man-sell. 336 00:15:59,320 --> 00:16:01,800 He kept referring to him as Nigel Man-sell. 337 00:16:03,160 --> 00:16:07,040 The pivotal time in 1979 was when we were at Alton Park Racing, 338 00:16:07,080 --> 00:16:08,880 doing about 160 miles an hour. 339 00:16:08,920 --> 00:16:12,120 And Andrea de Cesaris put a wheel into my back wheel, 340 00:16:12,160 --> 00:16:15,440 flipped me and I somersaulted in the air about three times 341 00:16:15,480 --> 00:16:17,400 and landed upside down. 342 00:16:17,440 --> 00:16:19,760 Bingo, and that broke my back for the first time. 343 00:16:19,800 --> 00:16:21,960 And I ended up in hospital with a broken back 344 00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:23,760 and crushed vertebrae on the spine. 345 00:16:23,800 --> 00:16:26,320 And I had an extraordinary phone call from Colin Chapman 346 00:16:26,360 --> 00:16:28,440 and I said, "Oh, hello Mr Chapman, how are you?" 347 00:16:28,480 --> 00:16:32,120 He said, "Oh, Nigel." He said, "I'm running a test in Paul Ricard 348 00:16:32,160 --> 00:16:35,240 and I got six drivers I'm evaluating down there 349 00:16:35,280 --> 00:16:37,040 and I'd like to give you the opportunity 350 00:16:37,080 --> 00:16:38,560 to drive a Formula One car." 351 00:16:38,600 --> 00:16:40,320 He said, "Can you be there in a week's time?" 352 00:16:40,360 --> 00:16:43,600 I put the phone down, and picked the phone up to my specialist straight away. 353 00:16:43,640 --> 00:16:45,920 And I said, "I'm going to drive a Formula One car 354 00:16:45,960 --> 00:16:48,440 in a week's time down at Paul Ricard. What can you do to help?" 355 00:16:48,480 --> 00:16:51,520 And he tried to talk me out of being insane. 356 00:16:51,560 --> 00:16:53,840 And I said, "Well, I'm doing it with or without you." 357 00:16:53,880 --> 00:16:55,600 I had a corset made up. 358 00:16:55,640 --> 00:16:58,600 I got the strongest painkillers, which make you go a bit doo-lally 359 00:16:58,640 --> 00:17:01,440 but I've never driven a Formula One car before. 360 00:17:01,480 --> 00:17:03,680 I had no idea, no knowledge. 361 00:17:03,720 --> 00:17:05,960 Formula One racing, 362 00:17:06,000 --> 00:17:08,800 one of the most challenging and dangerous sports on Earth. 363 00:17:10,200 --> 00:17:12,880 It's a big jump to go from Formula Three to Formula One. 364 00:17:12,920 --> 00:17:16,119 You're getting something like four or 5G of braking force, 365 00:17:16,160 --> 00:17:19,079 which means your head is four times its normal weight on your neck. 366 00:17:19,119 --> 00:17:21,720 You have to prepare for that. You can't just throw someone in. 367 00:17:21,760 --> 00:17:23,680 Formula One was unbelievably dangerous. 368 00:17:23,720 --> 00:17:27,240 It was just happening so often that you kind of expected it. 369 00:17:27,280 --> 00:17:29,360 ANNOUNCER: Ronnie Peterson's Lotus collided 370 00:17:29,400 --> 00:17:31,240 in a horrific traffic jam, 371 00:17:31,280 --> 00:17:34,480 a crash from which the popular Swede was never to recover. 372 00:17:34,520 --> 00:17:37,840 It was the most dangerous era of all. 373 00:17:37,880 --> 00:17:41,520 I mean, they were losing one or two Grand Prix drivers every year. 374 00:17:41,560 --> 00:17:44,640 You make a mistake back then, you were dead. 375 00:17:45,560 --> 00:17:49,120 If you were lucky, you smashed your legs and never drove again. 376 00:17:49,160 --> 00:17:51,080 You broke your back, you never drove again. 377 00:17:51,120 --> 00:17:53,480 You were quadriplegic, never drove again. 378 00:17:53,520 --> 00:17:54,800 (ENGINE ROARS) 379 00:17:55,800 --> 00:17:58,200 I was going down the straight and everything going 380 00:17:58,240 --> 00:18:01,400 (WHOOSHING SOUNDS) as it does at 215 miles an hour. 381 00:18:01,440 --> 00:18:04,200 Had no time to brake, no time to see the corner. 382 00:18:04,240 --> 00:18:05,840 Everything happened so fast. 383 00:18:05,880 --> 00:18:09,040 And I was so excited because Giles Villeneuve in the Ferrari 384 00:18:09,080 --> 00:18:11,920 came past me and I tucked in behind him down the straight, 385 00:18:11,960 --> 00:18:13,360 and I was going the same speed. 386 00:18:13,400 --> 00:18:15,680 And I stayed with him and I thought, "Oh, this is great. 387 00:18:15,720 --> 00:18:18,080 Oh, how quick was that last lap? Was it any good? Was it any good?" 388 00:18:18,120 --> 00:18:20,880 All excited. I was six seconds a lap, 389 00:18:20,920 --> 00:18:23,720 six seconds a lap off the pace. 390 00:18:23,760 --> 00:18:26,880 I was so dejected I couldn't find six seconds. 391 00:18:26,920 --> 00:18:29,040 It was ridiculous, you know? 392 00:18:29,080 --> 00:18:31,320 And I remember calling Roseanne and saying, 393 00:18:31,360 --> 00:18:34,040 "I think I've made the most terrible mistake of my life." 394 00:18:34,080 --> 00:18:36,600 Basically I'm outta my depth. 395 00:18:36,640 --> 00:18:38,680 I did actually speak to Nigel actually on that night. 396 00:18:38,720 --> 00:18:41,440 I remember him saying, "Oh, you know, it's all happening really quickly." 397 00:18:41,480 --> 00:18:44,080 And he wasn't really dancing with the music 398 00:18:44,120 --> 00:18:46,080 and I was a bit nervous. 399 00:18:46,960 --> 00:18:50,560 And then I went out in the car and to this very day 400 00:18:50,600 --> 00:18:53,120 it felt like a big rocket hit me in the head. 401 00:18:53,160 --> 00:18:57,080 Instantaneously, everything slowed down. 402 00:18:57,120 --> 00:18:59,400 I could see the trees, I could see the barrier, 403 00:18:59,440 --> 00:19:02,320 I could see the corner. I had enough time to brake, 404 00:19:02,360 --> 00:19:04,120 had enough time to change gear. 405 00:19:04,160 --> 00:19:07,960 The next lap, I was six seconds a lap faster. 406 00:19:08,000 --> 00:19:11,720 They were very impressed to the point that Colin signed me 407 00:19:11,760 --> 00:19:14,000 as a test driver. Of course, what did I say? 408 00:19:14,040 --> 00:19:16,480 "Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I'll have it. I'll have it." 409 00:19:16,520 --> 00:19:18,960 You know, "Do we get any money with it?" (CHUCKLES) 410 00:19:20,200 --> 00:19:21,200 (CLICKING) 411 00:19:25,680 --> 00:19:28,240 This is the ultimate chance now 412 00:19:28,280 --> 00:19:30,360 because after Formula One there isn't anything else. 413 00:19:30,400 --> 00:19:33,480 Formula One is the tops. And this is what I've been aiming for 414 00:19:33,520 --> 00:19:35,600 for the past three or four years now. 415 00:19:35,640 --> 00:19:39,840 And to get a chance with a team such as with Lotus is phenomenal. 416 00:19:41,320 --> 00:19:44,120 He took full advantage of his testing role, 417 00:19:44,160 --> 00:19:47,160 set some great lap times and that gave Colin Chapman 418 00:19:47,200 --> 00:19:50,520 the confidence to throw him in for his Grand Prix debut in Austria. 419 00:19:50,560 --> 00:19:54,160 A year before he was cleaning offices in Cirencester. 420 00:19:54,200 --> 00:19:57,720 And now he finds himself on the grid of a Formula One Grand Prix. 421 00:19:57,760 --> 00:19:59,880 The press coverage at the time, 422 00:19:59,920 --> 00:20:01,800 a lot of people were writing, you know, 423 00:20:01,840 --> 00:20:04,880 why is this guy being fast-tracked into Formula One? 424 00:20:04,920 --> 00:20:07,480 There are so many more deserving drivers out there. 425 00:20:07,520 --> 00:20:10,400 Nigel, I think only had a couple of wins in Formula Three 426 00:20:10,440 --> 00:20:11,960 and not done much more. 427 00:20:12,000 --> 00:20:14,280 The thought was, he'd sort of lucked in. 428 00:20:14,320 --> 00:20:17,280 You just don't have the experience, you don't have the name. 429 00:20:17,320 --> 00:20:19,080 People were saying with a name like mine 430 00:20:19,120 --> 00:20:20,760 I'd never make it in Formula One. 431 00:20:20,800 --> 00:20:23,040 The name was terrible. I was terrible. 432 00:20:23,080 --> 00:20:26,520 You know, they even commented on my accent that was, 433 00:20:26,560 --> 00:20:29,240 you know, shocking and I shouldn't be in Formula One. 434 00:20:29,280 --> 00:20:31,400 You know, he should come from Argentina 435 00:20:31,440 --> 00:20:33,320 and be called Juan Manuel Fangio. 436 00:20:33,360 --> 00:20:35,640 He should be called Alberto Ascari or something, 437 00:20:35,680 --> 00:20:38,320 you know, Enzo Ferrari, anything, you know, 438 00:20:38,360 --> 00:20:40,760 but Nigel Mansell from Birmingham? 439 00:20:40,800 --> 00:20:43,360 It didn't seem to fit well with our, 440 00:20:43,400 --> 00:20:45,600 I think with our idea of what 441 00:20:45,640 --> 00:20:48,760 a glamorous Formula One racing driver should be. 442 00:20:48,800 --> 00:20:51,640 The Formula One world is everything that people think it is 443 00:20:51,680 --> 00:20:55,560 from the outside. It's stylish, it's glamorous, it's exclusive, 444 00:20:55,600 --> 00:20:58,520 and it's always sort of marketed itself on that kind of cachet. 445 00:20:58,560 --> 00:21:00,840 And that makes it a big challenge for outsiders 446 00:21:00,880 --> 00:21:02,360 to find their way in. 447 00:21:02,400 --> 00:21:04,920 They were slight snobby about him if I'm honest, you know. 448 00:21:04,960 --> 00:21:07,840 Colin was his own person, his own man. 449 00:21:07,880 --> 00:21:11,000 He could have had probably a choice of 20 other drivers 450 00:21:11,040 --> 00:21:13,640 with all sorts of Formula One experience. 451 00:21:13,680 --> 00:21:16,840 I was always pushing the limits of trying to be part of something 452 00:21:16,880 --> 00:21:18,240 that I wasn't part of. 453 00:21:19,320 --> 00:21:22,360 A lot of the press was waiting for Nigel to fail. 454 00:21:22,400 --> 00:21:24,880 And sure enough, in Austria, 455 00:21:24,920 --> 00:21:26,800 I mean, you've got a sense of the future 456 00:21:26,840 --> 00:21:28,920 because there was drama attached to it. 457 00:21:28,960 --> 00:21:31,800 There is always drama attached to whatever Nigel Mansell does. 458 00:21:31,840 --> 00:21:34,160 I go on the grid for my first ever race. 459 00:21:34,200 --> 00:21:36,840 The guy comes with a bucket of water and pours a bucket of water 460 00:21:36,880 --> 00:21:38,920 in the cockpit. I'm getting my arse burnt, 461 00:21:38,960 --> 00:21:40,480 got a leak in the fuel tank. 462 00:21:40,520 --> 00:21:43,200 Can you imagine the drivers of today sitting on the grid, 463 00:21:43,240 --> 00:21:45,840 getting their arse burnt and their goolies and everything else 464 00:21:45,880 --> 00:21:46,920 down there? 465 00:21:46,960 --> 00:21:50,440 I suffered first degree burns of the lower buttocks, 466 00:21:50,480 --> 00:21:54,080 so it was quite an uncomfortable race for me. 467 00:21:54,120 --> 00:21:57,360 Oh, I got burnt to buggery. I got second and third degree burns. 468 00:21:57,400 --> 00:22:00,600 And he was sort of lifted out of the car with burns 469 00:22:00,640 --> 00:22:02,760 and everything else, spent the night in hospital. 470 00:22:02,800 --> 00:22:04,520 INTERVIEWER: Can you sit down OK now? 471 00:22:04,560 --> 00:22:07,280 Well, as you notice, I've probably been standing up a lot today. 472 00:22:07,320 --> 00:22:08,600 (CHUCKLES) 473 00:22:08,640 --> 00:22:11,240 We went to Zandvoort for another race. 474 00:22:11,280 --> 00:22:13,240 With only ten minutes to go, he said, 475 00:22:13,280 --> 00:22:16,160 "Right, I'm giving you a Elio's car. Go on, qualify." 476 00:22:16,200 --> 00:22:18,640 They didn't do a seat adjustment, seatbelt adjustment, 477 00:22:18,680 --> 00:22:21,240 didn't do a pedal adjustment. Just straight into the car. 478 00:22:21,280 --> 00:22:23,160 The pressure. 479 00:22:23,200 --> 00:22:25,840 I think I qualified 14th or 15th, 480 00:22:25,880 --> 00:22:28,640 but more importantly, I was only one or two tenths slower 481 00:22:28,680 --> 00:22:30,760 than Elio with one go. 482 00:22:30,800 --> 00:22:33,040 And I think at that moment Colin thought, 483 00:22:33,080 --> 00:22:36,280 "Yeah, Nigel Mansell is a serious racing driver." 484 00:22:36,320 --> 00:22:40,200 At the same time, Frank had this beautiful operation. 485 00:22:40,240 --> 00:22:42,920 The car was, you know, just wonderful. 486 00:22:42,960 --> 00:22:45,120 To this day, you've gotta say Alan Jones 487 00:22:45,160 --> 00:22:48,480 in that 07 Williams, particularly 1980, 488 00:22:48,520 --> 00:22:50,560 that's as solid a car driver combination 489 00:22:50,600 --> 00:22:52,320 as you'll ever see in Formula One. 490 00:22:52,360 --> 00:22:54,640 It's one thing to win Grand Prix, it's quite another 491 00:22:54,680 --> 00:22:56,240 to win World Championships. 492 00:22:56,280 --> 00:22:59,920 1980 was a huge year in the history of the Williams Grand Prix team 493 00:22:59,960 --> 00:23:02,320 because that was when Alan Jones clinched 494 00:23:02,360 --> 00:23:04,720 their first world championship title. 495 00:23:04,760 --> 00:23:07,160 It was extraordinary when you reflect now 496 00:23:07,200 --> 00:23:09,720 on how long it takes a team to build itself, 497 00:23:09,760 --> 00:23:12,360 establish yourself, let alone win a world championship 498 00:23:12,400 --> 00:23:15,040 and they did it in the space of effectively three years. 499 00:23:15,080 --> 00:23:17,320 It is one of Formula One's great stories. 500 00:23:22,445 --> 00:23:23,560 (RHYTHMICAL MUSIC) 501 00:23:23,600 --> 00:23:24,600 (CLICKING) 502 00:23:28,480 --> 00:23:30,760 Elio and, of course, Nigel Mansell, 503 00:23:30,800 --> 00:23:33,360 two young up and coming drivers. 504 00:23:33,400 --> 00:23:36,240 Elio has more experience than Nigel. 505 00:23:36,280 --> 00:23:39,880 Nigel is the best British driver we've had come along in years. 506 00:23:39,920 --> 00:23:41,960 The thing that I was really getting a sense of 507 00:23:42,000 --> 00:23:43,720 at the Lotus base in the early '80s 508 00:23:43,760 --> 00:23:45,720 was this bond that had been formed 509 00:23:45,760 --> 00:23:48,360 between Nigel Mansell and Colin Chapman. 510 00:23:48,400 --> 00:23:52,560 I think he saw in me someone who had a tremendous appetite to learn. 511 00:23:52,600 --> 00:23:54,680 And being a qualified engineer at that time, 512 00:23:54,720 --> 00:23:57,360 I had a far greater understanding than somebody 513 00:23:57,400 --> 00:23:59,040 who just was a driver. 514 00:23:59,080 --> 00:24:01,880 What he did for me was just like a father figure. 515 00:24:01,920 --> 00:24:04,080 If he said do something and jump out the window, 516 00:24:04,120 --> 00:24:05,640 I'd jump out the window. 517 00:24:05,680 --> 00:24:09,160 He was also very much appreciating his attitude to racing, 518 00:24:09,200 --> 00:24:10,600 which is go for it. 519 00:24:12,720 --> 00:24:16,600 ANNOUNCER: So Mansell third, number 12 in the new Lotus 87. 520 00:24:16,640 --> 00:24:18,720 Only his eighth Grand Prix. 521 00:24:18,760 --> 00:24:20,680 Nigel was doing a great job. 522 00:24:20,720 --> 00:24:23,200 He managed to get a couple of podium finishes - 523 00:24:23,240 --> 00:24:25,160 one in '81, one in '82 - 524 00:24:25,200 --> 00:24:28,320 and he was starting to establish himself in Formula One. 525 00:24:28,360 --> 00:24:30,680 Nigel was happy. He was in a really good place. 526 00:24:30,720 --> 00:24:32,840 After all the struggles to get to this point, 527 00:24:32,880 --> 00:24:34,280 he was a Grand Prix star. 528 00:24:34,320 --> 00:24:36,280 He was established, he was making some decent money. 529 00:24:36,320 --> 00:24:40,200 ANNOUNCER: The gold lettering on the £21,000 sports car says it all. 530 00:24:40,240 --> 00:24:41,960 Nigel Mansell has arrived. 531 00:24:42,840 --> 00:24:46,200 Williams were absolutely flying in the public consciousness 532 00:24:46,240 --> 00:24:49,920 and a lot of the support that had been very much behind Lotus 533 00:24:49,960 --> 00:24:53,720 at the end of the '70s was suddenly behind this little team at Didcot. 534 00:24:53,760 --> 00:24:56,360 The FW07 and the FW08, 535 00:24:56,400 --> 00:24:58,880 conceptualised by Patrick Head and Frank Dernie, 536 00:24:58,920 --> 00:25:02,680 took ground effects and raised the bar to a whole new level. 537 00:25:02,720 --> 00:25:05,400 By 1982, Rosberg had delivered the team 538 00:25:05,440 --> 00:25:07,520 its second World Championship. 539 00:25:07,560 --> 00:25:11,120 Williams were now well established as a top team in Formula One. 540 00:25:17,680 --> 00:25:21,000 Colin Chapman, the man who made Lotus cars famous 541 00:25:21,040 --> 00:25:22,760 around the world, has died. 542 00:25:22,800 --> 00:25:24,160 He was 54. 543 00:25:24,200 --> 00:25:27,040 A spokesman for Lotus says he died of a heart attack. 544 00:25:29,200 --> 00:25:31,160 I was absolutely devastated. 545 00:25:31,200 --> 00:25:34,520 I mean, there's no words even after all these years 546 00:25:34,560 --> 00:25:36,640 to describe the feelings. 547 00:25:36,680 --> 00:25:40,480 Whatever motivation I had just evaporated in thin air. 548 00:25:40,520 --> 00:25:43,320 The direction in life was lost. 549 00:25:44,680 --> 00:25:47,960 It was the most shocking time in my life 550 00:25:48,000 --> 00:25:50,440 'cause it wasn't just the fact that we lost Colin, 551 00:25:50,480 --> 00:25:53,000 I felt like I lost my father. 552 00:25:53,040 --> 00:25:56,000 So the regime changed at Lotus, 553 00:25:56,040 --> 00:25:58,840 and Colin Chapman was replaced by Peter Warr, 554 00:25:58,880 --> 00:26:01,240 who had been Colin Chapman's number two, 555 00:26:01,280 --> 00:26:03,680 who wasn't as appreciative of Nigel's talents 556 00:26:03,720 --> 00:26:05,800 as Colin had been, 557 00:26:05,840 --> 00:26:08,800 and they locked horns very early on. 558 00:26:08,840 --> 00:26:13,440 Communications and dynamics and leadership just disappeared. 559 00:26:13,480 --> 00:26:16,120 You did get the impression that Peter Warr 560 00:26:16,160 --> 00:26:18,960 was not only very negative within the team towards Nigel, 561 00:26:19,000 --> 00:26:20,720 but also outside the team. 562 00:26:20,760 --> 00:26:23,400 And Nigel had a very difficult time in making sure 563 00:26:23,440 --> 00:26:26,440 that his reputation remained intact. 564 00:26:26,480 --> 00:26:29,560 I suppose a low point was Monaco 1984, 565 00:26:29,600 --> 00:26:31,400 which was a very wet race. 566 00:26:31,440 --> 00:26:33,480 He qualified second on the grid behind Prost 567 00:26:33,520 --> 00:26:35,840 and he was over a second faster 568 00:26:35,880 --> 00:26:38,720 than his Lotus teammate, Elio De Angelis. 569 00:26:38,760 --> 00:26:41,200 And the whole of that Monaco Grand Prix, 570 00:26:41,240 --> 00:26:43,760 he was just out there to show he, Nigel Mansell, 571 00:26:43,800 --> 00:26:46,160 was the quickest guy on the planet. 572 00:26:46,200 --> 00:26:48,280 He passed Prost on lap nine 573 00:26:48,320 --> 00:26:51,000 and really started disappearing off into the distance. 574 00:26:51,040 --> 00:26:52,680 The race was under control, 575 00:26:52,720 --> 00:26:54,800 obviously in very treacherous conditions. 576 00:26:54,840 --> 00:26:57,280 And then he went and dropped it into the barriers. 577 00:26:59,720 --> 00:27:02,120 And I think where Nigel went wrong, 578 00:27:02,160 --> 00:27:05,280 his immediate quote at the end of the race was, 579 00:27:05,320 --> 00:27:07,520 "I went on the white lines and the painted white lines 580 00:27:07,560 --> 00:27:10,440 are very slippery", and, of course, the press had a field day. 581 00:27:10,480 --> 00:27:14,520 A lot of excellent drivers made mistakes and fell off 582 00:27:14,560 --> 00:27:17,240 and, you know, I feel through no real reason of their own. 583 00:27:17,280 --> 00:27:20,280 An habitual whinger in terms of what the press thought. 584 00:27:20,320 --> 00:27:23,200 You know, it was always someone else's fault. It wasn't ever his fault. 585 00:27:23,240 --> 00:27:25,760 And leading that chorus of criticism 586 00:27:25,800 --> 00:27:27,480 was Peter Warr himself. 587 00:27:27,520 --> 00:27:29,640 I'll never forget because I just couldn't believe 588 00:27:29,680 --> 00:27:32,160 he said it publicly. He said, "Well, while I have a hole 589 00:27:32,200 --> 00:27:34,680 in my arse, he will never win a race." 590 00:27:34,720 --> 00:27:37,160 And what's that supposed to mean for crying out loud? 591 00:27:37,200 --> 00:27:39,600 Well, as I said, he must be very constipated now. 592 00:27:39,640 --> 00:27:41,000 (CHUCKLES) 593 00:27:41,040 --> 00:27:44,440 By the end of '84, Nigel really needed a way out of Lotus 594 00:27:44,480 --> 00:27:46,560 and particularly that toxic relationship 595 00:27:46,600 --> 00:27:48,680 he was facing with Peter Warr. 596 00:27:48,720 --> 00:27:51,080 It wasn't working out and he was really, really looking 597 00:27:51,120 --> 00:27:54,680 for another home for the next chapter of his career. 598 00:27:54,720 --> 00:27:56,520 Around the British Grand Prix time, 599 00:27:56,560 --> 00:27:59,240 I started to inundate Frank with lots of, 600 00:27:59,280 --> 00:28:01,440 "You've gotta sign Nigel" conversations 601 00:28:01,480 --> 00:28:04,520 and started to back it up with lots of stats. 602 00:28:04,560 --> 00:28:07,200 First lap out of the pits, laps on cold tyres, hot tyres, 603 00:28:07,240 --> 00:28:10,040 qualifying, comparing it with all the other drivers on the grid. 604 00:28:10,080 --> 00:28:12,400 And he was pretty enthusiastic about it. 605 00:28:12,440 --> 00:28:14,640 And, of course, next week would come and nothing would happen 606 00:28:14,680 --> 00:28:16,560 and Nigel will ring and say, "What's going on? What's going?" 607 00:28:16,600 --> 00:28:18,840 "No news. No news." And so it dragged on and on. 608 00:28:18,880 --> 00:28:20,680 We got to the Dutch Grand Prix 609 00:28:20,720 --> 00:28:23,000 and I remember saying to Nigel, 610 00:28:23,040 --> 00:28:25,040 "Frank's gonna give us an answer." 611 00:28:25,080 --> 00:28:27,600 And I actually got a little bit frustrated 612 00:28:27,640 --> 00:28:30,000 with the conversation. 613 00:28:30,040 --> 00:28:32,880 You either want someone to drive for you or you don't. 614 00:28:32,920 --> 00:28:36,280 Nigel just went ballistic and said, "Right, tell Frank the deal is off 615 00:28:36,320 --> 00:28:38,680 'cause I don't wanna drive for anybody that doesn't want me 616 00:28:38,720 --> 00:28:41,120 and can't make up their mind. Just go tell him that now." 617 00:28:41,160 --> 00:28:42,360 So I did. 618 00:28:42,400 --> 00:28:45,040 I went back to Frank's little motor home. I said, "Look, Frank, 619 00:28:45,080 --> 00:28:47,280 you're not gonna like this. This is what Nigel's just said." 620 00:28:47,320 --> 00:28:49,480 He said, "All right, tell him he's got the deal." 621 00:28:49,520 --> 00:28:51,720 Just like that. It was incredible. 622 00:28:51,760 --> 00:28:54,680 And I ended up driving for Williams in '85 with Keke, 623 00:28:54,720 --> 00:28:56,480 which was marvellous. 624 00:28:56,520 --> 00:28:57,840 (RHYTHMICAL MUSIC) 625 00:29:00,080 --> 00:29:01,080 (CLICKING) 626 00:29:03,160 --> 00:29:04,600 (ENGINE ROARS) 627 00:29:06,320 --> 00:29:10,040 Start of '85, there's no doubt Nigel was the number two 628 00:29:10,080 --> 00:29:12,000 in every dimension, 629 00:29:12,040 --> 00:29:16,080 purely because Keke Rosberg was a Grand Prix winner. 630 00:29:16,120 --> 00:29:20,200 He was known as Rocky. He was really quick. Great car control. 631 00:29:20,240 --> 00:29:23,480 I had a very uncomfortable pressure initially with Williams. 632 00:29:23,520 --> 00:29:26,560 The bad blood was told to Keke 633 00:29:26,600 --> 00:29:29,880 and other people within the Williams team about me. 634 00:29:29,920 --> 00:29:32,520 Nigel was this English guy 635 00:29:32,560 --> 00:29:36,160 prone to errors of the, you know, the Monaco '84. 636 00:29:36,200 --> 00:29:38,600 And there was this sort of aura about Nigel as, you know, 637 00:29:38,640 --> 00:29:41,240 why have William signed him, really. And I'm sure Keke, 638 00:29:41,280 --> 00:29:43,520 he didn't feel Nigel was a threat, I don't think. 639 00:29:43,560 --> 00:29:47,080 Without a win, and you're alongside a world champion, 640 00:29:47,120 --> 00:29:51,040 there is an expectation that one is gonna be better than the other. 641 00:29:51,080 --> 00:29:53,120 My first race was in Rio 642 00:29:53,160 --> 00:29:55,320 and I got planted off at the first corner. 643 00:29:55,360 --> 00:29:57,600 It wasn't too good. 644 00:29:57,640 --> 00:29:59,960 Second race was in Estoril, 645 00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:03,560 and going to the grid, it was raining and we had turbo engines, 646 00:30:03,600 --> 00:30:05,280 which were like an on-off switch. 647 00:30:05,320 --> 00:30:08,520 So I get halfway around the corner, then the power surges. 648 00:30:08,560 --> 00:30:11,160 Anyway, I spun off, hit the barriers on the warm up lap 649 00:30:11,200 --> 00:30:13,760 to the grid and smashed the front suspension 650 00:30:13,800 --> 00:30:16,840 on the left-hand side and had to limp back to the pits. 651 00:30:16,880 --> 00:30:19,360 I'll never forget the number Patrick Head did on me. 652 00:30:19,400 --> 00:30:22,000 Oh, my goodness me, he was so upset. 653 00:30:22,040 --> 00:30:24,280 Peter Collins was the team manager and he said, 654 00:30:24,320 --> 00:30:26,840 "Look, just go and clear your head. Just focus on being ready 655 00:30:26,880 --> 00:30:28,880 to get back in the car and start from the pit lane." 656 00:30:28,920 --> 00:30:31,600 And then about a third, halfway through the race, 657 00:30:31,640 --> 00:30:34,800 my teammate Keke Rosberg, ex-world champion, 658 00:30:34,840 --> 00:30:37,040 in the fast corner coming onto the main straight, 659 00:30:37,080 --> 00:30:38,920 he had a mighty accident 660 00:30:38,960 --> 00:30:42,680 with the identical symptoms that happened to me on the warm-up lap. 661 00:30:42,720 --> 00:30:45,200 I drove the whole race tentatively 662 00:30:45,240 --> 00:30:47,440 and making sure I wasn't gonna fall off, 663 00:30:47,480 --> 00:30:49,760 but I came from last to fifth. 664 00:30:49,800 --> 00:30:51,800 From the pit lane 665 00:30:51,840 --> 00:30:54,320 to P5 in the rain. 666 00:30:54,360 --> 00:30:55,960 Terrible visibility. 667 00:30:56,000 --> 00:30:59,400 He's in traffic the whole race and he's passing people. 668 00:30:59,440 --> 00:31:01,880 And he said he literally listened to the engine note 669 00:31:01,920 --> 00:31:03,360 of the car in front. 670 00:31:03,400 --> 00:31:05,320 And when that engine note changed, 671 00:31:05,360 --> 00:31:07,600 that was the moment Nigel, without seeing anything up, 672 00:31:07,640 --> 00:31:10,760 just a bank of spray, he just moved to the right or the left. 673 00:31:10,800 --> 00:31:11,880 That's how he did it. 674 00:31:11,920 --> 00:31:14,760 If ever there was a race where if he was prone to mistakes 675 00:31:14,800 --> 00:31:18,200 and if he was incapable of winning in the right situation, 676 00:31:18,240 --> 00:31:20,440 it would've been shown up that day, but he didn't. 677 00:31:20,480 --> 00:31:22,760 He delivered beautifully on that day. 678 00:31:23,720 --> 00:31:26,920 Just before the British Grand Prix and Keke came up to me. 679 00:31:26,960 --> 00:31:29,080 He says, "I need to apologise to you." 680 00:31:29,120 --> 00:31:30,960 He said, "I listened to those idiots 681 00:31:31,000 --> 00:31:32,920 telling me all different things about you, 682 00:31:32,960 --> 00:31:35,280 which I know now is totally untrue." 683 00:31:35,320 --> 00:31:37,480 And he said, "I'm sorry." He said, "I had preconceived 684 00:31:37,520 --> 00:31:39,600 judgements, which are totally wrong." 685 00:31:39,640 --> 00:31:41,600 In Formula One, it's, obviously... 686 00:31:41,640 --> 00:31:43,760 it's down to the driver, but it's a team sport. 687 00:31:43,800 --> 00:31:45,840 So, you know, the car is very important, 688 00:31:45,880 --> 00:31:48,800 the team is very important and you need the full package, really, 689 00:31:48,840 --> 00:31:50,960 to win your first race. 690 00:31:51,000 --> 00:31:52,920 It's a combination of man and machine. 691 00:31:52,960 --> 00:31:54,880 That's part of why people love it, I think. 692 00:31:54,920 --> 00:31:57,920 And the real magic is when you get a combination of a driver 693 00:31:57,960 --> 00:32:01,200 who's on the up, who's able to make a car faster. 694 00:32:01,240 --> 00:32:04,880 Through my engineering background, Patrick Head, 695 00:32:04,920 --> 00:32:06,680 we got on really well. 696 00:32:06,720 --> 00:32:08,320 It was a breath of fresh air. 697 00:32:08,360 --> 00:32:11,920 We got half a second, half a second to maybe six, 698 00:32:11,960 --> 00:32:14,920 seven tenths a lap faster, just with one test. 699 00:32:14,960 --> 00:32:17,880 Because he'd got so much road dust on him at that point 700 00:32:17,920 --> 00:32:20,960 that when finally he was in a very, very good car 701 00:32:21,000 --> 00:32:23,920 with a good balance, with a very good rear end, 702 00:32:23,960 --> 00:32:26,200 lots of power, Brands Hatch, 703 00:32:26,240 --> 00:32:27,960 great circuit that he loved, 704 00:32:28,000 --> 00:32:29,840 it was right up Nigel's street. 705 00:32:29,880 --> 00:32:32,320 The 1985 European Grand Prix 706 00:32:32,360 --> 00:32:34,040 was held at Brands Hatch 707 00:32:34,080 --> 00:32:36,400 and it was a huge day for Nigel. 708 00:32:36,440 --> 00:32:38,680 He made a great start from third on the grid. 709 00:32:38,720 --> 00:32:41,640 Got up to second, but he ran wide early on, 710 00:32:41,680 --> 00:32:46,360 which allowed both Nelson Piquet and Keke Rosberg to get past. 711 00:32:46,400 --> 00:32:48,560 Rosberg tried to overtake Senna, 712 00:32:48,600 --> 00:32:50,640 who put quite an aggressive block on him, 713 00:32:50,680 --> 00:32:52,560 causing Rosberg to spin 714 00:32:52,600 --> 00:32:54,880 and it left Piquet with nowhere to go. 715 00:32:54,920 --> 00:32:57,320 Piquet gets caught up in that, as well, and that takes him 716 00:32:57,360 --> 00:32:59,680 out of the race. Rosberg's not happy. He has to go into the pits 717 00:32:59,720 --> 00:33:01,640 to get some service on his car to repair it. 718 00:33:01,680 --> 00:33:04,840 He comes back out again and who does he find but Senna. 719 00:33:04,880 --> 00:33:06,680 Holds him up. Somewhat predictably, 720 00:33:06,720 --> 00:33:08,520 he wasn't in a mood to let him pass 721 00:33:08,560 --> 00:33:11,520 so he put a bit of a defensive block on him, 722 00:33:11,560 --> 00:33:14,720 which gave Nigel the opportunity to sneak by 723 00:33:14,760 --> 00:33:16,880 and take the lead in front of his home crowd. 724 00:33:16,920 --> 00:33:19,960 Great move on Ayrton Senna that put him in front of the field 725 00:33:20,000 --> 00:33:21,720 and it was a huge breakthrough. 726 00:33:22,800 --> 00:33:25,880 Once in front, Nigel then set about building a lead 727 00:33:25,920 --> 00:33:29,360 and this was going to be his big day at home 728 00:33:29,400 --> 00:33:31,240 in front of the British audience. 729 00:33:32,560 --> 00:33:35,880 You're in a car on your own and you're like in solitary confinement, 730 00:33:35,920 --> 00:33:37,120 sepia, 731 00:33:37,160 --> 00:33:39,760 blasting around the circuit with your hair on fire. 732 00:33:39,800 --> 00:33:41,880 You have to manage the car, drive the car. 733 00:33:41,920 --> 00:33:45,720 It's very physical, but the mental side of it is huge. 734 00:33:45,760 --> 00:33:47,800 Every single corner I was making sure 735 00:33:47,840 --> 00:33:50,920 I was micromanaging the corners, making sure I got the apexes, 736 00:33:50,960 --> 00:33:53,560 making sure I was carrying enough speed, but not too much. 737 00:33:53,600 --> 00:33:55,720 You had to sort of control your breathing, 738 00:33:55,760 --> 00:33:59,240 you had to control your motion, counting the laps down, 739 00:33:59,280 --> 00:34:02,520 and then also the extra pressure of managing the gap 740 00:34:02,560 --> 00:34:04,880 of the car chasing me down 741 00:34:04,920 --> 00:34:06,720 'cause it wasn't a walkover. 742 00:34:06,760 --> 00:34:09,159 It was only about five seconds or so in front. 743 00:34:09,199 --> 00:34:11,560 So I've never felt that pressure ever before. 744 00:34:11,600 --> 00:34:13,760 But sheer panic set in, 745 00:34:13,800 --> 00:34:17,280 and with a few laps to go, I mean, you know, 746 00:34:17,320 --> 00:34:19,880 a tyre could blow out, suspension could break, 747 00:34:19,920 --> 00:34:22,440 the brakes could fail, engine could blow up, 748 00:34:22,480 --> 00:34:24,840 you could make a mistake and spin off. 749 00:34:24,880 --> 00:34:28,320 And all these feelings in the car you have to manage 750 00:34:28,360 --> 00:34:30,600 because if you don't 751 00:34:30,639 --> 00:34:32,440 you'll crash on every corner. 752 00:34:32,480 --> 00:34:33,840 (UPLIFTING MUSIC) 753 00:34:38,480 --> 00:34:42,360 1985, the Grand Prix of Europe at Brands Hatch. 754 00:34:42,400 --> 00:34:44,800 And at long last, the British Motorsport public 755 00:34:44,840 --> 00:34:46,920 could let out a collective sigh of relief 756 00:34:46,960 --> 00:34:49,120 because after 72 Grand Prix starts, 757 00:34:49,159 --> 00:34:52,800 Nigel Mansell at last crossed the line in first position. 758 00:34:52,840 --> 00:34:54,120 (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) 759 00:34:54,159 --> 00:34:56,280 I actually saw Roseanne long before I saw Nigel 760 00:34:56,320 --> 00:34:57,640 at the end of the race. 761 00:34:57,680 --> 00:35:00,280 And we didn't say much, really. 762 00:35:00,320 --> 00:35:02,560 Just, you know, hugged and... 763 00:35:02,600 --> 00:35:04,720 it's happened and it's OK now. 764 00:35:04,760 --> 00:35:08,560 It'd been such a long, hard fight to get there. 765 00:35:08,600 --> 00:35:10,240 (UPLIFTING MUSIC CONTINUES) 766 00:35:11,400 --> 00:35:12,800 (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) 767 00:35:16,320 --> 00:35:18,360 You know, I think Nigel was one of those guys 768 00:35:18,400 --> 00:35:20,680 that didn't really wanna show too much emotion. 769 00:35:20,720 --> 00:35:22,840 And then as soon as he won his first race, 770 00:35:22,880 --> 00:35:25,920 I feel that it all came out and we saw the true Nigel 771 00:35:25,960 --> 00:35:29,120 and he felt confident in, you know, expressing himself. 772 00:35:29,160 --> 00:35:31,720 It's the most wonderful feeling in the world. 773 00:35:33,680 --> 00:35:37,120 Now he didn't need to prove anything anymore. 774 00:35:37,160 --> 00:35:41,320 I think anybody who's tried for the number of years he'd tried 775 00:35:41,360 --> 00:35:43,160 and then you suddenly win a race, 776 00:35:43,200 --> 00:35:45,480 you're a foot taller, then, aren't you? 777 00:35:45,520 --> 00:35:47,160 (UPLIFTING MUSIC CONTINUES) 778 00:35:50,360 --> 00:35:52,600 If anybody's won the race for me today, 779 00:35:52,640 --> 00:35:55,560 it's the people out there. They've just been unbelievable. 780 00:35:55,600 --> 00:35:58,320 I mean, on the last few laps I could just see 'em. 781 00:35:58,360 --> 00:36:00,240 I mean, it was just extraordinary. 782 00:36:00,280 --> 00:36:02,440 The best feeling I've ever had in my life. 783 00:36:02,480 --> 00:36:05,640 I think more than any other British driver I've known, 784 00:36:05,680 --> 00:36:08,960 he has a genuine love affair with the British public. 785 00:36:09,000 --> 00:36:11,880 And once you get over that hurdle, 786 00:36:11,920 --> 00:36:13,400 I was up and gone. 787 00:36:13,440 --> 00:36:15,480 I mean, I was ready to win everything. 788 00:36:15,520 --> 00:36:17,640 Immediately after came the second victory - 789 00:36:17,680 --> 00:36:20,240 the very next Grand Prix in South Africa. 790 00:36:20,280 --> 00:36:23,360 And suddenly we went into the close season thinking, 791 00:36:23,400 --> 00:36:26,000 "Hey, you know, this guy could really take it 792 00:36:26,040 --> 00:36:27,360 onto to the next level." 793 00:36:35,480 --> 00:36:37,600 (CLICKING) 794 00:36:37,640 --> 00:36:38,760 (FOREBODING MUSIC) 795 00:36:42,560 --> 00:36:45,280 Keke had had an offer to go to McLaren. 796 00:36:45,320 --> 00:36:47,960 The thinking was, Nigel's pretty good, 797 00:36:48,000 --> 00:36:50,040 but is he that good 798 00:36:50,080 --> 00:36:52,240 and is he gonna win us a world championship? 799 00:36:52,280 --> 00:36:54,920 So Frank was casting around for the next driver. 800 00:36:54,960 --> 00:36:57,320 We need to get a proven winner. We need to get Nelson Piquet. 801 00:36:57,360 --> 00:36:59,240 He was a double world champion at that point 802 00:36:59,280 --> 00:37:01,880 and he was Mr Perfect in every dimension 803 00:37:01,920 --> 00:37:03,400 from Frank's point of view. 804 00:37:03,440 --> 00:37:05,440 He loved the bikes, he loved the girls, 805 00:37:05,480 --> 00:37:09,080 he loved everything about Nelson's cosmopolitan way of life. 806 00:37:09,120 --> 00:37:11,600 He sent me off to Nelson's hotel room 807 00:37:11,640 --> 00:37:13,720 to get the draft agreement signed. 808 00:37:13,760 --> 00:37:16,240 Just said Nelson is the number one driver. 809 00:37:16,280 --> 00:37:19,680 I wasn't exactly thrilled with it 'cause I knew Nelson's reputation. 810 00:37:19,720 --> 00:37:22,840 Hopefully we could work close enough with Nelson to be, 811 00:37:22,880 --> 00:37:24,720 you know... 812 00:37:24,760 --> 00:37:26,640 be in the top three all the time. 813 00:37:26,680 --> 00:37:29,440 From his point of view, it was just yet another super quick driver 814 00:37:29,480 --> 00:37:31,160 who'd won world championships. He always thought, 815 00:37:31,200 --> 00:37:33,360 "Well, you know, and I'll beat him, I'll look even better, I guess." 816 00:37:33,400 --> 00:37:34,480 You know, that's the way he thought. 817 00:37:34,520 --> 00:37:37,920 The feeling was one of tremendous optimism. 818 00:37:37,960 --> 00:37:40,520 ANNOUNCER: Part of the contract allows Mobile to tour 819 00:37:40,560 --> 00:37:42,680 the Williams Oxfordshire-based race shop 820 00:37:42,720 --> 00:37:45,240 with some of its favoured clients. 821 00:37:45,280 --> 00:37:47,640 And we can monitor the functions of the engine meanwhile. 822 00:37:47,680 --> 00:37:50,320 ANNOUNCER: For Peter Windsor, it's a routine floor show. 823 00:37:50,360 --> 00:37:52,520 I joined Frank full-time in '85 824 00:37:52,560 --> 00:37:54,920 to do all the liveries and the uniforms, 825 00:37:54,960 --> 00:37:57,280 all that colour stuff. He can blame me for that. 826 00:37:57,320 --> 00:38:00,080 But as a result of that, I was quite involved 827 00:38:00,120 --> 00:38:02,120 at tests and at races. 828 00:38:02,160 --> 00:38:03,880 We were testing at Ricard. 829 00:38:03,920 --> 00:38:06,480 I mean, you could... there's so many ifs about this thing, 830 00:38:06,520 --> 00:38:08,800 but in fact Frank didn't really need to be there. 831 00:38:08,840 --> 00:38:10,520 He wanted to be there 'cause it was a test 832 00:38:10,560 --> 00:38:12,520 and it was the first time we were running 833 00:38:12,560 --> 00:38:14,680 the FW11 Honda car. 834 00:38:14,720 --> 00:38:19,200 I set off with Frank and he was in a Avis Ford Sierra. 835 00:38:20,360 --> 00:38:22,640 And it was a lovely afternoon, Saturday afternoon, 836 00:38:22,680 --> 00:38:26,080 but I didn't know that he was so into being flat out 837 00:38:26,120 --> 00:38:27,200 all the time. 838 00:38:28,800 --> 00:38:31,280 All I said was, "Are the brakes OK on this thing, Frank?" 839 00:38:31,320 --> 00:38:34,320 Which was my way of trying to say, "Do we need to go this quickly?" 840 00:38:34,360 --> 00:38:37,880 And he said, "Yeah, yeah, the brakes are fine, brakes are fine." 841 00:38:40,040 --> 00:38:41,600 And he goes through this kink. 842 00:38:41,640 --> 00:38:45,040 The back end just came out a little bit and I remember thinking, 843 00:38:45,080 --> 00:38:46,840 "Now we'll see how good he is." 844 00:38:49,400 --> 00:38:50,920 Frank did one of those, 845 00:38:50,960 --> 00:38:53,160 which immediately set up an oscillation, of course. 846 00:38:53,200 --> 00:38:54,920 We were obviously gonna hit the wall. 847 00:38:54,960 --> 00:38:55,960 (CAR SMASHES) 848 00:39:00,120 --> 00:39:02,840 Came to rest upside down. 849 00:39:02,880 --> 00:39:05,680 All I could hear was Frank saying, "Get me out, I'm trapped. 850 00:39:05,720 --> 00:39:07,160 I can't move. Get me out." 851 00:39:07,200 --> 00:39:10,080 The next thing, I was just lying in the grass field 852 00:39:10,120 --> 00:39:13,440 with a car ten metres away with Frank's... 853 00:39:13,480 --> 00:39:16,320 well, I was just cradling Frank's head in my lap. 854 00:39:16,360 --> 00:39:19,360 Nelson and I, an engineer, we raced to the accident 855 00:39:19,400 --> 00:39:21,360 and obviously saw the whole thing 856 00:39:21,400 --> 00:39:23,720 as it as it happened, pretty much. 857 00:39:23,760 --> 00:39:27,240 And I remember, obviously, travelling to the hospital 858 00:39:27,280 --> 00:39:31,760 in the ambulance to try and keep Frank alive, basically, 859 00:39:31,800 --> 00:39:33,160 and keep him stable. 860 00:39:33,200 --> 00:39:35,200 Nigel got into the ambulance with Frank 861 00:39:35,240 --> 00:39:37,600 and basically just kept him conscious, 862 00:39:37,640 --> 00:39:40,400 kept winding him up, 863 00:39:40,440 --> 00:39:43,760 cracking jokes, abusing him, whatever, you know, 864 00:39:43,800 --> 00:39:47,000 just to keep him going, keep the adrenaline going. 865 00:39:47,040 --> 00:39:49,960 He was incredible under stress. 866 00:39:50,000 --> 00:39:52,080 Somebody rang up and said, 867 00:39:52,120 --> 00:39:54,320 "Oh, Frank's had a bad accident." 868 00:39:54,360 --> 00:39:56,720 Yeah, I mean we were all obviously quite shocked, 869 00:39:56,760 --> 00:40:00,400 and then the stories coming out was how bad it was. 870 00:40:00,440 --> 00:40:02,200 I think we were all sort of on tenterhooks 871 00:40:02,240 --> 00:40:04,800 because Frank was such an integral part 872 00:40:04,840 --> 00:40:07,880 of the paddock and the team. 873 00:40:07,920 --> 00:40:11,560 Patrick Head assumed the mantle of leading the team 874 00:40:11,600 --> 00:40:13,440 and did a fabulous job. 875 00:40:13,480 --> 00:40:15,200 Everyone just closed ranks, 876 00:40:15,240 --> 00:40:17,160 which is what you have to do in adversity. 877 00:40:17,200 --> 00:40:19,320 Even Nelson and I closed complete ranks 878 00:40:19,360 --> 00:40:21,080 and for a short period of time 879 00:40:21,120 --> 00:40:23,080 we really worked well together. 880 00:40:23,120 --> 00:40:26,480 Determination of Ginny Williams was to keep her husband alive. 881 00:40:26,520 --> 00:40:28,920 I mean, an amazing lady who fought 882 00:40:28,960 --> 00:40:30,800 because, you know, there were people saying, 883 00:40:30,840 --> 00:40:32,400 "No, he won't survive." 884 00:40:32,440 --> 00:40:34,400 But when he reappeared, I mean, it was a... 885 00:40:34,440 --> 00:40:36,280 it was very emotional for everybody. 886 00:40:36,320 --> 00:40:37,520 Very emotional. 887 00:40:39,840 --> 00:40:43,960 Well, I suppose that day was just the inevitable result 888 00:40:44,000 --> 00:40:46,160 of 27 years of really good driving. 889 00:40:46,200 --> 00:40:48,360 I was laying there on the ground while the ambulance came. 890 00:40:48,400 --> 00:40:50,040 It took about an hour to get there. 891 00:40:50,080 --> 00:40:53,000 I couldn't feel very much except my hands and arms were burning 892 00:40:53,040 --> 00:40:55,320 as if I'd fallen off a bicycle and got gravel, 893 00:40:55,360 --> 00:40:57,320 you know, ripped the skin off. 894 00:40:58,560 --> 00:41:01,440 But over the next few months, one realised that, you know, 895 00:41:01,480 --> 00:41:04,600 you're not gonna walk again, and that was rather a shame. 896 00:41:05,680 --> 00:41:08,400 NARRATOR: Frank Williams is quadriplegic. 897 00:41:08,440 --> 00:41:10,120 Yep. From his shoulders down, 898 00:41:10,160 --> 00:41:13,400 he has no control over the functions of his own body. 899 00:41:13,440 --> 00:41:16,640 The intricate wiring of his nervous system is snapped, 900 00:41:16,680 --> 00:41:19,920 leaving the moving parts as dead as a broken machine. 901 00:41:19,960 --> 00:41:23,000 One of his first reactions was to sort of curse and swear 902 00:41:23,040 --> 00:41:24,880 and say, "I hope this isn't gonna mean 903 00:41:24,920 --> 00:41:27,080 that I'm not gonna get to the Brazilian Grand Prix." 904 00:41:27,120 --> 00:41:28,120 (DRUMS BEATING) 905 00:41:30,360 --> 00:41:32,480 Piquet kicked off the 1986 season 906 00:41:32,520 --> 00:41:34,800 with a win on home ground in Rio. 907 00:41:38,360 --> 00:41:40,920 The second round in Spain, Nigel and Ayrton 908 00:41:40,960 --> 00:41:44,000 were wheel to wheel, recording the second closest finish 909 00:41:44,040 --> 00:41:45,520 in F1 history, 910 00:41:45,560 --> 00:41:47,720 but Nigel just got beaten on that day. 911 00:41:47,760 --> 00:41:50,080 It was so close, I think they should give us... 912 00:41:50,120 --> 00:41:52,520 they should give us seven-and-a-half points each. 913 00:41:52,560 --> 00:41:55,560 The canny Alain Prost then took back-to-back victories 914 00:41:55,600 --> 00:41:57,560 at Imola and Monaco, 915 00:41:57,600 --> 00:41:59,320 and as the reigning world champion, 916 00:41:59,360 --> 00:42:01,600 he then drove himself right to the forefront 917 00:42:01,640 --> 00:42:03,520 of the '86 title battle. 918 00:42:03,560 --> 00:42:05,680 Nigel really had to dig deep to make sure 919 00:42:05,720 --> 00:42:07,760 that he remained within range 920 00:42:07,800 --> 00:42:10,400 and my goodness, during the mid part of that season, 921 00:42:10,440 --> 00:42:12,960 he put together a string of results 922 00:42:13,000 --> 00:42:15,600 which changed the course of the championship. 923 00:42:19,160 --> 00:42:20,680 I'm sorry it took so long, Frank, 924 00:42:20,720 --> 00:42:23,000 but we cracked it this year already. 925 00:42:23,040 --> 00:42:24,040 (DRUNS BEATING) 926 00:42:32,080 --> 00:42:34,680 The relationship with Nigel and Nelson broke down very quickly. 927 00:42:34,720 --> 00:42:37,840 Nelson felt that, as number one, 928 00:42:37,880 --> 00:42:40,840 he shouldn't be troubled by the other car at any stage. 929 00:42:40,880 --> 00:42:43,400 I was winning races and told to slow down. 930 00:42:43,440 --> 00:42:45,640 Or, I was catching up with the leader 931 00:42:45,680 --> 00:42:48,560 and told to slow down and stay status quo. 932 00:42:48,600 --> 00:42:51,960 Well, at those times my radio didn't function very well. 933 00:42:52,000 --> 00:42:53,880 You know, if you're racing, you're racing. 934 00:42:53,920 --> 00:42:56,120 The memo was I should never be quicker than him 935 00:42:56,160 --> 00:42:59,000 and I should never beat him, but I didn't get the memo. 936 00:43:00,000 --> 00:43:03,320 He put together a run of four wins in five races. 937 00:43:03,360 --> 00:43:05,360 The most important and the most emotional 938 00:43:05,400 --> 00:43:07,560 was the British Grand Prix win at Brands Hatch, 939 00:43:07,600 --> 00:43:10,400 beating Piquet and beating Piquet well. 940 00:43:14,520 --> 00:43:16,400 Adding to the emotion at Brands Hatch 941 00:43:16,440 --> 00:43:17,920 was the appearance in the pit lane 942 00:43:17,960 --> 00:43:20,000 of Frank Williams in his wheelchair. 943 00:43:20,040 --> 00:43:23,120 A few months earlier, nobody had expected to see him back 944 00:43:23,160 --> 00:43:25,800 at a Grand Prix circuit, but with Nigel winning 945 00:43:25,840 --> 00:43:29,320 and his team spearheading the world championship race, 946 00:43:29,360 --> 00:43:30,920 one of the great moments. 947 00:43:30,960 --> 00:43:31,960 (HORN BLARING) 948 00:43:34,960 --> 00:43:37,000 Mansell's victory spurred Piquet on 949 00:43:37,040 --> 00:43:39,560 and he went on a run of victories of his own. 950 00:43:40,960 --> 00:43:43,160 (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) 951 00:43:43,200 --> 00:43:46,440 With three races to go, four drivers could still win 952 00:43:46,480 --> 00:43:49,760 the World Championship, and the ringmaster, Bernie Ecclestone, 953 00:43:49,800 --> 00:43:53,360 gathered them all together in Estoril for a legendary picture 954 00:43:53,400 --> 00:43:55,440 now known as the Gang of Four. 955 00:43:55,480 --> 00:43:57,480 That photograph of the four drivers - 956 00:43:57,520 --> 00:43:59,720 Senna, Prost, Piquet, Mansell - 957 00:43:59,760 --> 00:44:02,240 reminds you of just how tough 958 00:44:02,280 --> 00:44:04,880 and how competitive Formula One was at that time. 959 00:44:04,920 --> 00:44:07,360 I mean, you're talking about four of the all-time greats there 960 00:44:07,400 --> 00:44:10,120 in one shot. I mean, it was truly a golden era. 961 00:44:10,160 --> 00:44:12,320 It's just unbelievable to think back 962 00:44:12,360 --> 00:44:15,200 that the former office cleaner from Hall Green in Birmingham 963 00:44:15,240 --> 00:44:17,600 at that time was leading all of them. 964 00:44:17,640 --> 00:44:19,600 And the others had world championships, 965 00:44:19,640 --> 00:44:21,400 and Nigel hadn't got one yet, 966 00:44:21,440 --> 00:44:24,800 but there they are trying to be friendly. (LAUGHS) 967 00:44:26,680 --> 00:44:28,640 (ENGINE ROARING) 968 00:44:28,680 --> 00:44:31,440 To be realistic, I think Nigel is world champion today, 969 00:44:31,480 --> 00:44:33,000 but it's not finished yet. 970 00:44:33,040 --> 00:44:35,720 The lineup for the grid for tomorrow's Australian Grand Prix, 971 00:44:35,760 --> 00:44:38,240 Nigel Mansell will start on pole position. 972 00:44:38,280 --> 00:44:41,640 Remember, Nigel only needs to finish in the top three in Adelaide 973 00:44:41,680 --> 00:44:44,680 to win the world championship ahead of his two closest challengers, 974 00:44:44,720 --> 00:44:47,080 Alain Prost and Nelson Piquet. 975 00:44:47,120 --> 00:44:49,920 He now has the chance, of course, to take the title he's waited for, 976 00:44:49,960 --> 00:44:51,120 for six years. 977 00:44:51,160 --> 00:44:52,960 With Senna out of contention, 978 00:44:53,000 --> 00:44:56,200 the season came down to one final race in Adelaide. 979 00:44:56,240 --> 00:44:59,040 Three drivers, Mansell with a six-point lead 980 00:44:59,080 --> 00:45:02,520 over Piquet and Prost. Surely this was his to lose. 981 00:45:02,560 --> 00:45:06,200 Just very excited that we were gonna get a British world champion. 982 00:45:06,240 --> 00:45:10,000 It was Nigel's moment, it was Nigel's day in the sun. 983 00:45:10,040 --> 00:45:12,560 Once again, Formula One was front page news. 984 00:45:12,600 --> 00:45:14,680 Can our Nige do it? 985 00:45:14,720 --> 00:45:18,200 We hadn't had a British world champion since James Hunt in 1976 986 00:45:18,240 --> 00:45:22,200 and there was this fantastic sense of national expectation. 987 00:45:22,240 --> 00:45:24,280 (HELICOPTER WHIRRING) 988 00:45:24,320 --> 00:45:25,400 (CARS REVVING) 989 00:45:25,440 --> 00:45:28,280 ANNOUNCER: And it's go, and a superb start from Nigel Mansell. 990 00:45:28,320 --> 00:45:31,320 Senna goes through into second place ahead of Piquet. 991 00:45:34,040 --> 00:45:36,000 Race was going to plan. 992 00:45:36,040 --> 00:45:37,680 Nigel was gonna win. 993 00:45:37,720 --> 00:45:40,080 You know, it was all going so well 994 00:45:40,120 --> 00:45:42,520 and then it... of course it all unravelled. 995 00:45:42,560 --> 00:45:44,920 In a race, you're never counting any chickens. 996 00:45:44,960 --> 00:45:47,160 You know, you know anything can happen. 997 00:45:49,000 --> 00:45:51,120 Tyres were a big issue then. 998 00:45:51,160 --> 00:45:52,720 Particularly on a circuit like Adelaide, 999 00:45:52,760 --> 00:45:55,120 there's a lot of heat and load 1000 00:45:55,160 --> 00:45:58,040 going through the rear tyres, particularly under traction. 1001 00:45:58,080 --> 00:46:00,800 Having said that, in those days a pit stop 1002 00:46:00,840 --> 00:46:03,080 was always a slightly risky thing. 1003 00:46:03,120 --> 00:46:05,080 You just want everything to go smoothly. 1004 00:46:05,120 --> 00:46:07,360 You don't want to go into the pits 1005 00:46:07,400 --> 00:46:09,720 and worry about a wheel not going on 1006 00:46:09,760 --> 00:46:13,400 or a cross-threaded wheel nut 'cause then your race is over. 1007 00:46:13,440 --> 00:46:15,680 They looked at the tyres, though, and they said they look good. 1008 00:46:15,720 --> 00:46:17,920 You know, they look fine so Nigel doesn't need to come in 1009 00:46:17,960 --> 00:46:20,000 for a tyre change. So he just cruised around. 1010 00:46:20,040 --> 00:46:22,000 He was in an easy position 1011 00:46:22,040 --> 00:46:23,720 and he was gonna be world champion 1012 00:46:23,760 --> 00:46:26,240 until that fateful straight. 1013 00:46:26,280 --> 00:46:28,360 (EXPLOSION) And look that! 1014 00:46:29,240 --> 00:46:31,080 Collosally, that's Mansell. 1015 00:46:31,120 --> 00:46:33,320 That is Nigel Mansell. 1016 00:46:33,360 --> 00:46:34,360 (SOFT MUSIC) 1017 00:46:43,120 --> 00:46:46,200 We were watching that long shot of him coming down the straight, 1018 00:46:46,240 --> 00:46:49,200 and then suddenly all hell lets loose and we just were gobsmacked. 1019 00:46:49,240 --> 00:46:51,360 It all was looking so good. 1020 00:46:51,400 --> 00:46:53,760 I think it was also, it was so spectacular 1021 00:46:53,800 --> 00:46:57,720 seeing the sparks and the wheel. 1022 00:46:57,760 --> 00:46:59,800 I can still, in my minds eye, 1023 00:46:59,840 --> 00:47:03,400 see the car, and see the tyre and see the sparks. 1024 00:47:03,440 --> 00:47:05,240 They brought Piquet into the pit, 1025 00:47:05,280 --> 00:47:08,000 so that scuppered his world championship chance, as well. 1026 00:47:08,040 --> 00:47:10,360 Alain Prost was the world champion. 1027 00:47:12,240 --> 00:47:15,080 When you feel like you're in control, shit hits the fan. 1028 00:47:15,120 --> 00:47:16,680 It normally does, 1029 00:47:16,720 --> 00:47:18,560 but that one was just out of the blue. 1030 00:47:18,600 --> 00:47:21,280 Everybody beats themselves up if it could have been avoided. 1031 00:47:21,320 --> 00:47:23,360 We could have put him on new tyres. 1032 00:47:23,400 --> 00:47:25,560 The only thing I regret is that I should have broken 1033 00:47:25,600 --> 00:47:27,600 a couple of legs and gone in the wall 1034 00:47:27,640 --> 00:47:30,000 and would have been world champion. You know, it'd been worth it. 1035 00:47:30,040 --> 00:47:32,760 If he didn't hang onto it at 200 miles an hour 1036 00:47:32,800 --> 00:47:36,080 and take it down the escape road, he would've put it into the wall. 1037 00:47:36,120 --> 00:47:38,480 They probably would've red flagged it, 'cause the car would've been 1038 00:47:38,520 --> 00:47:40,720 in the middle of the circuit. They would've taken it back a race 1039 00:47:40,760 --> 00:47:42,600 and he would've won the world championship. 1040 00:47:42,640 --> 00:47:43,840 But he did the right thing. 1041 00:47:43,880 --> 00:47:46,960 Just in that one moment, you can see how good Nigel is. 1042 00:47:47,000 --> 00:47:49,920 Every correction he makes to the wheel is absolutely perfect. 1043 00:47:49,960 --> 00:47:51,920 There's no overcorrection at any stage. 1044 00:47:51,960 --> 00:47:54,200 He's only got one tyre on the back of the car 1045 00:47:54,240 --> 00:47:56,720 and he's flat out and that was it, 1046 00:47:56,760 --> 00:47:59,560 championship to Prost. I'm sure Piquet was delighted. 1047 00:47:59,600 --> 00:48:02,160 For us, it was just like the worst trip home 1048 00:48:02,200 --> 00:48:04,240 that I've ever had. 1049 00:48:04,280 --> 00:48:08,000 No, I don't... I think he hightailed it away. 1050 00:48:08,040 --> 00:48:10,640 I don't remember even speaking to anybody who'd seen him 1051 00:48:10,680 --> 00:48:12,760 because, obviously, he would've been distraught. 1052 00:48:12,800 --> 00:48:15,760 Must have been devastating and I can't imagine 1053 00:48:15,800 --> 00:48:17,720 what went through his head. 1054 00:48:17,760 --> 00:48:20,000 You couldn't breathe. I couldn't breathe. 1055 00:48:20,040 --> 00:48:22,600 I mean, you come that close 1056 00:48:22,640 --> 00:48:25,240 and to know that you might never, 1057 00:48:25,280 --> 00:48:27,160 ever, ever smell it 1058 00:48:27,200 --> 00:48:30,000 or touch it or taste it ever again is... 1059 00:48:30,040 --> 00:48:32,120 How do you live with that the rest of your life? 1060 00:48:32,160 --> 00:48:34,600 And that's what kept me going. 1061 00:48:34,640 --> 00:48:37,040 I mean, the whole world had fallen apart. 1062 00:48:37,080 --> 00:48:39,040 The world championship had gone. 1063 00:48:39,080 --> 00:48:43,440 It was one of those iconic moments again in motor sport. 1064 00:48:43,480 --> 00:48:45,840 You know, that's how you lose a world championship. 1065 00:48:45,880 --> 00:48:49,840 I still sometimes have some sad moments 1066 00:48:49,880 --> 00:48:53,080 thinking how easy and how close it was 1067 00:48:53,120 --> 00:48:55,920 and to lose it in the way that we did was, was horrendous. 1068 00:48:55,960 --> 00:48:57,840 But the flip side of that is, 1069 00:48:57,880 --> 00:49:00,080 I think that just cemented the fans in place 1070 00:49:00,120 --> 00:49:01,760 for the rest of my career. 1071 00:49:01,800 --> 00:49:04,360 I mean, they lost the world championship, too. 1072 00:49:05,320 --> 00:49:06,760 That's what it felt like. 1073 00:49:06,800 --> 00:49:08,880 They shared it 1074 00:49:08,920 --> 00:49:11,760 and we shared everything together. 1075 00:49:11,800 --> 00:49:13,840 The irony is that, you know, 1076 00:49:13,880 --> 00:49:16,360 that he became a bigger star because of what happened 1077 00:49:16,400 --> 00:49:17,640 and the way it happened. 1078 00:49:17,680 --> 00:49:20,000 And perhaps even if he'd won, you know, 1079 00:49:20,040 --> 00:49:21,760 it became part of his story. 1080 00:49:21,800 --> 00:49:23,920 His story is drama. 1081 00:49:23,960 --> 00:49:26,080 So there was no world championship for Nigel, 1082 00:49:26,120 --> 00:49:28,720 but all the accolades came his way 1083 00:49:28,760 --> 00:49:30,360 over the next couple of months. 1084 00:49:30,400 --> 00:49:32,000 There were honours of all kind, 1085 00:49:32,040 --> 00:49:34,280 including one which he always regarded 1086 00:49:34,320 --> 00:49:36,000 as particularly significant. 1087 00:49:36,040 --> 00:49:38,760 And that was the BBC viewers and the television viewers 1088 00:49:38,800 --> 00:49:41,360 voting him Sports Personality of the Year. 1089 00:49:41,400 --> 00:49:43,680 Where everyone, in their tens of thousands, 1090 00:49:43,720 --> 00:49:46,440 voted for the top sportsman of the year. 1091 00:49:46,480 --> 00:49:48,600 Far bigger honour 1092 00:49:48,640 --> 00:49:51,200 than winning the Formula One world championship. 1093 00:49:52,280 --> 00:49:54,040 I love the fans... 1094 00:49:55,960 --> 00:49:58,520 ..and they kept me going. 1095 00:49:58,560 --> 00:50:00,160 Bless them. 1096 00:50:00,200 --> 00:50:03,040 You'll have to forgive me. You get a bit... 1097 00:50:03,080 --> 00:50:06,120 It's the pollen, it's the pollen. That's what it is. 1098 00:50:06,160 --> 00:50:07,160 (SOLEMN MUSIC) 1099 00:50:16,120 --> 00:50:17,440 (CLICKING) 1100 00:50:17,480 --> 00:50:18,840 (TENSE MUSIC) 1101 00:50:22,280 --> 00:50:24,440 That turbo car from 1987 1102 00:50:24,480 --> 00:50:27,560 was the peak of the turbo era. 1103 00:50:27,600 --> 00:50:30,000 They couldn't even measure the amount of horsepower 1104 00:50:30,040 --> 00:50:31,400 it was producing 1105 00:50:31,440 --> 00:50:33,800 and the Williams Honda FW11B 1106 00:50:33,840 --> 00:50:35,880 was the biggest monster of them all. 1107 00:50:35,920 --> 00:50:38,360 It was the best car out on the track. 1108 00:50:38,400 --> 00:50:40,360 It was gonna become down to a battle 1109 00:50:40,400 --> 00:50:44,440 between the two drivers - Nigel and Nelson. 1110 00:50:44,480 --> 00:50:46,600 They had not got a relationship. 1111 00:50:46,640 --> 00:50:49,480 They were what we'd say trading blows, weren't they? 1112 00:50:49,520 --> 00:50:53,920 I could sense and see there was a division happening in the team, 1113 00:50:53,960 --> 00:50:56,200 but I just put that down that, you know, 1114 00:50:56,240 --> 00:50:58,040 Nelson was a multiple world champion. 1115 00:50:58,080 --> 00:51:00,080 When you haven't won one, that's where you really are 1116 00:51:00,120 --> 00:51:03,840 at a disadvantage. He was being put under scrutiny. 1117 00:51:03,880 --> 00:51:06,200 You cannot say a better driver or worse driver 1118 00:51:06,240 --> 00:51:10,880 because I can say I win two championships and Nigel lost one. 1119 00:51:12,400 --> 00:51:15,000 Teammates in Formula One. 1120 00:51:15,040 --> 00:51:16,880 Yeah... 1121 00:51:16,920 --> 00:51:20,480 mates doesn't really work, I don't think. 1122 00:51:20,520 --> 00:51:22,320 There's always an atmosphere in a team, 1123 00:51:22,360 --> 00:51:24,120 especially if you're fighting for wins. 1124 00:51:24,160 --> 00:51:26,840 And Nigel and Nelson definitely had that. 1125 00:51:26,880 --> 00:51:30,880 Nelson Piquet, deep down there was a kind of 1126 00:51:30,920 --> 00:51:33,360 viciousness and a poison to him. 1127 00:51:33,400 --> 00:51:35,880 He was niggly, he was combative, 1128 00:51:35,920 --> 00:51:37,360 he was gossipy 1129 00:51:37,400 --> 00:51:39,680 and he was everything that you didn't want a teammate to be. 1130 00:51:39,720 --> 00:51:42,800 When Nigel did start to cramp Nelson's style, 1131 00:51:42,840 --> 00:51:45,280 whether it being qualifying, whether it be on the first lap 1132 00:51:45,320 --> 00:51:47,240 of a race, whether it be beating Nelson, 1133 00:51:47,280 --> 00:51:49,200 outracing him from start to finish, 1134 00:51:49,240 --> 00:51:51,240 he would go into Frank's office and say, 1135 00:51:51,280 --> 00:51:53,240 "You know, this is ridiculous. What is going on? 1136 00:51:53,280 --> 00:51:55,320 I'm supposed to be number one driver and this guy, 1137 00:51:55,360 --> 00:51:57,400 you keep giving him this and that and he's ahead of me. 1138 00:51:57,440 --> 00:51:59,440 They must be favouring Nigel with a better car 1139 00:51:59,480 --> 00:52:01,320 or Honda must be giving him a better engine 1140 00:52:01,360 --> 00:52:03,560 or something must be going on to explain this. 1141 00:52:03,600 --> 00:52:07,160 I don't like this situation. And Nigel's not good news at all." 1142 00:52:07,200 --> 00:52:09,840 Nelson was gonna use every bit of imagination 1143 00:52:09,880 --> 00:52:13,320 that he could to try to get inside Nigel's head, 1144 00:52:13,360 --> 00:52:17,520 irritate him, annoy him, upset him, beat him that way. 1145 00:52:17,560 --> 00:52:20,200 I think it was in Japan on the bullet train at one time, 1146 00:52:20,240 --> 00:52:21,560 and I'd hurt my ribs. 1147 00:52:21,600 --> 00:52:24,840 I think I fractured or cracked some ribs or whatever 1148 00:52:24,880 --> 00:52:28,120 and he kept poking me in my ribs on the way. 1149 00:52:28,160 --> 00:52:30,160 And I took it for a little while 1150 00:52:30,200 --> 00:52:32,240 and after you've been tapped a few times 1151 00:52:32,280 --> 00:52:34,880 I just turned around to him and I just looked at him 1152 00:52:34,920 --> 00:52:37,320 straight in the eyes and I said, "You do that one more time, 1153 00:52:37,360 --> 00:52:39,760 I will lay you out like there is no tomorrow." 1154 00:52:39,800 --> 00:52:43,440 Early '87, Nelson did an interview 1155 00:52:43,480 --> 00:52:45,560 with Playboy Brazil 1156 00:52:45,600 --> 00:52:47,960 in which he was asked about the differences 1157 00:52:48,000 --> 00:52:49,400 between him and Nigel. 1158 00:52:49,440 --> 00:52:52,120 And his reply was, "Well, the main difference 1159 00:52:52,160 --> 00:52:54,600 is I always have beautiful girlfriends and he has..." 1160 00:52:54,640 --> 00:52:57,760 And I won't use the word here, but he was very derogatory about Roseanne. 1161 00:52:57,800 --> 00:53:00,480 Roseanne is the nicest person you can meet in the world. 1162 00:53:00,520 --> 00:53:02,640 Their marriage is the most solid 1163 00:53:02,680 --> 00:53:05,520 I've ever experienced in any sporting environment. 1164 00:53:05,560 --> 00:53:08,240 The fact that Piquet felt that he needed to do these things, 1165 00:53:08,280 --> 00:53:11,160 I think it shows to what extent he felt threatened by Nigel. 1166 00:53:11,200 --> 00:53:13,520 Because if Nigel wasn't a threat, he wouldn't need to do it. 1167 00:53:13,560 --> 00:53:16,240 I think a lot of people thought it actually diminished Piquet. 1168 00:53:16,280 --> 00:53:18,640 He hit well below the belt and again, 1169 00:53:18,680 --> 00:53:20,760 but that just showed up his character 1170 00:53:20,800 --> 00:53:22,560 to say and do those things. 1171 00:53:22,600 --> 00:53:26,040 I don't think that speaks great volumes about yourself, does it? 1172 00:53:26,080 --> 00:53:29,760 And, of course, when that happens, from that moment onwards 1173 00:53:29,800 --> 00:53:32,480 he was a marked man so far as Nigel was concerned. 1174 00:53:32,520 --> 00:53:34,520 Whatever Nelson is, he is an idiot, 1175 00:53:34,560 --> 00:53:36,640 but he's a great driver. 1176 00:53:36,680 --> 00:53:40,080 Now, I had to hang it out there to even compete as a number two 1177 00:53:40,120 --> 00:53:41,880 to the number one. 1178 00:53:41,920 --> 00:53:44,240 Well, Nigel is a true racer 1179 00:53:44,280 --> 00:53:46,960 and when the lights go green, he kind of gets a bit red 1180 00:53:47,000 --> 00:53:49,280 and has a lot of anger in him and that's expressed 1181 00:53:49,320 --> 00:53:51,320 in some really superlative racing. 1182 00:53:51,360 --> 00:53:53,680 Frank Williams, he thought it was quite funny 1183 00:53:53,720 --> 00:53:56,520 that they were at each other's throat 'cause in his mind, 1184 00:53:56,560 --> 00:53:59,880 if you got two drivers who hate each other, they go faster. 1185 00:53:59,920 --> 00:54:02,560 What do you do? Do you turn around and say you've gotta be nice 1186 00:54:02,600 --> 00:54:03,960 to each other and work together? 1187 00:54:04,000 --> 00:54:07,520 As a team owner, you can't want better. 1188 00:54:07,560 --> 00:54:09,680 You know that at the end of a weekend 1189 00:54:09,720 --> 00:54:12,080 it will be a Williams car that wins 1190 00:54:12,120 --> 00:54:15,200 because your drivers are pushing each other so hard. 1191 00:54:15,240 --> 00:54:18,040 Piquet, by whatever means, was getting the upper hand 1192 00:54:18,080 --> 00:54:20,800 both in terms of what happened on the track 1193 00:54:20,840 --> 00:54:23,160 and maybe what was happening psychologically. 1194 00:54:23,200 --> 00:54:25,240 Our practise for the British Formula One Grand Prix 1195 00:54:25,280 --> 00:54:26,920 at Silverstone gets underway today 1196 00:54:26,960 --> 00:54:29,760 and the focus of attention this weekend will be on Nigel Mansell 1197 00:54:29,800 --> 00:54:32,000 and his William teammate Nelson Piquet, 1198 00:54:32,040 --> 00:54:34,840 who it seems have not been the best of friends. 1199 00:54:34,880 --> 00:54:37,360 The one great highlight, of course, was once again 1200 00:54:37,400 --> 00:54:39,440 the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, 1201 00:54:39,480 --> 00:54:42,600 where Nigel built up, built up, 1202 00:54:42,640 --> 00:54:45,040 built up to that wonderful move down the bottom 1203 00:54:45,080 --> 00:54:46,400 of the hangar straight. 1204 00:54:46,440 --> 00:54:49,160 The dummy move, I remember it in the karting days, 1205 00:54:49,200 --> 00:54:51,640 pretending you're going to the left and then 1206 00:54:51,680 --> 00:54:54,320 they slightly move that direction to cover you 1207 00:54:54,360 --> 00:54:57,320 and you change direction immediately and throw it down the inside. 1208 00:54:57,360 --> 00:54:58,400 (ENGINES ROARING) 1209 00:55:03,040 --> 00:55:05,880 They were so close to touching in what I would call 1210 00:55:05,920 --> 00:55:09,000 a pretty hairy overtake, but classic Nigel Mansell. 1211 00:55:09,040 --> 00:55:12,400 He was a bruiser and would do anything to succeed, 1212 00:55:12,440 --> 00:55:14,360 but Nelson gave him no room whatsoever. 1213 00:55:14,400 --> 00:55:17,520 It was one of the best overtakes 'cause that was on your teammate 1214 00:55:17,560 --> 00:55:19,160 in the same car. 1215 00:55:19,200 --> 00:55:21,880 And Williams did give both drivers the same equipment. 1216 00:55:21,920 --> 00:55:23,960 They never messed around like that. 1217 00:55:25,280 --> 00:55:29,080 I think that was actually the first proper track invasion we'd seen. 1218 00:55:29,120 --> 00:55:32,280 It was also the start, I think, of Mansell Mania. 1219 00:55:32,320 --> 00:55:34,000 If you're gonna have a home race, 1220 00:55:34,040 --> 00:55:36,000 that's the closest you can get to Birmingham. 1221 00:55:36,040 --> 00:55:38,280 So Silverstone is Nigel's backyard. 1222 00:55:38,320 --> 00:55:39,880 (CHEERING) 1223 00:55:39,920 --> 00:55:42,360 There were suddenly people coming to the races 1224 00:55:42,400 --> 00:55:44,880 that weren't necessarily Formula One fans. 1225 00:55:44,920 --> 00:55:47,960 They were Mansell fans. They wanted their man Nigel. 1226 00:55:48,000 --> 00:55:50,160 There was a worry, I think, in the sport that Nigel 1227 00:55:50,200 --> 00:55:52,760 was sort of attracting the wrong sort of fans. (CHUCKLES) 1228 00:55:52,800 --> 00:55:55,840 We were worried about getting football hooligans, I think. 1229 00:55:55,880 --> 00:55:58,160 People like an underdog, people like somebody 1230 00:55:58,200 --> 00:56:01,080 who's dogged and determined. I mean, the Bulldog spirit. 1231 00:56:01,120 --> 00:56:04,080 People were able to get behind the team and really felt part of it. 1232 00:56:04,120 --> 00:56:05,840 And when he won, it felt like they'd won. 1233 00:56:05,880 --> 00:56:07,840 They could see that Nigel was a real person, 1234 00:56:07,880 --> 00:56:10,880 that he had had a life before he became a Grand Prix driver. 1235 00:56:10,920 --> 00:56:12,880 He wasn't the product of some academy 1236 00:56:12,920 --> 00:56:15,040 that had taken him from karting straight through, 1237 00:56:15,080 --> 00:56:17,560 seamlessly into Formula One without ever having to do 1238 00:56:17,600 --> 00:56:20,360 a day's work in his life or get his hands dirty. 1239 00:56:20,400 --> 00:56:21,840 He was one of them, really. 1240 00:56:21,880 --> 00:56:24,000 The Red 5 symbol with Nigel 1241 00:56:24,040 --> 00:56:25,640 became a big marketing thing 1242 00:56:25,680 --> 00:56:28,320 and everyone knew Nigel as "Oh, Red 5, Red 5." 1243 00:56:28,360 --> 00:56:30,520 I think it's also because of his look. 1244 00:56:30,560 --> 00:56:33,400 You know, the bushy eyebrows, the big moustache. 1245 00:56:33,440 --> 00:56:35,560 He definitely had a look. 1246 00:56:35,600 --> 00:56:37,120 (LAUGHS) 1247 00:56:37,160 --> 00:56:39,920 Nelson wasn't happy. (CHUCKLES) 1248 00:56:39,960 --> 00:56:41,840 As you can imagine, 1249 00:56:41,880 --> 00:56:43,160 But the fans were. 1250 00:56:43,200 --> 00:56:44,600 (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) 1251 00:56:44,640 --> 00:56:47,440 They absolutely electrified the Silverstone crowd 1252 00:56:47,480 --> 00:56:51,320 and left them all believing that, "Yeah, our Nigel's the man." 1253 00:56:51,360 --> 00:56:53,920 He's turned the corner and, you know, the rest of the championship 1254 00:56:53,960 --> 00:56:55,560 is surely gonna be his. 1255 00:56:55,600 --> 00:56:58,200 It looked like it was gonna go down to the wire again in '87. 1256 00:56:58,240 --> 00:56:59,680 Nigel was in a good place. 1257 00:56:59,720 --> 00:57:02,640 It was well set up and it was gonna be pretty close for sure. 1258 00:57:02,680 --> 00:57:04,400 Came down to the last two races, 1259 00:57:04,440 --> 00:57:06,880 Piquet leading the championship charge. 1260 00:57:06,920 --> 00:57:09,960 But Nigel Mansell was still in touch with those two races left, 1261 00:57:10,000 --> 00:57:12,800 first of which was the Japanese Grand Prix. 1262 00:57:12,840 --> 00:57:15,520 Suzuka, 1987. 1263 00:57:17,080 --> 00:57:21,680 Nelson went out and did an amazing time in qualifying 1264 00:57:21,720 --> 00:57:24,000 and put in a great lap. 1265 00:57:24,040 --> 00:57:26,920 The moment Nigel saw that time 1266 00:57:26,960 --> 00:57:28,920 that Nelson put in, 1267 00:57:28,960 --> 00:57:30,680 that was game on. 1268 00:57:30,720 --> 00:57:33,480 And off Nigel went to match him. 1269 00:57:35,120 --> 00:57:36,600 I probably... 1270 00:57:38,920 --> 00:57:41,360 I thought I could get around that corner 1271 00:57:41,400 --> 00:57:43,280 just that little bit quicker 1272 00:57:43,320 --> 00:57:45,480 and will just go on the curb that little bit. 1273 00:57:47,760 --> 00:57:48,760 (CAR SMASHES) 1274 00:57:57,440 --> 00:58:00,760 I remember the shock up my spine 1275 00:58:00,800 --> 00:58:04,600 and it stopped me breathing for a minute or so. 1276 00:58:04,640 --> 00:58:07,040 I couldn't breathe, I was just paralysed. 1277 00:58:07,080 --> 00:58:09,000 It crushed my lower back. 1278 00:58:10,040 --> 00:58:12,480 Spinal concussion, they call it. 1279 00:58:13,840 --> 00:58:15,920 He was in so much agony. 1280 00:58:15,960 --> 00:58:19,760 It was pretty obvious that Nigel was not gonna race the next day. 1281 00:58:19,800 --> 00:58:22,360 So, obviously, that had handed the championship 1282 00:58:22,400 --> 00:58:24,960 to Nelson there and then. 1283 00:58:25,000 --> 00:58:27,520 He went off by helicopter and that was effectively 1284 00:58:27,560 --> 00:58:30,280 the championship over and it gave it to Nelson. 1285 00:58:30,320 --> 00:58:33,560 You know, there was no roistering celebrating. 1286 00:58:33,600 --> 00:58:36,240 Nelson didn't do that, nobody did that because he got the championship 1287 00:58:36,280 --> 00:58:38,280 but not the way anybody wanted it to end. 1288 00:58:38,320 --> 00:58:40,120 It was an anti-climax. 1289 00:58:40,160 --> 00:58:41,160 (SOLEMN MUSIC) 1290 00:58:45,000 --> 00:58:47,160 We still won the constructors' championship. 1291 00:58:47,200 --> 00:58:49,480 It was a bit of a mixed emotion. 1292 00:58:49,520 --> 00:58:52,920 I was beginning to wonder whether Nigel was jinxed, 1293 00:58:52,960 --> 00:58:54,320 shall we say. 1294 00:58:54,360 --> 00:58:56,600 And once again, the chorus started - 1295 00:58:56,640 --> 00:58:58,720 it ain't gonna happen for Nigel. 1296 00:58:58,760 --> 00:59:00,800 You know, I watched a couple of people dying 1297 00:59:00,840 --> 00:59:03,880 in intensive care over the time I was there, 1298 00:59:03,920 --> 00:59:06,680 and then I thought, in all honesty, I'll never race again. 1299 00:59:06,720 --> 00:59:09,400 When you hurt so badly and you think you're never gonna walk again, 1300 00:59:09,440 --> 00:59:10,880 it doesn't really matter. 1301 00:59:10,920 --> 00:59:12,880 My focus wasn't about racing then. 1302 00:59:12,920 --> 00:59:14,880 It was about, you know, 1303 00:59:14,920 --> 00:59:17,200 having my children climb on the bed 1304 00:59:17,240 --> 00:59:20,360 and don't understand why dad can't come outta bed. 1305 00:59:20,400 --> 00:59:22,520 I think the race was about November 1306 00:59:22,560 --> 00:59:25,600 and my leg feelings and my legs never came back till... 1307 00:59:25,640 --> 00:59:28,400 started to come back in January, February, I think. 1308 00:59:28,440 --> 00:59:31,520 The end of 1987 was pretty awful for Nigel. 1309 00:59:31,560 --> 00:59:34,640 He was lying in a Japanese hospital with a broken back. 1310 00:59:34,680 --> 00:59:36,880 He'd lost the world championship to Nelson, 1311 00:59:36,920 --> 00:59:39,840 and then Piquet had taken the Honda engines with him 1312 00:59:39,880 --> 00:59:41,880 and left Williams for Lotus. 1313 00:59:42,760 --> 00:59:43,760 (CLICKING) 1314 00:59:45,000 --> 00:59:47,720 NARRATOR: These are the FW11s, which took the team 1315 00:59:47,760 --> 00:59:51,560 and their sponsors to absolute victory in 1987. 1316 00:59:51,600 --> 00:59:55,960 The problem is these $10 million technological masterpieces 1317 00:59:56,000 --> 01:00:00,000 are antiques, more useless than a pre-war Mercedes 1318 01:00:00,040 --> 01:00:03,720 because Honda won't even let Williams keep last year's engines. 1319 01:00:03,760 --> 01:00:06,720 Williams were back in the pack for the 1988 season 1320 01:00:06,760 --> 01:00:09,080 and seemed to underline even more the fact 1321 01:00:09,120 --> 01:00:11,960 that Nigel's big chance had gone. 1322 01:00:12,920 --> 01:00:15,840 Nigel Mansell is leaving the Williams team for Ferrari next year 1323 01:00:15,880 --> 01:00:19,840 in a deal rumoured to be worth around £4 million to Mansell. 1324 01:00:19,880 --> 01:00:22,000 Nigel was the last driver 1325 01:00:22,040 --> 01:00:24,440 to be personally signed by Enzo Ferrari, 1326 01:00:24,480 --> 01:00:26,320 and that's quite a significant thing. 1327 01:00:26,360 --> 01:00:28,280 It's something Nigel himself is very proud of. 1328 01:00:28,320 --> 01:00:31,000 "The prophet is never recognised in his own country" is a phrase. 1329 01:00:31,040 --> 01:00:33,800 Interesting phrase, isn't it? When he went and raced for Ferrari, 1330 01:00:33,840 --> 01:00:36,160 they just saw what he did in a racing car 1331 01:00:36,200 --> 01:00:38,560 and what he did in a racing car gave him 1332 01:00:38,600 --> 01:00:40,480 the name "Il Leone." 1333 01:00:40,520 --> 01:00:42,880 And that's the way to look at Nigel Mansell. 1334 01:00:42,920 --> 01:00:45,320 He was a lion in a car. 1335 01:00:45,360 --> 01:00:48,320 He delivered some decent results for them 1336 01:00:48,360 --> 01:00:50,520 and then came all the political machinations 1337 01:00:50,560 --> 01:00:52,000 that proved his undoing. 1338 01:00:52,040 --> 01:00:55,160 Prost fell out with Senna at McLaren and needed to get out of there. 1339 01:00:55,200 --> 01:00:57,440 Ferrari had the opportunity to bring him in. 1340 01:00:57,480 --> 01:00:59,920 And even though Nigel had been there longer than Prost, 1341 01:00:59,960 --> 01:01:03,280 Prost very quickly worked out which were the levers you needed to pull. 1342 01:01:03,320 --> 01:01:05,400 And that situation, of course, all came to a head 1343 01:01:05,440 --> 01:01:07,440 at the British Grand Prix. 1344 01:01:07,480 --> 01:01:09,440 I got there and I got in my car 1345 01:01:09,480 --> 01:01:12,520 because we had qualifying cars and race cars. 1346 01:01:12,560 --> 01:01:15,080 And I sat in the car and I got in. 1347 01:01:15,120 --> 01:01:17,360 It's just like putting a pair of pants and your trousers on. 1348 01:01:17,400 --> 01:01:18,760 It didn't fit properly. 1349 01:01:18,800 --> 01:01:21,080 This is not my car. What the hell's going on? 1350 01:01:21,120 --> 01:01:23,920 So I went to the team manager, I said, "Look, you know, 1351 01:01:23,960 --> 01:01:25,880 you swapped cars on me. What the hell's going on?" 1352 01:01:25,920 --> 01:01:27,560 They had to admit that they... 1353 01:01:27,600 --> 01:01:30,240 Alain said, "I wanted Nigel's qualifying car 1354 01:01:30,280 --> 01:01:32,760 because of that qualifier the week before everything else." 1355 01:01:32,800 --> 01:01:35,560 If they'd just told me the truth, I wouldn't have got upset. 1356 01:01:35,600 --> 01:01:38,360 But they didn't. I had to squeeze it out of them. 1357 01:01:38,400 --> 01:01:40,720 So we went out and I qualified in his car, 1358 01:01:40,760 --> 01:01:42,720 got pole position and I said, 1359 01:01:42,760 --> 01:01:44,720 "Which car are you gonna have for the race now?" 1360 01:01:44,760 --> 01:01:47,200 Nigel took pole position, he was leading the race, 1361 01:01:47,240 --> 01:01:50,120 but once again his Ferrari broke down 1362 01:01:50,160 --> 01:01:52,200 and his teammate went on to win. 1363 01:01:52,240 --> 01:01:56,080 And so in front of the crowd, he throws his gloves. 1364 01:01:56,120 --> 01:01:58,680 The wind went out of my sails. 1365 01:01:58,720 --> 01:02:00,760 And I knew when I threw my balaclava 1366 01:02:00,800 --> 01:02:03,480 and I knew when I threw my gloves over the copse corner 1367 01:02:03,520 --> 01:02:06,240 and I was almost gonna throw my helmets, as well. 1368 01:02:06,280 --> 01:02:07,320 (SIGHS) 1369 01:02:07,360 --> 01:02:11,320 All that commitment, all the focus and everything else just went... 1370 01:02:12,480 --> 01:02:14,800 And I said, "I'm done." 1371 01:02:14,840 --> 01:02:16,240 It does make me very sad, 1372 01:02:16,280 --> 01:02:20,320 but I'm announcing my retirement today. 1373 01:02:20,360 --> 01:02:22,240 And retired, and that was it. 1374 01:02:22,280 --> 01:02:23,840 And he was off. 1375 01:02:23,880 --> 01:02:26,560 You know, people in shock. I think we all were. 1376 01:02:26,600 --> 01:02:29,080 And the race was still going on behind and we were all thinking, 1377 01:02:29,120 --> 01:02:30,640 "What on earth is going on?" 1378 01:02:30,680 --> 01:02:34,080 I think a fair amount of the press took it all with a pinch of salt. 1379 01:02:34,120 --> 01:02:36,600 And, you know, "This is Nigel. This is Nigel." 1380 01:02:37,600 --> 01:02:40,160 My commitment was to my family. 1381 01:02:41,720 --> 01:02:44,680 The years I was away from my family and my wife was... 1382 01:02:44,720 --> 01:02:45,800 it was tough. 1383 01:02:45,840 --> 01:02:49,320 There's so many incredible moments in my career 1384 01:02:49,360 --> 01:02:51,800 with Lotus and Williams and Ferrari 1385 01:02:51,840 --> 01:02:54,280 and a number of people I loved had died. 1386 01:02:54,320 --> 01:02:56,320 My teammates had died. 1387 01:02:56,360 --> 01:02:58,800 I've been close, then, 1388 01:02:58,840 --> 01:03:01,600 obviously a couple of times. 1389 01:03:01,640 --> 01:03:03,760 I'll get out and get a life. 1390 01:03:03,800 --> 01:03:05,720 I've got a long life ahead of me. 1391 01:03:05,760 --> 01:03:08,000 I'm still alive, I'm still breathing. 1392 01:03:09,080 --> 01:03:11,360 I was the happiest I could have been. 1393 01:03:11,400 --> 01:03:14,080 I think it was about six weeks or so. It was really good. 1394 01:03:14,120 --> 01:03:16,760 I was planning my golf and I was planning fishing. 1395 01:03:16,800 --> 01:03:18,800 We were really, really, really in a good place. 1396 01:03:18,840 --> 01:03:20,000 It was great. 1397 01:03:20,040 --> 01:03:21,560 And then... 1398 01:03:21,600 --> 01:03:23,800 of course, Prost and Senna, 1399 01:03:23,840 --> 01:03:26,080 they're supposed to be driving for Williams 1400 01:03:26,120 --> 01:03:27,960 for '91 and '92. 1401 01:03:28,000 --> 01:03:29,760 They obviously did their homework 1402 01:03:29,800 --> 01:03:32,240 and saw that the Williams wasn't gonna be the world beater 1403 01:03:32,280 --> 01:03:35,000 that they thought it was gonna be and neither one of them 1404 01:03:35,040 --> 01:03:36,760 wanted to drive for him. 1405 01:03:36,800 --> 01:03:39,600 And there was no number one drivers around. 1406 01:03:39,640 --> 01:03:41,280 Sheridan popped up, he said, 1407 01:03:41,320 --> 01:03:43,360 "We'd like you to be the lead driver for Williams." 1408 01:03:43,400 --> 01:03:46,000 And, of course, then ultimately, 1409 01:03:46,040 --> 01:03:49,160 Roseanne and I decided that I perhaps wouldn't be able 1410 01:03:49,200 --> 01:03:52,040 to live with myself if I didn't give it a go. 1411 01:03:52,080 --> 01:03:55,240 And one of the journalists suddenly came up to me and said, 1412 01:03:55,280 --> 01:03:57,040 "I've just had my office on the phone. 1413 01:03:57,080 --> 01:03:58,920 They've just said that they've heard 1414 01:03:58,960 --> 01:04:00,880 Nigel's coming back to Williams." 1415 01:04:00,920 --> 01:04:02,800 I said, "Well, but he retired." 1416 01:04:02,840 --> 01:04:04,760 "Well, he is unretiring." 1417 01:04:04,800 --> 01:04:07,000 The sport couldn't afford to lose him 1418 01:04:07,040 --> 01:04:09,160 and thankfully Formula One 1419 01:04:09,200 --> 01:04:11,360 managed to hang on to Nigel Mansell. 1420 01:04:17,325 --> 01:04:21,000 ANNOUNCER: Welcome to the Goodwood Festival of Speed, 1421 01:04:21,040 --> 01:04:24,880 the world's greatest celebration of motor sport. 1422 01:04:24,920 --> 01:04:27,920 Undoubtedly one highlight of the weekend 1423 01:04:27,960 --> 01:04:30,040 will be Nigel Mansell 1424 01:04:30,080 --> 01:04:34,120 being reunited with the Mighty Williams FW14B. 1425 01:04:34,160 --> 01:04:36,760 Red 5 is back. 1426 01:04:38,560 --> 01:04:41,400 FW14B Car 11 is so special 1427 01:04:41,440 --> 01:04:44,720 because it was only Nigel Mansell that drove that particular car. 1428 01:04:44,760 --> 01:04:46,480 And also to Williams fans, 1429 01:04:46,520 --> 01:04:49,960 it really is the absolute pinnacle of what we can do as a team. 1430 01:04:50,000 --> 01:04:52,480 Today we are prepping the car. 1431 01:04:52,520 --> 01:04:54,080 We're gonna meet Nigel Mansell. 1432 01:04:54,120 --> 01:04:59,080 He's gonna sit in this car for the first time since 1992. 1433 01:04:59,120 --> 01:05:01,480 Make sure that we're happy with how he fits in the car 1434 01:05:01,520 --> 01:05:03,560 for the big moment on Sunday. 1435 01:05:03,600 --> 01:05:06,920 To bring such a driver as him and the car together, 1436 01:05:06,960 --> 01:05:09,160 it's a really big moment, not just myself, 1437 01:05:09,200 --> 01:05:10,760 but for the whole crew. 1438 01:05:13,480 --> 01:05:14,640 (CLICKING) 1439 01:05:15,640 --> 01:05:18,000 NARRATOR: Eight months on from his emotional retirement, 1440 01:05:18,040 --> 01:05:20,080 Mansell was back at Silverstone today 1441 01:05:20,120 --> 01:05:22,240 with a team he can trust and a new car 1442 01:05:22,280 --> 01:05:24,640 produced by the organisation that so nearly brought him 1443 01:05:24,680 --> 01:05:26,880 world championships in '86 and '87. 1444 01:05:26,920 --> 01:05:30,000 Nigel was back in normality again, 1445 01:05:30,040 --> 01:05:32,040 this time with a teammate 1446 01:05:32,080 --> 01:05:34,040 with which he could feel comfortable. 1447 01:05:34,080 --> 01:05:37,760 Finally he got Ricardo and that coincided with a whole new era 1448 01:05:37,800 --> 01:05:40,600 for Williams with Patrick Head working with 1449 01:05:40,640 --> 01:05:44,520 this amazing boy hero, Adrian Newey. 1450 01:05:44,560 --> 01:05:46,800 He didn't come in with any real fanfare. 1451 01:05:46,840 --> 01:05:48,720 He basically just appeared. 1452 01:05:48,760 --> 01:05:50,760 Even then, back then, you know, 1453 01:05:50,800 --> 01:05:53,800 you could tell straight away he was a very special individual. 1454 01:05:53,840 --> 01:05:55,640 He didn't always need a wind tunnel. 1455 01:05:55,680 --> 01:05:57,920 He could look at a car and see which way the air 1456 01:05:57,960 --> 01:05:59,640 was actually flowing over it. 1457 01:05:59,680 --> 01:06:02,800 Using the cockpit as an aerodynamic device was a completely... 1458 01:06:02,840 --> 01:06:06,640 a massive departure from the old boxy-looking Williams. 1459 01:06:06,680 --> 01:06:08,920 They'd also had Renault engines and Renault engines 1460 01:06:08,960 --> 01:06:11,240 were coming strong and they were going places. 1461 01:06:11,280 --> 01:06:14,560 So '91 season was all about Senna versus Mansell. 1462 01:06:14,600 --> 01:06:17,160 You talk about iconic moments in motor sport, 1463 01:06:17,200 --> 01:06:20,080 but that shot down the straight where Senna and Mansell 1464 01:06:20,120 --> 01:06:22,440 were defying each other to back off. 1465 01:06:22,480 --> 01:06:24,080 Wonderful Formula One. 1466 01:06:24,120 --> 01:06:26,360 I think it took me a little bit of time to realise 1467 01:06:26,400 --> 01:06:29,600 just how ruthless Ayrton was. 1468 01:06:29,640 --> 01:06:32,440 I mean, he actually planned how to knock people off the circuit 1469 01:06:32,480 --> 01:06:35,640 a number of times and I was a recipient of that a few times. 1470 01:06:35,680 --> 01:06:37,560 In the early days, Senna was a bit wild. 1471 01:06:37,600 --> 01:06:39,480 He didn't mind taking people off the racetrack. 1472 01:06:39,520 --> 01:06:42,440 Nigel famously once pinned him against the wall by his throat 1473 01:06:42,480 --> 01:06:45,080 and said, "If you ever do that again, I'll knock your block off." 1474 01:06:45,120 --> 01:06:48,240 We had a hell of a punch up at the Spa Grand Prix 1475 01:06:48,280 --> 01:06:49,680 and we both went off. 1476 01:06:49,720 --> 01:06:52,320 He says, "You're absolutely crazy, aren't you?" And I said, "No." 1477 01:06:52,360 --> 01:06:55,000 I said, "I'm not crazy." I said, "But I've had enough of you. 1478 01:06:55,040 --> 01:06:58,240 I'm not gonna let you intimidate me and take me off anymore. 1479 01:06:58,280 --> 01:07:02,120 And if you're gonna try and kill me, I'm telling you now, I'll kill you. 1480 01:07:02,160 --> 01:07:03,920 We're either gonna die together 1481 01:07:03,960 --> 01:07:05,920 or there's gonna be a healthy respect." 1482 01:07:05,960 --> 01:07:08,080 And from that second on, 1483 01:07:08,120 --> 01:07:11,440 and I would say there was a far greater understanding 1484 01:07:11,480 --> 01:07:12,480 between us. 1485 01:07:12,520 --> 01:07:14,880 Yeah, we got on a lot better then. 1486 01:07:14,920 --> 01:07:16,120 (BRIGHT PIANO MUSIC) 1487 01:07:18,040 --> 01:07:20,120 And then, of course, we get to Silverstone 1488 01:07:20,160 --> 01:07:22,720 and, of course, Nigel is gonna do it again for the crowd. 1489 01:07:22,760 --> 01:07:25,680 This time the crowd come pouring onto the circuit 1490 01:07:25,720 --> 01:07:27,640 and he picked up Ayrton Senna 1491 01:07:27,680 --> 01:07:29,960 and a wonderful gesture to give him a lift back to the pits. 1492 01:07:30,000 --> 01:07:31,360 He got criticised for that. 1493 01:07:31,400 --> 01:07:33,920 All Ayrton was doing was reading the data 1494 01:07:33,960 --> 01:07:37,680 from his steering wheel to report back to the team 1495 01:07:37,720 --> 01:07:39,480 and what he'd seen on the Williams. 1496 01:07:39,520 --> 01:07:42,520 So Nigel's nice act backfired a little bit. 1497 01:07:42,560 --> 01:07:44,440 After the Silverstone heroics. 1498 01:07:44,480 --> 01:07:47,120 Well, Nigel was in firm contention 1499 01:07:47,160 --> 01:07:49,640 until, of course, that awful moment in Portugal. 1500 01:07:49,680 --> 01:07:51,120 The scenario couldn't be better. 1501 01:07:51,160 --> 01:07:52,800 He's in control of the Grand Prix 1502 01:07:52,840 --> 01:07:54,640 and it looks like it's gonna be a big point swing 1503 01:07:54,680 --> 01:07:55,920 because Senna is further back. 1504 01:07:55,960 --> 01:07:58,000 It was all set up perfectly for Nigel. 1505 01:07:59,760 --> 01:08:02,120 The car came in, the gun went in, 1506 01:08:02,160 --> 01:08:04,520 took the nut out, wheel came off, 1507 01:08:04,560 --> 01:08:07,800 put the nut on. It got cross-threaded 1508 01:08:07,840 --> 01:08:09,520 and what he did was pull the gun out 1509 01:08:09,560 --> 01:08:11,920 and when the guy on the rear jack saw the gun come out, 1510 01:08:11,960 --> 01:08:13,800 he thought, "Oh, that wheel's clear." 1511 01:08:13,840 --> 01:08:15,520 And that was the problem. 1512 01:08:15,560 --> 01:08:16,560 (ENGINE ROARING) 1513 01:08:19,560 --> 01:08:21,880 I think I remember Patrick Head saying, 1514 01:08:21,920 --> 01:08:23,840 "Operationally, (CHUCKLES) 1515 01:08:23,880 --> 01:08:25,840 I think we could have done better, 1516 01:08:25,880 --> 01:08:28,640 like putting four wheels on instead of just three." 1517 01:08:28,680 --> 01:08:32,359 The media were onto us wanting to know whose fault it was. 1518 01:08:32,399 --> 01:08:34,279 And I'll give Nigel his due. 1519 01:08:34,319 --> 01:08:36,880 He never once blamed anybody. 1520 01:08:36,920 --> 01:08:40,319 He said, you know, "We win as a team and we lose as a team." 1521 01:08:40,359 --> 01:08:43,040 The world title challenge completely disappeared. 1522 01:08:43,080 --> 01:08:46,080 For a third time he was runner up 1523 01:08:46,120 --> 01:08:48,200 in the Formula One world championship. 1524 01:08:48,240 --> 01:08:51,200 But things were only about to get a bit worse in Adelaide. 1525 01:08:51,240 --> 01:08:52,920 We were racing in a monsoon. 1526 01:08:52,960 --> 01:08:55,439 There was something like seven, eight, maybe even nine cars 1527 01:08:55,479 --> 01:08:58,120 crashed out already and I was racing tooth and nail, 1528 01:08:58,160 --> 01:08:59,880 guess with who? Ayrton. 1529 01:08:59,920 --> 01:09:02,160 And I just aquaplaned straight off, 1530 01:09:02,200 --> 01:09:04,120 straight into a solid concrete wall 1531 01:09:04,160 --> 01:09:06,720 and I felt my foot break as soon as I hit the wall. 1532 01:09:06,760 --> 01:09:09,359 It wasn't really obvious at the time how serious it was, 1533 01:09:09,399 --> 01:09:12,319 but as time went on, it became clear this was a much more serious 1534 01:09:12,359 --> 01:09:14,279 situation than it had first looked. 1535 01:09:14,319 --> 01:09:17,240 My surgeon said, "Your foot splinted." 1536 01:09:17,279 --> 01:09:19,680 He said, "We've gotta get the chisel 1537 01:09:19,720 --> 01:09:22,960 and hit it with a hammer and get the bone spurs off 1538 01:09:23,000 --> 01:09:24,200 which were splintered." 1539 01:09:24,240 --> 01:09:26,560 And I said, "Look, I can't have three months off." 1540 01:09:26,600 --> 01:09:28,920 I said, "What's the worst case scenario?" 1541 01:09:28,960 --> 01:09:31,240 He said, "Well, eventually the splinters 1542 01:09:31,279 --> 01:09:32,960 will come through the surface." 1543 01:09:33,000 --> 01:09:35,160 And he said, "Then you can pull 'em out 1544 01:09:35,200 --> 01:09:37,200 but it'll be very, very painful." 1545 01:09:37,240 --> 01:09:39,040 And I said, "Well, I'll do that." 1546 01:09:39,080 --> 01:09:42,200 And when you have an injury, you have to then go to the FAA doctor 1547 01:09:42,240 --> 01:09:44,560 and pass medicals. I knew I wouldn't pass a medical 1548 01:09:44,600 --> 01:09:47,640 'cause if they examined it and touched it, I'd pass out. 1549 01:09:47,680 --> 01:09:49,880 My thought process, 1550 01:09:49,920 --> 01:09:52,600 perhaps not the best, I admit, 1551 01:09:52,640 --> 01:09:55,000 was not tell anybody, 1552 01:09:55,040 --> 01:09:57,960 which is pretty tough because I had a limp all year. 1553 01:09:58,000 --> 01:10:00,880 So '91 ends with Nigel second again 1554 01:10:00,920 --> 01:10:02,480 but there was a difference this time. 1555 01:10:02,520 --> 01:10:04,440 There was a real optimism within the team 1556 01:10:04,480 --> 01:10:06,080 and I think Nigel knew it, as well. 1557 01:10:06,120 --> 01:10:08,840 He just needed to make sure that he was ready. 1558 01:10:08,880 --> 01:10:10,480 I was overdue. 1559 01:10:10,520 --> 01:10:13,240 I mean, the fans were overdue. We were overdue. 1560 01:10:13,280 --> 01:10:15,480 I mean, come on, let's get it done. 1561 01:10:16,680 --> 01:10:18,120 (SOFT MUSIC) 1562 01:10:21,960 --> 01:10:23,240 (INDISTINCT CHATTER) 1563 01:10:25,000 --> 01:10:27,120 How you doing? You all right? You good? 1564 01:10:27,160 --> 01:10:29,160 Nigel, you all right? 1565 01:10:30,160 --> 01:10:32,200 All right, Nige? Good to see you. 1566 01:10:32,240 --> 01:10:34,160 Might be racing this weekend. Oh, yeah. 1567 01:10:36,160 --> 01:10:37,560 Oh, dear. 1568 01:10:37,600 --> 01:10:39,880 This is your original seat. 1569 01:10:39,920 --> 01:10:41,240 Good Lord. 1570 01:10:42,680 --> 01:10:45,040 Definitely got smaller. You've got bigger. 1571 01:10:45,080 --> 01:10:46,080 (CHUCKLES) 1572 01:10:51,560 --> 01:10:54,360 Hey, Jay, this is the old crew. 1573 01:10:54,400 --> 01:10:56,720 We all go back a long way. Yeah. 1574 01:10:56,760 --> 01:10:58,680 Remember how to drive it? I don't know. 1575 01:10:58,720 --> 01:11:00,360 You have to teach me. 1576 01:11:02,600 --> 01:11:05,040 ..zero, the engine will stop 1577 01:11:05,080 --> 01:11:07,280 and then just flick it back into P1. OK, got it. 1578 01:11:07,320 --> 01:11:09,760 Just make sure you're in neutral, yeah?Yeah. Got it. 1579 01:11:09,800 --> 01:11:12,160 When we start, we put this one up immediately. 1580 01:11:12,200 --> 01:11:14,080 Yeah. All right, and then we go, 1581 01:11:14,120 --> 01:11:16,440 we switch it off and then put it back to one. 1582 01:11:16,480 --> 01:11:18,240 Perfect. Perfect. 1583 01:11:18,280 --> 01:11:21,840 You don't remember?I remember, yeah. I remember.(CHUCKLES) 1584 01:11:21,880 --> 01:11:25,760 The clutch is very hard, isn't it? Hoo-hoo! 1585 01:11:25,800 --> 01:11:28,640 Amazingly enough, the seat fits really nice. 1586 01:11:28,680 --> 01:11:30,040 It's comfortable. 1587 01:11:30,080 --> 01:11:33,680 The back of the spine is in the seat, which is lovely, 1588 01:11:33,720 --> 01:11:35,680 and the headrest is not too bad. 1589 01:11:40,920 --> 01:11:44,120 I'll tell you, coming back and sitting in it, 1590 01:11:44,160 --> 01:11:47,440 you actually realise just how exposed we were. 1591 01:11:47,480 --> 01:11:51,160 I mean, when you think the protection they've got now. 1592 01:11:51,200 --> 01:11:52,520 (SOFT MUSIC CONTINUES) 1593 01:11:54,480 --> 01:11:56,520 Everyone... 1594 01:11:56,560 --> 01:12:00,320 I just want to let you know how really, really proud I am 1595 01:12:00,360 --> 01:12:02,600 to be here and drive the car. 1596 01:12:02,640 --> 01:12:03,960 It's fantastic. 1597 01:12:04,000 --> 01:12:06,080 All the memories are flooding back. 1598 01:12:17,000 --> 01:12:19,440 I remember this position very well. 1599 01:12:19,480 --> 01:12:21,840 (MEN LAUGHING) 1600 01:12:21,880 --> 01:12:25,000 This will always be your car. It's that time in history - 1601 01:12:25,040 --> 01:12:27,200 Memories in time, isn't it? Yeah. Yeah. 1602 01:12:27,240 --> 01:12:30,840 I mean, to think it's 30 years ago is staggering.I know. I know. 1603 01:12:32,760 --> 01:12:34,160 (ENGINE REVVING) 1604 01:12:40,360 --> 01:12:42,800 Can I take a picture of you? Yes, please. Yeah. 1605 01:12:42,840 --> 01:12:45,320 Oh, I'm so blessed. Thank you. 1606 01:12:48,120 --> 01:12:49,640 Thank you. 1607 01:12:53,880 --> 01:12:55,960 As '91 went into '92, 1608 01:12:56,000 --> 01:12:58,440 Nigel knew he had a real opportunity 1609 01:12:58,480 --> 01:13:00,280 to win the world championship. 1610 01:13:00,320 --> 01:13:03,440 You dreamt it for years and years, you've tasted it. 1611 01:13:03,480 --> 01:13:05,480 I mean, I'm getting goose pimply now. 1612 01:13:05,520 --> 01:13:07,880 How can you go goose pimply 30 years after? 1613 01:13:07,920 --> 01:13:09,760 It was almost like a Rocky movie. 1614 01:13:09,800 --> 01:13:12,760 I mean, he's 39 years of age, he's almost 40. 1615 01:13:12,800 --> 01:13:15,360 He's got a broken foot and he's going into the last year 1616 01:13:15,400 --> 01:13:16,440 of his contract. 1617 01:13:16,480 --> 01:13:18,720 There was very much this sense that it's now or never, 1618 01:13:18,760 --> 01:13:19,800 it's make or break. 1619 01:13:19,840 --> 01:13:22,160 He was running outta years so I think he knew 1620 01:13:22,200 --> 01:13:24,280 this probably was his last shot at it. 1621 01:13:24,320 --> 01:13:27,400 I think they were very excited and very confident about their car. 1622 01:13:27,440 --> 01:13:30,080 These days there's a new car every season, 1623 01:13:30,120 --> 01:13:32,280 but it was such a good car. I think they just felt that 1624 01:13:32,320 --> 01:13:34,760 they could develop some parts of it and it would be better. 1625 01:13:34,800 --> 01:13:38,960 The FW14B is one of the top five greatest cars of all time. 1626 01:13:39,000 --> 01:13:42,760 It had a new technological weapon known as active ride. 1627 01:13:42,800 --> 01:13:45,720 They had gone through such an exhaustive testing programme 1628 01:13:45,760 --> 01:13:49,200 in '91 with the likes of Damon Hill and Mark Blundell 1629 01:13:49,240 --> 01:13:52,600 to make sure the car was reliable for it in '92. 1630 01:13:52,640 --> 01:13:55,320 Nigel called me the test monkey. I think something like that. 1631 01:13:55,360 --> 01:13:57,520 It just... 1632 01:13:57,560 --> 01:13:59,880 was a beast, basically. 1633 01:13:59,920 --> 01:14:01,840 It had a life of its own. 1634 01:14:01,880 --> 01:14:04,800 It used to just sit there in the garage moving on its own, 1635 01:14:04,840 --> 01:14:06,480 up and down, side to side, 1636 01:14:06,520 --> 01:14:09,360 bleeding the air out of its hydraulic systems. 1637 01:14:09,400 --> 01:14:12,120 What was so special about the active ride suspension? 1638 01:14:12,160 --> 01:14:14,840 What it meant was that the car would anticipate 1639 01:14:14,880 --> 01:14:16,360 the bumps in the road. 1640 01:14:16,400 --> 01:14:19,480 Look at one of those videos on YouTube of holding a chicken's body 1641 01:14:19,520 --> 01:14:22,600 and tilting it like that and yet the head stays exactly 1642 01:14:22,640 --> 01:14:24,800 in the same place. That is active ride. 1643 01:14:24,840 --> 01:14:27,680 It's not to do with the suspension, it's to do with the aerodynamics. 1644 01:14:27,720 --> 01:14:30,160 If you look at pictures of the active car, 1645 01:14:30,200 --> 01:14:32,240 it looks like the suspension's broken. 1646 01:14:32,280 --> 01:14:34,080 It looks like... You can't see any air underneath it. 1647 01:14:34,120 --> 01:14:35,720 It is stuck to the ground. 1648 01:14:35,760 --> 01:14:38,680 If you can keep the car in a steady state and keep it stable, 1649 01:14:38,720 --> 01:14:41,600 then those aerodynamics are always operating at their top level. 1650 01:14:41,640 --> 01:14:43,800 It was only really made possible by computers 1651 01:14:43,840 --> 01:14:46,280 and it meant that this was the start of 1652 01:14:46,320 --> 01:14:48,440 really what we take for granted today. 1653 01:14:48,480 --> 01:14:50,120 You know, they broke that ground. 1654 01:14:50,160 --> 01:14:53,280 Active suspension looks great on paper. 1655 01:14:53,320 --> 01:14:55,680 Sometimes it does weird things. 1656 01:14:55,720 --> 01:14:58,440 Would start to shake a little bit and then it'd get really violent 1657 01:14:58,480 --> 01:15:01,200 and you don't want that when you're going 180 miles an hour. 1658 01:15:01,240 --> 01:15:05,360 So Nigel was understandably sceptical about this. 1659 01:15:05,400 --> 01:15:07,280 The car, I would say, 1660 01:15:07,320 --> 01:15:10,120 is one of the most dangerous cars to drive. 1661 01:15:10,160 --> 01:15:12,480 You had to anticipate what it was gonna do, 1662 01:15:12,520 --> 01:15:15,240 trust that it wouldn't completely fail you. 1663 01:15:15,280 --> 01:15:17,640 But if it did, you'd get hurt. 1664 01:15:17,680 --> 01:15:21,640 And it hadn't killed me, so it'd be all right. (LAUGHS) 1665 01:15:21,680 --> 01:15:24,440 Subject to upsetting my wife and the family and friends 1666 01:15:24,480 --> 01:15:27,120 and everything else, I came first. 1667 01:15:27,160 --> 01:15:31,240 There was nothing that came between me and doing my job. 1668 01:15:31,280 --> 01:15:33,800 Nigel took me to one side and he said, 1669 01:15:33,840 --> 01:15:36,960 "Just make this car bulletproof and we will clean up this season." 1670 01:15:37,000 --> 01:15:39,800 We basically then went off to the first five races 1671 01:15:39,840 --> 01:15:42,800 and won the first five races on the trot. 1672 01:15:42,840 --> 01:15:43,840 (CHEERING) 1673 01:15:45,280 --> 01:15:48,080 I think he found a groove with that car. 1674 01:15:48,120 --> 01:15:50,840 You know, I think he found a setup that really worked for him 1675 01:15:50,880 --> 01:15:53,280 and you can see it. He was so confident in his driving. 1676 01:15:53,320 --> 01:15:55,680 It's a complete caricature and a falsehood to say, 1677 01:15:55,720 --> 01:15:58,080 "Oh, this was a robot car and all Mansell had to do 1678 01:15:58,120 --> 01:16:00,040 was just drive it and he would win." 1679 01:16:00,080 --> 01:16:02,800 But Nigel was really in tune with the physics of the car 1680 01:16:02,840 --> 01:16:04,480 and he loved the physics of the car. 1681 01:16:04,520 --> 01:16:07,280 There's something extra that he was getting out of it. 1682 01:16:07,320 --> 01:16:10,200 I mean, he would wring it's neck. 1683 01:16:10,240 --> 01:16:12,120 I wanted things so bad 1684 01:16:12,160 --> 01:16:14,440 that I was prepared to 1685 01:16:14,480 --> 01:16:16,320 push it out there a little bit more. 1686 01:16:16,360 --> 01:16:19,600 Ayrton Senna, they were envious. Everyone was envious because 1687 01:16:19,640 --> 01:16:22,000 who wouldn't want to be in the sharp end? 1688 01:16:22,040 --> 01:16:25,200 I knew that everyone was stacking up to take the drive. 1689 01:16:25,240 --> 01:16:27,800 I was willing to go into every race and risk my life. 1690 01:16:27,840 --> 01:16:29,840 If I died, I died. 1691 01:16:29,880 --> 01:16:32,200 But the commitment I had was absolute. 1692 01:16:32,240 --> 01:16:35,560 I mean, that's the only thing I can say. The commitment was total. 1693 01:16:35,600 --> 01:16:38,760 We knew that the car could perform, we knew Nigel could perform, 1694 01:16:38,800 --> 01:16:41,120 and we had a confidence that 1695 01:16:41,160 --> 01:16:43,720 neither was gonna let us down. 1696 01:16:43,760 --> 01:16:45,960 We could see the championship coming towards us 1697 01:16:46,000 --> 01:16:48,520 and it was like, we can't drop the ball this time, 1698 01:16:48,560 --> 01:16:49,880 we can't drop the ball. 1699 01:16:49,920 --> 01:16:53,800 ANNOUNCER: Finally, the moment we have all been waiting for. 1700 01:16:53,840 --> 01:16:56,240 Today we are at Goodwood Festival of Speed. 1701 01:16:56,280 --> 01:16:59,040 We're here with FW14B, Nigel Mansell. 1702 01:16:59,080 --> 01:17:01,160 We can't wait to get onto the hill this afternoon 1703 01:17:01,200 --> 01:17:03,440 and give them what they've come for. 1704 01:17:03,480 --> 01:17:06,520 To see Nigel driving the car again, 1705 01:17:06,560 --> 01:17:09,520 it's hard to imagine what that means to us, 1706 01:17:09,560 --> 01:17:11,560 'cause I mean these were heady times. 1707 01:17:11,600 --> 01:17:14,080 We were developing the car week on week. 1708 01:17:14,120 --> 01:17:18,520 He drove it to the limit and it was just spectacular. 1709 01:17:18,560 --> 01:17:19,960 '92 Was just a dream start 1710 01:17:20,000 --> 01:17:23,120 and you wonder when it was gonna end, of course. 1711 01:17:23,160 --> 01:17:25,120 You knew something would go wrong at some point. 1712 01:17:25,160 --> 01:17:28,040 Of course it was Monaco and it was ridiculous. 1713 01:17:28,080 --> 01:17:30,920 Nigel, with this 30-second lead, came into the pits 1714 01:17:30,960 --> 01:17:33,400 but came out behind Ayrton Senna 1715 01:17:33,440 --> 01:17:36,280 and he gave us six laps of the most extraordinary 1716 01:17:36,320 --> 01:17:38,640 Formula One theatre that you can imagine. 1717 01:17:38,680 --> 01:17:41,120 He was right on his gearbox, but even for Nigel, 1718 01:17:41,160 --> 01:17:44,400 there wasn't gonna be enough room to get past it. 1719 01:17:44,440 --> 01:17:46,920 He never won the Monaco Grand Prix. It's crazy. 1720 01:17:46,960 --> 01:17:48,560 Yeah, what ifs. 1721 01:17:48,600 --> 01:17:50,640 Motorsport's littered with what ifs. 1722 01:17:50,680 --> 01:17:51,920 (INDISTINCT CHATTER) 1723 01:17:56,560 --> 01:17:58,480 At the '92 British Grand Prix, 1724 01:17:58,520 --> 01:18:02,360 I think we saw machine and Nigel Mansell as a driver 1725 01:18:02,400 --> 01:18:04,400 at its absolute zenith. 1726 01:18:04,440 --> 01:18:07,000 A bit special and the crowd there, electric, 1727 01:18:07,040 --> 01:18:09,240 the place was. You didn't need to watch the TV. 1728 01:18:09,280 --> 01:18:12,000 You could hear them just by the crowd as to what was happening 1729 01:18:12,040 --> 01:18:13,840 and set the fastest ever lap. 1730 01:18:13,880 --> 01:18:17,240 Nigel was 2.7 seconds ahead 1731 01:18:17,280 --> 01:18:19,680 of the first non-Williams driven by 1732 01:18:19,720 --> 01:18:21,920 no lesser driver than Ayrton Senna. 1733 01:18:21,960 --> 01:18:26,040 When Nigel won in '92, it was his fourth British Grand Prix win. 1734 01:18:26,080 --> 01:18:28,880 He was just the perfect guy at the perfect time, 1735 01:18:28,920 --> 01:18:31,840 in the perfect car, in the perfect team, 1736 01:18:31,880 --> 01:18:34,240 in front of a crowd that was thirsty 1737 01:18:34,280 --> 01:18:37,640 and hungry for a British hero. 1738 01:18:41,360 --> 01:18:42,560 (ETHEREAL MUSIC) 1739 01:18:44,600 --> 01:18:47,640 And so we got to Hungary and we went there 1740 01:18:47,680 --> 01:18:50,640 with a possibility of clinching the championship. 1741 01:18:50,680 --> 01:18:52,840 It's amazing to think, 'cause even then 1742 01:18:52,880 --> 01:18:56,160 that was quite early in the season to win a championship, 1743 01:18:56,200 --> 01:18:59,120 but that was the measure of the dominance of the season. 1744 01:18:59,160 --> 01:19:01,640 Didn't sleep a wink thinking, you know, 1745 01:19:01,680 --> 01:19:03,280 is it gonna happen, not happen? 1746 01:19:03,320 --> 01:19:05,800 Been there so many times before. 1747 01:19:05,840 --> 01:19:09,040 ANNOUNCER: Finally, the moment we have all been 1748 01:19:09,080 --> 01:19:13,000 waiting for is upon us. 1749 01:19:13,040 --> 01:19:14,920 I'll talk you through it as we go. 1750 01:19:14,960 --> 01:19:18,640 Obviously it's been a while for all of us. (LAUGHS) 1751 01:19:18,680 --> 01:19:21,960 We were all very cautious in terms of what had happened 1752 01:19:22,000 --> 01:19:25,680 in seasons before, but seven race victories coming up to Hungary. 1753 01:19:25,720 --> 01:19:28,520 A second place would give him the title. 1754 01:19:28,560 --> 01:19:30,800 How could he possibly lose it from there? 1755 01:19:35,800 --> 01:19:37,720 Are we all ready? 1756 01:19:39,040 --> 01:19:40,240 (ENGINE STARTS) 1757 01:19:46,200 --> 01:19:48,080 It went off sort of OK. 1758 01:19:48,120 --> 01:19:50,680 And I was second and... but then 1759 01:19:50,720 --> 01:19:52,720 same thing we had at Monaco again. 1760 01:19:52,760 --> 01:19:55,480 We had a problem with the rear with a slow puncture. 1761 01:19:55,520 --> 01:19:57,600 They were screaming, "Come in, come in," 1762 01:19:57,640 --> 01:19:59,560 and it dropped me back to sixth. 1763 01:20:01,800 --> 01:20:04,480 Going out the pits with the mindset with the new fresher boots on, 1764 01:20:04,520 --> 01:20:07,360 I said, "I gotta do about ten qualifying laps 1765 01:20:07,400 --> 01:20:10,720 to get back as close I could to third place." 1766 01:20:10,760 --> 01:20:13,760 I had to come second to actually win the championship. 1767 01:20:13,800 --> 01:20:16,600 I pushed really, really hard. 1768 01:20:16,640 --> 01:20:19,840 ANNOUNCER: And he's away. Oh, he's not hanging around. 1769 01:20:21,120 --> 01:20:24,960 This is a classic Mansell and Williams display. 1770 01:20:28,640 --> 01:20:30,440 I'd have gone through anybody. 1771 01:20:30,480 --> 01:20:32,640 Nobody messed with me in '92. 1772 01:20:32,680 --> 01:20:33,680 Nobody. 1773 01:20:38,760 --> 01:20:40,840 ANNOUNCER: This is sensational. 1774 01:20:40,880 --> 01:20:43,640 Man and machine finally reunited, 1775 01:20:43,680 --> 01:20:47,520 sparking all those memories of 1992. 1776 01:20:47,560 --> 01:20:49,040 (ENGINES REVVING) 1777 01:21:04,240 --> 01:21:07,680 One last blast across the finish line. 1778 01:21:07,720 --> 01:21:09,960 What a fantastic sight. 1779 01:21:10,000 --> 01:21:12,600 You are about to see Nigel Mansell 1780 01:21:12,640 --> 01:21:15,480 become world champion of 1992, 1781 01:21:15,520 --> 01:21:17,280 and he's world champion. 1782 01:21:17,320 --> 01:21:18,600 (MUSIC CONTINUES) 1783 01:21:19,920 --> 01:21:21,640 (CROWD CHEERING) 1784 01:21:22,960 --> 01:21:27,000 I remember just thinking, yeah, yeah. 1785 01:21:28,160 --> 01:21:29,480 The British superstar. 1786 01:21:29,520 --> 01:21:32,600 It made you proud to get him to his... 1787 01:21:32,640 --> 01:21:34,280 basically his dream. 1788 01:21:34,320 --> 01:21:35,320 (CROWD CHEERING) 1789 01:21:45,800 --> 01:21:47,720 Ayrton was on the podium with me. 1790 01:21:47,760 --> 01:21:50,640 He turned to me and said, "Do you understand why I'm like I am now?" 1791 01:21:50,680 --> 01:21:52,320 And I said, "Well, not really." 1792 01:21:52,360 --> 01:21:54,680 He said, "Well, how good's the feeling?" 1793 01:21:56,480 --> 01:21:59,440 He said, "That's why we're such bastards." 1794 01:21:59,480 --> 01:22:01,360 And I figured he's right. 1795 01:22:12,120 --> 01:22:13,720 (CROWD APPLAUDING) 1796 01:22:23,600 --> 01:22:25,560 (CROWD CHEERING) 1797 01:22:38,000 --> 01:22:40,120 I always knew he could do it 1798 01:22:40,160 --> 01:22:41,840 and I always knew he would do it, 1799 01:22:41,880 --> 01:22:45,200 and I'm lucky to have been a part of that team 1800 01:22:45,240 --> 01:22:47,360 that enabled that to happen. 1801 01:22:47,400 --> 01:22:50,640 Massive round of applause for the 1992 World champion, 1802 01:22:50,680 --> 01:22:52,080 Nigel Mansell. 1803 01:22:52,120 --> 01:22:53,520 (CHEERING AND APPLAUSE) 1804 01:22:54,720 --> 01:22:56,840 He deserved two or three championships. 1805 01:22:56,880 --> 01:23:00,000 They weren't to be, but he deserved to be known 1806 01:23:00,040 --> 01:23:02,080 as Nigel Mansell, world champion. 1807 01:23:02,120 --> 01:23:03,640 Frank was happy, Patrick was happy. 1808 01:23:03,680 --> 01:23:06,480 I mean, not that Frank will ever show his emotions, 1809 01:23:06,520 --> 01:23:07,680 but you could tell. 1810 01:23:07,720 --> 01:23:10,520 Nigel's performance in Formula One 1811 01:23:10,560 --> 01:23:12,600 drew audiences. 1812 01:23:12,640 --> 01:23:15,240 I think he should be regarded as one of the greatest drivers 1813 01:23:15,280 --> 01:23:16,480 of all time. 1814 01:23:16,520 --> 01:23:17,760 (CROWD CHEERING) 1815 01:23:22,800 --> 01:23:24,800 INTERVIEWER: You think Roseanne Mansell 1816 01:23:24,840 --> 01:23:27,080 will be pretty relieved at this moment? 1817 01:23:27,120 --> 01:23:29,960 Yeah, I just can't wait to see her. 1818 01:23:30,000 --> 01:23:33,640 I'm still with my best friend through thick and thin, 1819 01:23:33,680 --> 01:23:35,440 which is my wife. 1820 01:23:35,480 --> 01:23:37,760 That is the thing that I'm proudest of. 1821 01:23:37,800 --> 01:23:40,760 We're coming up to 48 years of marriage, which is very special. 1822 01:23:40,800 --> 01:23:42,840 And when you look at the injuries 1823 01:23:42,880 --> 01:23:46,880 and some of the substantial injuries that I've come back from... 1824 01:23:48,640 --> 01:23:51,400 ..I can't take the credit for that. 1825 01:23:51,440 --> 01:23:53,840 There's only one person... 1826 01:23:55,640 --> 01:23:57,560 ..who can take the credit 1827 01:23:57,600 --> 01:24:00,080 and that's my wife to nurse me back. 1828 01:24:01,120 --> 01:24:04,200 I look back and go, how the heck did I get through all that? 1829 01:24:04,240 --> 01:24:07,280 I have no idea how I had the fortitude 1830 01:24:07,320 --> 01:24:10,480 and determination and even the... 1831 01:24:10,520 --> 01:24:12,360 oh, my goodness me, 1832 01:24:12,400 --> 01:24:15,400 the stubbornness to keep going, 1833 01:24:15,440 --> 01:24:16,840 but I did. 1834 01:24:18,440 --> 01:24:20,280 I don't like giving up. 1835 01:24:22,000 --> 01:24:23,120 (RHYTHMICAL MUSIC) 1836 01:25:18,000 --> 01:25:19,880 (ENGINE REVVING) 1837 01:25:39,880 --> 01:25:41,600 (CAR SCREAMING PAST) 1838 01:25:46,640 --> 01:25:49,360 You see how quick it went? 1839 01:25:53,040 --> 01:25:54,480 (LAUGHS) 1840 01:25:59,000 --> 01:26:00,920 Yeah, yeah. (LAUGHS) 1841 01:26:02,400 --> 01:26:04,320 (CROWD CHEERING) 1842 01:26:13,240 --> 01:26:14,720 (UPBEAT MUSIC) 1843 01:26:22,680 --> 01:26:24,800 Oh, no. 1844 01:26:24,840 --> 01:26:26,600 No. 1845 01:26:26,640 --> 01:26:28,000 Sorry. 1846 01:26:28,040 --> 01:26:29,480 Elvis, Priscilla, come here. 1847 01:26:29,520 --> 01:26:31,400 Come on, come on. 1848 01:26:31,440 --> 01:26:32,880 (UPBEAT MUSIC CONTINUES) 1849 01:26:38,760 --> 01:26:41,040 Gonna change the engine and gearbox for tomorrow 1850 01:26:41,080 --> 01:26:42,760 and a few other things, but... 1851 01:26:42,800 --> 01:26:44,360 (LAUGHTER) 1852 01:26:48,320 --> 01:26:51,040 How are you?This is my favourite driver.(LAUGHS) 1853 01:26:51,080 --> 01:26:53,080 This one is my favourite. 1854 01:26:53,120 --> 01:26:54,960 (UPBEAT MUSIC CONTINUES) 1855 01:27:29,480 --> 01:27:31,600 AccessibleCustomerService@sky.uk