If you’re on the grid feeling pressure or anxiety, there’s one thing I always recommend: visualization.
It’s not just something you should use just when you’re nervous, it’s a powerful tool to improve your overall performance, focus, and state of mind.
Why Visualization Works
Your brain can’t just “not think.” For real.
Close your eyes for 10 seconds and try not think at anything.
See? Impossible.
If you don’t give it something positive and useful to focus on, it’ll fill the space with doubts: fear of getting taken out at the start, fear of making mistakes, fear of letting your team down.
Instead, feed your mind something productive: close your eyes, pull down the visor and visualize your race as if it was already happening.
Follow these steps:
- Close your eyes, visor down.
- Picture yourself nailing the start doing everything within your control to avoid crashing.
- Imagine passing someone on the inside of the first lap.
- Visualize defending into the next corner.
- Think through a clean, aggressive first lap without taking too much risk.
You can even imagine your best flying lap, especially for qualifyng, where you’ll brake, turn, accelerate, and how you’ll handle each specific corner.
This kind of mental prep sharpens your focus and calms your nerves. Distracting it grom anxiety.
Make It Detailed
The more vivid your visualization, the better. I like to mimic what I’ll actually do on track:
- I move my hands like I’m driving.
- I think about how the kart flexes.
- I move my body as I would do on track.
- If I’m in a shifter, I picture when I’ll upshift and downshift.
- I see myself hitting apexes, using the kerbs (or not), choosing the exact line I want.
It’s like studying before a big exam — you’re mentally revising before the race.
And the more you do it and the better you get at it.
And the better you get, the better and more consistent you will replicate those thoughts into action on track.
Practice It Like Any Other Skill
Don’t wait for race day to try it.
Visualization is a skill, and like anything in racing, you’ve got to practice it to make it work.
- Do it at home, when in bed.
- Do it at the track, before practice sessions.
- Do it before qualifying with new tires.
The more you use it, the more natural and powerful it becomes.
It helps reduce pressure, boost confidence, and lock in the zone you want to be in.
It really does, I promise you.
Final Thoughts
Visualization is one of those “mental simulators” that can give you a big edge, especially when you’re chasing consistency or dealing with pressure.
But also to fix specific corners you’ve been doing wrong. So you can first do them in your mind, before doing them on track.
It’s free, takes just a few minutes to do, and the more you do it, the better you’ll perform.
Try it out — and if you’ve got questions or thoughts, I’m always happy to chat. Message me anytime on Instagram, WhatsApp, or email.
Just Senndit
– Alessio Lorandi
