If you can feel you’re losing time but can’t find where, there’s usually still lap time left in your technique. The way to find it is to treat practice like a test day. Decide what you’re testing before you go out, try each version deliberately, then check how each one felt against what the lap times say.

When I asked my email list what’s holding them back, this was the most common answer: “I can feel I’m losing time, but I can’t find where.” Every driver at every level hits this at some point. You feel like you’ve exhausted your technique, so all that’s left to blame is the kart, your weight or the conditions. Sometimes your gut is right. But more often than not, you’re still leaving lap time on the table.

What an F3 test taught me

In Formula 3, I discovered tricks that unlocked hidden lap time no textbook or professional coach had shed light on. In 2021 I was racing on Michelin tires in Euroformula Open. It was an incredible tire, with a huge boost of grip for the first two laps in qualifying, then incredibly consistent for the next 40 to 50 laps.

At a test day at the Red Bull Ring in Austria, we found that one very specific warm-up procedure gave me up to an extra half a second of peak grip on my first push lap. HALF A SECOND.

We found it by accident, but the discovery wasn’t entirely random. Before the day, we made a run plan to settle the best way to warm up the tires once and for all. Several drivers each tested a different method across five or six sets of new tires until there was a clear winner. We didn’t expect the answer we got, but we only got it because we took a scientific approach.

How to run your own test session

Take the same approach to your practice sessions. Dedicate one whole session to a single area, like braking, and try each version deliberately:

1. Peaky brake shapes, F1 style
2. “Tabling” the brake, with constant pressure
3. Locking the rear tires more than you normally would
4. Trail braking

After the session, write down how each one felt, then check whether the lap times match your perception.

The fastest answer isn’t always the most comfortable one. In my opinion, getting comfortable with being uncomfortable is 90% of being a successful driver.