PRO ANNUAL 2018

“100%. I have learnt so much. The way I see things now is very different. I can’t go back. What’s happened has happened. All I can do is change the future and I want to be in the best shape and best frame of mind possible. I want to be ready and the only thing I can do is take care of myself. There are a lot of positives that are coming out of it all. I honestly think that I’m going to be a much better person not only on track but in life too, off track. I’ve learnt such a lot about my strengths and my weaknesses. I’ve discovered things not only about myself but about other people too. How people have dealt with me and reacted to my situation speaks volumes so when all is done and it is over and I’ve recovered 100% I think I will see the world very differently.” When you go down so low it really forces you to look at things properly. Will he be able to do things he loves again? Will he properly recover? Will he be able to race again? And how serious is this? Will we see Tiago behind the wheel again? All questions no-one really wants to be asked. Yet Tiago lit up, he was positive. “Oh yes, for sure, and now that training has really progressed I know that the light at the end of the tunnel is getting closer and closer but I can’t look too far ahead at this stage. If you break a bone you know it’s six weeks or so. With something like this it’s so much harder. I have to take each day as it comes and just work hard at getting better in the best way possible. I have to give it time. As a driver I have to be 100% so I’ll have to see what happens in the car but psychologically I feel really quite strong now.” He does seem strong. Strong, positive and passionate but also very contemplative. It often takes people to go through a tough experience before they realise what is truly important and you get the feeling that this is a big journey that Tiago is going through. “Some people need to. I think I needed to. Some people meditate, some people pray. In my case, I need to go on this journey. It had to be this year too when I was about to win a world championship. The important thing is to be aware that things do happen for a reason. I really believe this now. Now I’ve accepted it and I’ve come through, I can see it as a positive. You give more priorities to things that matter more - like family or friends - and you just think about your future in a different way.” It seems that Tiago has learnt a lot from this experience about the people in his life and his approach to different things. He said that if he could do his career again he wouldn’t trust people so quickly and easily. “I did everything 100%. I have always worked hard and pushed PRO ANNUAL 2018 77