I suppose I should be getting used to this time of the year by now. It is the end of a long season and here I am going to the final race with a chance of winning the championship. I should say it gets easier every year, but if I did I would be telling fibs. I know just what it takes to win, having taken the ETCC title in 2004 and the WTCC title in 2005, but that does not make it any easier.
My preparations for Macau, both in and out of the car, are vitally important and I have already started these. First of all I want a clear mind and for me the best way of relaxing is to spend time with the family. This instantly puts me at ease and so I have recently been on holiday with Jo and the kids to Dubai. It was great as we did what all families do on holiday – rest, swim, eat, drink and laugh.
Once back from this break it was off to test the car and have some more time with my new team mate for Macau, Jan Magnussen. We had a day testing with RBM in Zandvoort and it all went well. The car felt good and I am confident Jan, runner up in the Danish Touring Car Championship, will be there to help me and Team
BMW UK in our aim to make it three in a row. I cannot stress how important it is to have a team mate at such an important race. This will give me another set of data to study and a driver as experienced as Jan will prove invaluable. I have met him in the past, but am really looking forward to getting to know him better as I am told he is not only a great team mate, but also a fun person to spend time with!
Looking back over the year I know that thanks to Bart Mampaey and the hard work by the RBM boys I have had the best possible car. I predicted that winning the championship was going to mean having a heavy car for most of the season and I was right. However, I still find it amazing I managed to win four races despite being hampered by heavy ballast. I put that down to a great car and can’t thank the team enough.
![Andy Priaulx - BMW Team UK BMW 320si [Pic credit: FIA WTCC]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/273582.jpg)
