It was my dream to win last year and showcase my home of Guernsey. I love the place and am proud to come from there. It was also amazing for me to be honoured by the island with the issue of a set of stamps depicting my racing career that culminated in the World title. I am the only other UK driver apart from
Nigel Mansell who has had a set of stamps in his honour. On Saturday Sally Diamond from Guernsey Post will be with me at Brands to launch this set of stamps. It shows not only my ETCC, WTCC and Nürburgring 24 Hours winning
BMW cars, but also the hill climb and Renault Spyder cars I won my ‘perfect ten’ championships with and the F3 car that I drove, not only in the UK but also in Macau and Korea.
This week I am doing lunches with the media and signings at a shop in London. The schedule I was sent by BMW shows just how busy my weekend will be. I am flat out but you will not hear any complaints from me. The chance to meet the fans and the BMW guests at Brands is great. I am proud to drive for BMW and it is great that we have so much interest. I pick up my phone and I have national newspaper journalists asking for my thoughts about the weekend and I get fans waiting for my autograph.
I hope also that the fans there will take time to have a look at the champions of the future as for the first time the Formula BMW UK Championship is supporting the WTCC. I have been involved as chief instructor since the start of the series here in 2004. These youngsters can be 15-years-old. I am always surprised at their maturity. I wish when I was there age I had such opportunities. The great thing is they do not seem to show the pressure. I was with them last weekend in
Oulton Park and they were all excited about being at Brands at such an important weekend. Mind you I am not sure it has sunk in that one of the people watching them will be BMW motorsport director, Dr Mario Theissen, whose brief is to run the company’s motorsport programmes. I know how important the Formula BMW programme is and I know he will be watching the boys closely. I am delighted to be helping tutor the champions of the future and shall be very proud when one of the UK boys follows the first German champion in this series,
Nico Rosberg, into
F1.
![Andy Priaulx - BMW 320si [Pic credit: FIA WTCC]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/213625.jpg)
