“A lot of people think Formula One isn't a sport because everyone drives a car when they go to work in the morning. But we're pulling up to six G on a corner or during breaking, which is almost like being a fighter pilot. So we have to do a lot of work on our neck muscles.”

“I don't purposely speed, but I might go over by five or six miles an hour from time to time. It doesn't give me a buzz driving on normal roads, because I can't go fast enough. It's never going to be anything like an F1 car.”

“I have made lots of mistakes in terms of contracts and spending money when I shouldn't have spent money.”

“I keep my weight low, although you need to be able to move your weight around the race car to change the balance. I'm 6ft and I'm 70kg so I haven't much fat on me.”

“I like old tunes when I'm driving. They're fun and uplifting. Billy Ocean, that kind of thing.”

“I love the role of being the experienced driver and that is definitely the case next year - I think I am the most experienced guy in F1 next year.”

“I think as a 20-year-old you expect life to always be easy. You get given a good hand and the chance to race in Formula One. You think the driver can make the difference, can make up for everything else within the team. But that is not the case. You are racing in such a competitive sport so that doesn't happen.”

“I think fans of the sport have a good understanding now of how fit Formula One drivers need to be.”

“I think social networks are really working for the drivers, because we're able to talk directly to fans and they get first-hand information. And I think it's great for the partners as well and the businesses that are involved in Formula One.”

“In my hometown there is a pub named after me - The Frome Flyer on Jenson Avenue. How cool is that?!”

“In the car and in front of the camera I tend to be very calm but behind the scenes I can get fired up and passionate, I just don't see the need to shout my mouth off in public.”

“It doesn't matter how much money you've got, or how many connections, there's always something you want that's out of reach.”

“It doesn't matter who wins if I don't. I only care if I win. I'm jealous of anyone else who wins.”

“My school reports always used to point out that my concentration levels were appalling. I never listened in class because I was always daydreaming about racing. I never thought for a moment about doing anything else. There was no guarantee that I'd make a career in it but I never had any plan B.”

“Resting for me is fitness training.”

“That Monaco crash was quite a big one - I pulled 33g when I hit the wall, which is a lot. It's a weird sensation - like all my skin and flesh was being pulled off my bones.”

“The fast, flowing parts, the high-speed corners, that's where a Formula One car is at its best - changes of direction, pulling high g-forces left and right.”

“The only time I think about life beyond F1 is when I contemplate becoming a dad. But there's no way that's going to happen while I'm still racing. To be successful in F1 you need to be very selfish in lots of ways and you're away from home for long periods. That's not the kind of father I want to be.”

“To drive an F1 car you have to be a little mad. On the morning of a race there's a mix of excitement and fear. If it's a wet track, then it's worse as you're not in control most of the time, which is the thing all drivers fear the most.”

“To understand the intensity of driving an F1 car, you have to be in it. When you're driving a 750hp machine at 200mph, the noise and the vibrations are incredible. The G-force when you take big corners is like someone trying to rip your head off. You hit the brakes, and it feels as if the skin is being pulled off your body.”

“We all drive differently and have different styles. For me I need a car I can develop beneath me and feel comfortable in. If the car feels neutral and unbalanced it doesn't work for me.”

“We go through the whole season working on next season's car and developing the car and making sure we fit in the car and all that sort of stuff. And we obviously give ideas of what we would hope next year's car would have even if it's small things like buttons on the steering wheel and different positions and whatever.”

“When I do retire, I know for a fact that I'll never be able to replace the incredible feeling I get when I'm driving an F1 car.”

“When it comes to my racing career I'm very driven and very selfish. People who are around me at races will know that I'm a different person here than in my personal life. I completely blank people at races. I need to be focused. I'm rude.”

“You look back and you remember the good, the bad and the ugly.”

“You're pulling 4-5G for a lot of the corners around the lap. We build up lactic acid because there are a lot of vibrations in the car, and you have to have strong legs to hit the brake pedal. We need to be fit to do every lap at 100%.”