Just to add to the already very well put by one and all.
I practice for not more than 1 hour for each race, any more and it becomes counter-productive for me. (that excludes circuits like Silverstone, brands hatch, circuits I know well, just a few reminder laps )
My main aim is two things, lap consistently ( very important ) and I then start to look for the car's behaviour and if it is doing anything erratically, I do setups to correct that particular effect.
In the race and practice is where I start to look for speed.
Blue flag, if Chris is catching me, and this applies to all I am sure, the first thing I do is look to see his battle, has he a comfortable lead, if it is yes, then my attitude goes into my race.
If I am trying to catch someone for a good placing then I focus on that and reflect my decision onto Chris's race.
There have been a few occasions when I have totally ignored the blue flag.
But if I am in no man's land, I make it very obvious I am going to slow for the blue flag, exactly the same if the blue flag is in a close battle with someone else, his race then always trumps mine.
Frank, you should have known Han was hunting me down ( very Toto Wolf Mercedes )
, you were not in any battle, no man's land, you should have got well out of the way immediately. Han was looking for tenths and did not want to give away seconds.
Racing is not just about whizzing around a track, there is a lot of pre-knowledge and strategies involved at everyone's level, always jammed packed with drama, both good and bad. It is your job to create strategies to deal with as many as you can. some races go well some do not.
That outcome you never know until that chequered thing finally drops.
I have spent most of my life in sport, I pretty much know all the psychology involved with this and most sports. ( and there is a lot going on ). A friend of mine once said being better than someone is just luck, a 100% luck. if you can get a 100% from your ability, and the champion gets a 100% from his, you are equal.
My main aim is to go as fast as this old body will allow me, that's it, I just see the Reiks and Chris's of this world as markers of my successes in achieving that.
The fact about life is if your passion is the high jump and you are 1 meter tall, gold at the Olympics is definitely going to be a bridge too far. But that does not stop you from trying to beat the best 1 meter tall high jump champion.
I seem to have a passion for waffling on and on and on.