The Race Day Playbook: Why Champions Always Have More Than One Plan

I watched the new F1 film with Brad Pitt last weekend.

It’s the kind of film that pumps your adrenaline so hard you find yourself mentally cornering your local roundabout at 120mph the next morning.

But it wasn’t the speed that stuck with me – it was the strategy.

There’s a moment in the film where you see how much goes into each race before the cars even line up on the grid. The drivers and their teams sit down for a deep dive. They don’t just plan for the perfect lap – they map out every possible scenario. Wet weather. A safety car. A rogue competitor. A misjudged corner.

And they don’t come up with just one plan – they come up with several.

That got me thinking.

The Problem With One Plan

Most business owners operate like rookie drivers: they cling to Plan A – the ideal line, the optimum strategy, the ‘this will work if everything goes right’ approach.

But how often does everything go right?

Markets shift. Clients ghost you. Competitors do something unexpected. You get blindsided by a black swan event (or three).

And when that happens, what do most people do? Panic. Flail. Or double down on a plan that’s already dead.

"Plan C is for Combat"

The Champions Think Differently

In F1, the best teams don’t improvise under pressure – they prepare for it.

They don’t bet the race on the weather staying sunny. They know when to pit for wets. They know when to go aggressive. They know when to hold back to protect the car.

Business is no different.

My Take: The Race Day Playbook

The film inspired me to capture this in a simple framework I call the Race Day Playbook.

It’s my perspective on what I see the best founders, leaders, and dealmakers do – consciously or not.

✅ Plan A – Action

Your optimum strategy. The main line. This is the plan if the world behaves exactly how you hope it will.

✅ Plan B – Backup

Your practical fallback. A slightly safer line when conditions change. This isn’t about being timid – it’s about staying in the race.

✅ Plan C – Combat

Your switch-up. This is where you break the rhythm and do something different. Not reckless, just unpredictable enough to catch the competition off guard.

✅ Plan D – Defence

Your protection mode. When you’ve built momentum, sometimes the smartest thing is to protect your gains. Hold your position. Play the long game.

✅ Plan E – Escape

Your get-out plan. No one wants to think about it, but champions do. If the car’s on fire (the deal’s turned toxic or the market’s gone nuclear), you need to know when to bail out clean. Cut your losses. Live to race another day.

Staying In The Game

The best drivers don’t win every lap. They stay in the game.

They bank points even when the race doesn’t go their way. They know how to adapt under pressure. They’re never stuck with just one line.

If you’re running your business or career on Plan A alone, you’re leaving yourself exposed.

Plan for the sun, yes. But pack the wets.

Map the optimum line. But know the back roads.

And always, always, know when to pull into the pits before you wreck the engine for good.

Your Turn

Now over to you. Take my Race Day Playbook, and think about your next big move:

• What’s your Plan A?

• What’s your Backup if it goes wrong?

• What’s your Combat manoeuvre if you need to break the rhythm?

• How do you protect what you’ve built?

• And do you have an Escape plan?

Business is a long game. The real win is staying in it.

See you on the grid.

Ready to build your Race Day Playbook?

Drop me a message. I help founders, teams, and leaders put these strategies in place so that they don’t just race – they finish, and they finish strong.