Whatever new world champion Greg Hancock has been drinking over the past 22 years, he should bottle it, sell it and live off the proceeds.
The American clinching his second title at the FIM Nice Croatian SGP on Saturday was as inevitable as Manchester City striker Carlos Tevez throwing his toys out of the pram. It was hardly a shock.
It’s not possible to overplay the size of Herbie’s achievement, though, as he hasn’t just had to beat 14 other SGP regulars over the course of the season to achieve his childhood dream for the second time. He has also had to overcome a number of the obstacles which prevent most mere mortals from becoming a champion at this stage of their career.
Firstly, there’s the Californian’s age. Hancock would probably rather clean his bikes with his own toothbrush than sit and answer the endless procession of questions about how on earth he became the oldest world champion in speedway history at 41 years and 113 days old. But it is a talking point.
Whether you’re a professional speedway rider or professional dustman, it must be tough to retain your enthusiasm for a job over two decades. Every job has its plus points, but equally every occupation has its drags.
Riders spend huge portions of their week sleeping in airport lounges, planes and vans. It must grate after a while. Having to race through the pain of injuries sustained in crashes that would keep most of us at home on sick pay is hardly easy either.
But incredibly, Hancock doesn’t appear to have lost a grain of the enthusiasm he arrived at Cradley Heath with back in 1989. Even after ending his 14-year quest for title No.2 on Saturday, he still jumped into his van, made the 900km journey to Leszno through the night and scored 12 paid 13 for Zielona Gora in their Polish Ekstraliga play-off final.
Most people would have much rather been tearing up the nearest nightclub with a procession of mechanics and girls in tow. But Hancock showed true professionalism for Falubaz and there are plenty of younger riders who could learn from that.
Hancock also had to defy his body to make history in Gorican. When he badly tweaked his knee ligaments in Gorzow on September 11 – just 24 hours after winning the Nordic SGP in Vojens – it could have been a critical blow to his title chances.
Herbie may approach the sport with the fresh-faced attitude of an 18-year-old, but his body is still 41. Riders of his age don’t bounce quite so easily, but they do have the experience to handle such matters.
While some young guns would have bowed to pressure from promoters and fans to carry on riding, Hancock politely but firmly stood his ground. He knew his knee wasn’t right and was determined to have every day of rest and physiotherapy possible to get in shape. It was a decision that paid dividends because, to the untrained eye, he appeared a picture of perfect health.
But if there is one attribute which has clinched Hancock his second world title, it’s his astonishing ability to adapt to change.
When the FIM introduced the new silencers for this year, it’s fair to say Hancock had his concerns. He didn’t just sit there and moan, though. He got to work with his tuners and team, splashed the cash and worked out a way to get the best out of them.
When most of us get older, keeping up with the pace of change becomes increasingly difficult. But Hancock had the hunger to ensure his equipment was still at the cutting edge and that’s why he has been the fastest man in the world this year.
The reason the Piraterna star is still in fashion is because he sets the trends. After last Friday’s practice session, he was talking helmet cams with BSI’s TV gurus Steve Saint and Nik Merrutia.
Herbie has one of his own. He uses it to assess what he is doing with the bike at certain times and whether he is taking the right lines on the track. No-one else has taken this step.
He’s even leading the way off the track. Hancock joined Twitter nine months before any of his SGP rivals. His account, @greghancock45, has attracted a massive 5,300-plus followers.
However, playing with helmet cams and social networking sites was minor stuff compared to the changes the American made to his bikes before the inaugural FIM Croatian SGP on August 29, 2010.
When he went into this meeting, he was 10th in the World Championship and two points off the top eight. He was 13th after the British SGP in Cardiff on July 10 and people were starting to make cases for Herbie to get a wild card – the main one being his length of service.
Hancock didn’t want to be back for this year because of what he had done previously, though. He wanted to get in based on what he had achieved in 2010.
So he set to work, drafted in Prodrive to build him some custom parts for the bike and stormed to victory at the Speedway Stadium Milenium, before claiming fifth in the World Championship.
That was a spectacular comeback for a man many feared had lost his enthusiasm for the sport. The truth is that it was always there. Hancock just had to dig deep and find it.
It never ceases to amaze me how this man can defy his body, his rivals, new technology and the passing of time to stay on top of his game.
There isn’t a more positive person in the sport than Greg Hancock and if he maintains this title-winning outlook on life, he may not stop at two gold medals.
This man says he will carry on racing in the Grand Prix series until he no longer feels he has what it takes to be world champion. At this rate, he’ll be offered his pension before he hangs up his kevlars.
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The Polish Ekstraliga does not start until April, while the Swedish Elitserien kicks off on May 1.