Here at the Gilles Villeneuve Circuit for round 11 of the Formula FPL Championship you can feel the excitement of the fans in the air. With the championship still wide open the racing so far has been fast and frantic and given us plenty of entertainment, and with a possible 200 points still to play for and the winter wildcards coming into play anyone could still win it.

I arrived at the circuit in the morning mist at 6am, the backdrop of downtown Montreal barely visible as I crossed the bridge onto the island that houses this historic track. The paddock is already a hive of activity with mechanics and support crew walking or riding around on scooters on whatever tasks they have been assigned for the day.

I head to the press room first, picking up the latest about race day weather (said to be fine if a little hazy) and any overnight developments with the drivers. Having had a tip-off I head straight to blahblah's garage, where the team manager informs me that it's possible he won't even make it out for the race after a fault was found with his brakng systems. The mechanics have been working very hard all night to fix it but they haven't managed to identify it yet. I quickly tweet this to my followers and head on up the pit lane looking for more latest news.

Approaching Sir John Grimes' garage I see the driver lounging around inside, laughing and joking with his mechanics. He sees me and starts to head over, but fully aware of his reputation as a serial womaniser with a different girl at every track (a list I have no intention of joining) I duck into Calvin1979's garage in search of the driver currently placed 3rd in the standings. His chief mechanic tells me that he's still in the team motorhome spending some time with the sponsors, so I head out the back and back into the paddock.

Pretty soon I'm outside Roga's motorhome, and the cheerful Australian seems happy to talk to me about his season so far. He seems very relaxed with how things are going despite not scoring in the last couple of races, and he's looking forward to the battle until the end of the season. I ask him about the media stories that there's been a bust-up between him and Brightwater, but he plays it down saying "we're not bosom buddies, but I have a lot of respect for him as a person and a driver. May the best man win"

For the next hour or so I'm mostly ignored as the teams do their final preparations for the race, but I do manage to get word from blahblah's garage that he won't be able to take part in the race at all, the braking problem still a mystery and for safety reasons they won't send him out in the car.

As the race starts I'm in the pit lane, passing word back up to Rick Shaw and Willie Winnett in the commentary box. I get to have a word with the first retiree Ironfist, who tells me that he took a risk running an old engine to make the 8 engines/season rule work for him in later races and it gave let go, and with Digsby who managed to slide off into a wall because of the oil Ironfist's engine left on the track.

During the pit stops I just have to stay well out of the way to avoid being run over. I get to have a word with Moist von Lipwig's team principle who tells me that they are trying a different pit strategy to move up through the field as they believe they have great pace, they just got unlucky in qualifying.

Then, feeling like it's only been 5 minutes since the race started, it's all over. Sir John Grimes stands on the top step of the podium and sprays the victory champagne with Moist von Lipwig and bcfc1903 up there with him. Crispybits looks dejected having wasted a pole position start to finish in 6th, brightwater slightly happier with his 5th place as Roga and Calvin1979 have both failed to score again.

So we go onto Japan and Suzuka next, and I must say I wish the season would last for longer. I've loved every second of this experience so far and I hope to be here in the pit lane for you, the viewers, bringing you the inside knowledge at the track exclusively for CBS Sports!

How does it feel to be top? Does it put any extra pressure on you?

Pressure, what pressure? I'm at the top because I'm the most consistent driver.

In recent weeks you consistently picked up the smaller points totals while your main rivals have mostly failed to score, how do you rate consistency vs spectacular performances in this competition?

My role models are Alain Prost and Jenson Button. Wins are great, but it's important to keep out of trouble and always aim for a points finish.

Last year you came 4th in the test season. Did you learn any lessons about strategy from that? Did it make you more determined to do well this year?

I have learned to take a 2 week view on strategy and tyres, with a bias towards the practice week, as your chosen ones could misfire in the race. I've ignored this for Japan, which I found to be a tough call...will the heavy wearing Pirelli RVP tyres last 3 sessions in a week?

As the current championship leader how will you approach the remainder of the season? Will you take risks to get podiums or play safe for regular points?

I'll stick with the strategy which has worked ok for me so far. I have only taken one 4-point hit this season, and hope to make good use of my wildcard in hand.

What is the best thing about being a Formula FPL driver? Do you live the playboy lifestyle or are you quiet and reserved away from the track?

It's all work work work! Away from the track I am busy as an Apprentice Project Manager and planning my assault on the real money X league.
Off season I don't bother with testing. I retreat to my villa and the hotspots of Miami.