This pro driver reveals his surprising secret weapon for winning races
I just over two weeks, he and his teammates from Chip Ganassi Racing and Ford Performance will attempt to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans with the new Ford GT, repeating one of the most famous victories of all time: Ford's 1-2-3 finish at Le Mans, a grueling endurance race, in 1966.
It's the 50th anniversary. Hand, 37, will be taking seat time in one of the four cars Ford is running in the GT class at Le Mans (that's a notch below the insanely fast "Prototype" classes). The pressure is on.
So how does he prepare for race day?
He hits McDonald's for a Sausage Egg McMuffin.
In fact, he's thrilled that he (probably) won't have to give up his pre-race dining ritual at Le Mans, which takes place over a combined track- and public-road course, the "Circuit de la Sarthe," in mid-June. The course feature a very long stretch where cars can hit 200 mph. It's called the "Mulsanne Straight." And it has a McDonald's along it's route.
Mind you, I wasn't able to confirm that McDonald's actually sells the Sausage Egg McMuffin at this location in France. But I'm pretty sure Hand will investigate.
The Mulsanne Mickey D's also has a drive-thru. Hand obviously won't be leaving the race course for a quick bite - even though Le Mans runs from 3 p.m. Saturday to 3 p.m. Sunday.
Hand, a CrossFit enthusiast, just loves his McMuffin.
"There's one thing people are a little surprised about," he said. "I start out with a sausage McMuffin with egg. It has carbs, protein and dairy."
"I've won a lot of races with a sausage McMuffin in my stomach," he added.
As it turns out, he's made a good call. Business Insider has extensively explored the McDonald's menu and noted quite a few trends. It turns out that the good old Egg McMuffin is a pretty healthy option. OK, adding the sausage tips the balance somewhat.
But bear in mind that Hand will 3,000 calories over the course of 24-hour race.
If the Sausage Egg McMuffin is his gustatory lucky charm, he can get away with it.