As I adjusted my helmet in the hectic moments before the second and final race of the FIA World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) at the 2008 Macau Grand Prix, I took a moment to examine the children's drawings on the wall of our team garage. “Matthew Go Go Go!” one youngster had written in coloured crayon under a photocopied picture of my car; “Wish you win!” said another alongside a red love heart; “Support you always! We are your fans!’ shouted a third next to a photograph of two kids. It was all the inspiration I needed as I prepared for the most important 30 minutes of my racing career. The messages of encouragement had been created by children living at the Fountain of Hope, an orphanage on Macau’s Taipa island. The home has a relationship with the soon-to-be-opened integrated casino and entertainment resort, City of Dreams, which was the title sponsor of my car. A couple of weeks before the race I was invited to spend an afternoon with the kids and Gigi Leong, one of the organization’s multi-talented, multi-tasking carers.

I was anxious about delivering a speech on the value of taking risks in life. What challenges could I relate which the 40 kids at the Fountain would not consider a trifle? Yet they responded warmly when I spoke about pursuing dreams, of men on the moon and my own ambition to do something special at the Macau Grand Prix. I was shocked when the children presented me with the cards; I was supposed to be the one giving inspiration but found myself receiving it back in multiples. It was a reminder to be thankful for the opportunity to have such a rich and exciting profession and of the obligation to live it fully.  Macau’s Guia circuit is generally accepted as one of the best racetracks of the modern era. Each November, it hosts an important and hugely popular event, which sees some of the motor sport greats – past, current and future – do battle. Holding a privileged place on the schedule is the finale to the World Touring Car Championship, one of only three global series, alongside Formula One and the World Rally Championship. City of Dreams saw the value in the Macau Grand Prix, both for entertaining business partners and for promoting the new resort. Entering a car for a local driver in a world-class race made sense to them and we were lucky to find a former championship-winning team from Germany, Wiechers-Sport, with a car available.  Factory-supported teams from motor manufacturers such as BMW, Chevrolet and SEAT dominate the front of the field and attract the best drivers, including some former Formula One stars. Further back are the privateer entries, which use similar equipment, but without the manufacturer’s money or might. As a newcomer I would be in this class, fight it out for the Independents’ Trophy.

I was hopeful. The unforgiving nature of the circuit, combined with intense rivalry, often means that simply not crashing can lead to a good result. And there were some good omens: we were given number 88 for our car and I weighed in at 88 kilos; race day was November 16 and our pit was garage 16 (double eight). Things hadn’t got off to a great start, though. A publicity stunt before racing got underway saw a number of drivers competing in a basketball competition. Inability to score a single hoop suggested my hand-to-eye co-ordination might have been left at home in Hong Kong. Then, in Friday’s free practice before the WTCC qualifying session, I crashed the City of Dreams BMW. It was a low-speed impact, but this did not reduce the ignominy, especially since the escape route from the scene required me to walk (in helmet and full racing suit) through a shopping centre as bemused pedestrians looked on. Meanwhile, the BMW was craned off and returned to the Wiechers team on the back of a truck for repairs. On the bright side, the damage from my accident was minor and, having captured it on film, it provided some amusing material for a video presentation to City of Dreams’ guests on the eve of the race.  The WTCC format at Macau is two nine-lap sprints split by a short break of about 30 minutes, just enough time to fit new tyres, fill the petrol tank and tape up any damage to the car. I had qualified in 20th place overall and fourth quickest of the independents. The first race had passed without too much drama and I lined up for the final in 17th place, third in class.

The nerves and awkwardness of the practice and qualifying days were gone. My car looked fabulous again after the repair work and, so I’m told, we had the best-dressed promotional girls at the event. With my wife, Jessie, in attendance I kept my focus on the track. It worked. As I took the chequered flag at the end of race two, the team manager’s voice boomed into my ears on the radio, “Fantastic! Eighth place overall! You have just scored a world championship point!” What’s more, it was the first time that a Hong Kong driver had scored such a point. An historic moment. On Christmas Day, I went back to see my friends at the Fountain of Hope. The kids performed songs and laughed together and then at me, not quite understanding why I was so pleased with my eighth place at the Grand Prix. But it really was a "dream" result for me – and little did they know how much they had done to help me achieve it.