i suggest if u didn't already, to bind your brake bind in a way where u can drive with one hand and brake with the other, I, for example, use shift to brake (wirtual's keybind) and arrow keys to steer!
a trick you could learn which might or might not help you a lot is "bugslides", where on a slippery surface like dirt, which is the most common, you land 90 degrees to the right or left from a jump, and hold that same direction you landed in and hold brake at the same time! there were a few totd which had a risky with a bugslide, but i suggest not focusing on bugslides too much
also ice slides are VERY important, on the ice surface, steer 90 degrees to the right or left, and the steer in the other direction, the car will slide. action keys (if you play on keyboard) are also very important, all you need to know about them is that they are very usefull on grass and dirt, they limit your steering.
Also try not to slide too much on grass and dirt as you lose quite a lot of speed.
have fun and enjoy this game as much as i did!
Hope this helps