Confirmed:

(later)
The physical phenomenon he's looking for is called "lubrication". He's essentially claiming that lubrication is the same thing as hydroplaning. While there are some similarities at a microscopic level, hydroplaning implies that the distance between the two surfaces is large enough that they don't even affect one another. An example would be a vehicle that enters a puddle that covers both paved road surface and a grassy shoulder. If the vehicle hydroplanes, it will pass over the pavement and over the grassy area with no difference in friction because it doesn't even sense the grass. If the vehicle doesn't hydroplane it will maintain contact with the pavement and slide with reduced friction to the grassy area where it will behave differently.