Why race if you don’t have money?

Chapter 195 A New Era in the F1 Paddock
"Holy crap, the driver's Q2 ranking is higher than his Q1 ranking. Are the Chinese drivers that good?"

"Impossible, it must be the Toyota Legacy TF110 prototype!"

"The problem is that the HRT team reportedly hasn't even finished building its wind tunnel yet, so no matter how strong the TF110 prototype is, it can't stay ahead all the time."

"The opening match was enough; if we can't keep up with the mid-game upgrades, that's a problem for later."

There was a lot of discussion in the stands, with most people unable to accept the result.

An unknown Chinese newcomer, who made an amazing leap into the F1 paddock, has already sprinted to fourth place in Q2.

This is already at the level of a top newcomer's debut!
Japanese Formula racing has been developing for decades, but it has never produced a driver with such amazing talent.

How can Beijing be so strong when China hasn't even established a Formula One racing system?

More importantly, the Honda RA109 was too overpowered last year, allowing Jason Button and Barrichello to dominate six of the first seven races.

The emergence of yet another Japanese racing team legacy inevitably brings to mind the performance of the prototype vehicle.

Objectively speaking, this factor does exist.

"The purple paint on the low-speed curves of S2 means that our cornering grip is excellent and the exhaust diffuser is very effective."

"However, he slowed down noticeably on the long straights and high-speed corners. I don't know if it's because Xiang Beijun lacked proficiency in practice, or because the car's power unit was too weak, or because it reached the limit of the aerodynamic kit's heat dissipation."

"Xiang Beijun can go back to the station to rest after this lap."

As a data analyst, Sho Mizutani briefly shared his opinion.

The team was surprised to achieve the fastest time in the entire race by getting purple gear on the S2 section.

However, their speed on sections S1 and S3 is significantly lower than that of other teams, especially Red Bull Racing.

Sho Mizutani observed carefully that the Red Bull Racing team's side cases and exhaust layout are very similar to the TF110 race car, suggesting that they share the same design philosophy of increasing downforce through exhaust gases.

All I can say is that Newey is a genius, overcoming the heat dissipation problem that the HRT team couldn't solve.

Of course, this is also related to the overall technological research and development capabilities.

Although Red Bull is not a factory team that traditional automotive giants have entered into, its parent company's investment in sports is astonishing.

Last year, Renault already had the ambition to challenge the "Big Three". If it can maintain its momentum this year, there is no doubt that the lagging Renault will be kicked out of the top team camp.

"North, back to the station."

Upon hearing Mizutani Sho's words, Odeto issued an order to Chen Xiangbei.

"We still have time, shall we run one more lap?"

Chen Xiangbei asked a question, noting that there were about five minutes left until the end of Q2.

Theoretically, if we hurry, we can run another lap.

"The braking system can't hold up, and we basically need to make sure we get into the Q3, so we need to make room for tires."

There are a total of eight sets of red tires in the race. Three sets have been used in practice and three sets have been used in qualifying. Chen Xiangbei only has two sets of new soft red tires left.

Neither the hard white tires nor the medium yellow tires at the Bahrain Sakhir circuit can provide sufficient speed; basically, a set of soft red tires will be used up in a single timed lap.

For drivers who advance to the third qualifying session, the FIA ​​will grant them an extra set of soft red tires, meaning Chen Xiangbei will have three sets of new tires left.

If Q2 is used too much, Q3 will not have a second chance to run.

In extreme cases, there could even be a situation where a race starts without red tires!
No matter how far ahead you are in qualifying, you'll lose it all at the start of the race.

"clear."

Chen Xiangbei replied that the good result of fourth place in Q2 did indeed make him feel a little "worried about gains and losses".

After all, the race isn't over yet, and no one can be sure if an even faster speed will appear, especially since the F1 paddock is full of monster-level drivers.

It could even be said that in F1 qualifying, the rankings are not guaranteed to be secure until the last second before the clock stops.

Even if you're number one!

Charles Leclerc, nicknamed "The Ultimate Guy," and Max Verstappen, nicknamed "The Turret," have repeatedly achieved incredible lap times in qualifying, snatching pole positions that seemed impossible to surpass.

When Chen Xiangbei drove back to the pit stop, Trulli's lap time had already appeared.

With a time of 1 minute 30.771 seconds, he ranked seventh among all drivers.

"Pretty!"

When the rankings were announced, the entire HRT crew cheered.

Although the second practice qualifying rounds are not over yet, Trulli's performance will most likely get him into Q3.

As a "new" team, achieving two Q3s in the opening race is a rare feat in the decades-long history of F1.

Without last year's Brown GP, ​​it would have been a once-in-twenty-year event.

Not to mention that compared to Button and Barrichello, two teams that are recognized as the top tier in the paddock, Trulli can only be considered a mid-to-second-tier team at best.

Chen Xiangbei goes without saying; without achievements, he's simply not up to par.

While the crew celebrated, Odeto remained expressionless, focusing on Trulli's lap times.

Chen Xiangbei's top speed on long straights and his time on high-speed curves are basically the same as Trulli's.

This means that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, the problem is not with any person.

This might be the upper limit for cars for now!

Unless Trulli and Chen Xiangbei both underperform.

"Q2 is almost over, and there are still a few drivers doing their flying laps. You can clearly feel the overall improvement in lap times in the paddock. This year's race is more competitive than the opening round in previous years. I wonder if it's related to the addition of new teams and new drivers."

"Emil, do you think North Q2 can hold onto their ranking?"

James posed this question to Emil, a guest in the studio, wanting to know if his partner's stereotypes about Chinese newcomers had changed after Q2's performance.

"I think it's very difficult. Currently, those promoting the Flying Spurs lap are all veteran drivers from big teams."

"It's obvious they don't want to lose to a Chinese rookie."

Emil casually replied.

Just as James said, you can feel the improvement in paddock lap times and the drivers becoming more serious.

In any case, he didn't believe that a new Chinese player could snatch a ranking spot from the "Big Three".

Taking the spot from Sauber and Williams is far less difficult than taking the rankings from Ferrari and McLaren!
"So where do you think North ranks?"

"At most ninth, he can't beat any of the four major teams."

This time, Emil gave an affirmative answer.

With Mercedes entering the race and Renault falling behind, Ferrari, McLaren, Red Bull, and Mercedes have effectively become the four major teams in the paddock.

The top eight positions are practically a fortress!
While the two were chatting, Rosberg's car crossed the finish line, surpassing Chen Xiangbei's lap time and ranking fourth.

Seeing this, Emil wore a victor's smile.

In his view, the next few veteran drivers will be able to repeat this scene!

Unfortunately, the scene Emil envisioned did not materialize, and Schumacher was defeated by his teammate, finishing seventh.

Jason Barton was even worse, falling to tenth place.

Only Massa was very fast, overtaking Chen Xiangbei to take second place.

As the countdown to the second practice session ended, Chen Xiangbei dropped two places to sixth, while Trulli fell to ninth.

"Chen Xiangbei is awesome! He moved up the rankings in Q2!"

"Advancing to Q3 in his debut race has once again made history for Chinese motorsport!"

"I feel that Bei's strength far exceeds expectations. They might actually live up to their boast at the press conference and rank in the top six in the main competition!"

Chen Xiangbei's fans and supporters in the stands were shocked.

The most optimistic prediction before the competition was that Chen Xiangbei would be satisfied if he could advance to Q2.

As a result, Chen Xiangbei not only advanced to Q3, but also steadily improved to sixth place.

Could it be that the next rising star will really come from China?
Inside the HRT team's pit garage, the crew members were equally excited.

As a new team, the advancement of both cars to Q3 has shown them their competitiveness.

It's worth noting that apart from some members of the Super Aguri team, the other members of the HRT team come from Toyota and Renault.

Last season, Toyota had already entered the middle class, while Renault can be considered one of the long-established "Big Three".

People strive for higher positions, just as water flows downhill; no one wants to be stuck working in a bottom-ranked team.

To be realistic, engineers who come from the Ferrari team are generally viewed with more respect.

Members of teams like Caterham, Virgin, and Super Aguri will find it difficult to find employment in other teams if their teams go bankrupt.

With two Q3 cars, there's no doubt they have the strength of a mid-range racing team!

Among the crew members, only the strategy team remained relatively calm, as they had access to more remote sensing data about the race car and the driver's performance in each corner.

Chen Xiangbei and Trulli have overlapping speeds on many corners, meaning they have reached the same bottleneck.

In addition, after completing the second timed lap, the car's temperature triggered a full-scale alarm when returning to the track.

This means that even with a hairdryer for cooling, it's impossible to cool the brakes down during a tire change.

More importantly, the temperature of the brakes is transferred to the tires through the wheel hub.

Conversely, tire temperature also affects the rims and brakes. This is why, in the relatively cold early spring in the UK, Chen Xiangbei used a strategy of intermittent braking to quickly warm up the tires, rather than simply swerving on the track.

The reason is that the constant friction of the brake disc can transfer heat to the tire.

Every seemingly "inexplicable" maneuver by an F1 driver is backed by a keen understanding of detail and strategic maneuvering.

Never underestimate these world's best drivers!

After a short break, the third qualifying round began, this time with the timer reduced to 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, only ten drivers remained on the track.

Currently, in addition to Chen Xiangbei and Trulli, the dark horses in the paddock include Renault driver Kubica and Force India driver Sutil, who have also made it into Q3, ranking seventh and eighth respectively.

Chen Xiangbei was very familiar with Kubica, after all, he had served as the third driver for the Sauber team in his later years, and had been a benchwarmer for Zhou Guanyu for a year.

Of course, that refers to Kubica, who became a "one-handed racing god" in his old age.

At his peak, he was once a championship contender!
Furthermore, although the Renault team suffered a major blow from the "crash scandal," it is still a formidable force, and it wouldn't be surprising if one of its drivers made it into Q3.

However, Sutir of the Indian Forces surprised Chen Xiangbei.

Will Force India racing also have a breakout year?
There was no time for Chen Xiangbei to overthink things. Soon, the lap time rankings from the third training session made him feel what real competition and pressure were like.

In the first and second quarters, many drivers' performance is affected to some extent in order to protect the life of their race car engines or due to traffic jams.

In the third quarter, many teams will switch their power units to full power mode or even exceed their lifespan to achieve a better final ranking!

After all, this is the opening race, and the team has ample reserves of power units, giving them some room for trial and error.

"With a lap time of 1 minute 30.419 seconds, Ferrari's Alonso improved his lap time by 0.15 seconds. Is this two-time world champion from Spain about to create another Ferrari dynasty in his red car?"

"McLaren's Hamilton cannot tolerate this situation. His lap time surpasses Alonso's and is very close to Schumacher's track chances."

"As the youngest world champion driver in F1 history, he is destined to stand in Alonso's way and create his own legend!"

"OH!!! The track record has been broken! Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull Racing has set a lap time of 1 minute 30.193 seconds, making him the new ruler of the Bahrain circuit!"

James provided rapid commentary on the track conditions, updating the lap time leaderboard almost every time a timed lap was completed.

In particular, the middle-aged and younger generation of drivers have completely defeated their older teammates.

Whether it's Hamilton, Vettel, or Rosberg.

Their performance and speed were astonishing. James felt that even if Schumacher made a comeback and returned to his former glory, the F1 paddock might no longer belong to his era!

"Odette, what's my lap ranking?"

"eighth."

【eighth?】

Upon hearing this answer, Chen Xiangbei's usually calm demeanor gradually became somewhat anxious.

As the third quarter approached noon, the ambient and ground temperatures continued to rise. Chen Xiangbei could only reduce the downforce of the race car by fine-tuning the aerodynamic kit to decrease the high temperature brought to the rear of the car by the exhaust diffuser.

However, doing so will inevitably reduce the speed on curves.

To be honest, he felt like he had given it his all this time, but his ranking was still dropping.

Chen Xiangbei didn't know whether other teams had hidden something, or if the TF110's potential was just that high, or if the two qualifying sessions had raised his expectations.

I just feel powerless to do anything about it!
What is Trulli's ranking?

Chen Xiangbei pressed further, saying that it's difficult to compare teams across different groups; teammates are the best benchmark.

"Just run your own race well."

Odette replied indifferently that he could understand the psychological pressure a newcomer would feel in their first competition.

And that eager desire to express oneself and gain respect and recognition within the paddock.

But many things are best done in moderation!

Countless promising young talents have left the stage in disappointment because they were caught up in proving themselves, and then pushed their limits only to make mistakes and crash.

The next race will be under pressure, and he will want to turn things around and regain the support of fans and the team's approval.

As a result, he became increasingly impatient, and another car accident occurred.

After two or three crash races, no matter how outstanding you were as a rookie or how brilliant your low-level formula career was, you'll be labeled a "director" and fall into a vicious cycle.

Or to put it more bluntly, he's entered the final countdown of his professional career.

Chen Xiangbei's emotional stability has always been one of his strengths.

Odeto didn't want Chen Xiangbei to be swayed by a single race ranking, considering that F1 drivers have one of the longest careers in any sport.

Veterans like Alonso, Hamilton, and Hulkenberg can outlast countless rookies!

Even if they finish eighth, it's still excellent enough!

Upon hearing Odette's words, Chen Xiangbei instantly understood his meaning after more than a year of getting along with him.

He took a few deep breaths back in the arena, hesitated for a moment, and then pressed the call button.

"Odetto, I want to push it one more lap."

Upon hearing this, the strategy team members in the P room exchanged glances, their minds racing as they considered the pros and cons.

As for Briatore, he sat with his legs crossed to the side, seemingly indifferent to the situation.

"There aren't enough tires. All the teams in this race are set up for the main race, so they need to have two sets of red tires to ensure flexible track strategies."

According to FIA racing rules, once an F1 car has completed practice sessions, its setup is fixed and cannot be changed; only minor adjustments can be made.

If major changes are made, the penalty will start from the repair shop.

Each racetrack has its own characteristics, take the most famous Monaco Grand Prix as an example.

Because overtaking is difficult in street racing, the teams in this race are all tuned to be 100% geared towards qualifying style, and their qualifying positions often determine their race positions.

But the Bahrain Sakhir circuit is different. It is one of the easiest circuits to overtake on the entire F1 calendar. Teams may not be 100% focused on race setups, but they will at least be more geared towards the race.

Without tire reserves, he would be in the same predicament as Verstappen in 25, having no new tires to change into when he pits, and could only watch helplessly as his rivals overtook him one by one.

"It's okay, push the old tire one more turn."

[Old tire?]

Upon hearing this idea, Hiroki Sawano was the first to express his opinion: "The track temperature has exceeded 50°C, and the old tires can only maintain peak grip for one lap. Doing this is too risky."

"Even if I manage to get a good time in the end, it will most likely be worse than the previous timer, so I personally think it's not worth it."

"I agree with Sawano-senpai's idea."

Sho Mizutani stated his position, adding that he was also a member of the strategy team.

"I agree with Engineer Sawano's idea."

Trulli's race engineer, Soter, also offered his opinion.

Just as Odette was caught in a moment of hesitation, Briatore finally spoke.

"No problem, Bei, go push this lap."

Instead of consulting with the strategy team, he directly issued orders to the convoy.

Faced with Huabu's behavior, the entire strategy team glared at him angrily.

People can tolerate people trying to make money by any means, but disregarding the safety of drivers is absolutely unacceptable from the moral standpoint of those working in the racing industry.

Not to mention people like Hiroki Sawano, who watched Chen Xiangbei grow step by step.

Their relationship with Chen Xiangbei has gone beyond a simple employer-employee relationship!
"Odetto, what do you think of my ideas?"

Briatore ignored everyone else and asked Oddo a question directly.

Looking at Huabu's smug face, Odeto took a deep breath to suppress his emotions.

He nodded and said, "Very good!"

【What? 】

Upon hearing this answer, the strategy team members were stunned. Did Odeto agree with the old Italian rogue?
"copy".

Chen Xiangbei's reply interrupted everyone's surprise.

Furthermore, one could sense the change in Chen Xiangbei's emotions from his tone; he seemed to be filled with fighting spirit.

Upon returning to the pit lane entrance, Chen Xiangbei did not drive in, but instead used full throttle dynamic start to cross the starting line again.

T1, T2, T3...

As we sped through each bend, although the peak grip of the tires decreased, the traffic and road conditions on the track showed an upward trend.

The team's pit crew had already forgotten about Floral and Odette; their eyes were all fixed on the various racing car sensor data.

Just when the audience and track commentators stopped paying attention to Chen Xiangbei and thought he couldn't set a faster lap time.

Chen Xiangbei's name has risen one place to seventh on the lap time leaderboard!
It was just a simple improvement in ranking, but it had extraordinary significance.

Chen Xiangbei's progress using old tires means he has even greater potential to develop.

A lap time of 1 minute 30.433 seconds is definitely not his limit!

(End of this chapter)