Why race if you don’t have money?

Chapter 197: Track Strategy is a Math Problem
"This opening can guide airflow through the lowering of the tail fin; we should ask Director Bell to pay more attention to it."

Chen Xiangbei replied in a calm tone, confident that with just a slight reminder, Bob Bell's abilities and talent would allow him to quickly understand the working principle of the F-duct and proceed to the next step of trial installation for mid-stage upgrades to the race car.

“You understand this too?”

Briatore's tone was full of amazement, even though Chen Xiangbei had only been at the Honda Suzuka Racing Academy for less than two years.

His expertise in automotive engineering is so great that he can determine the function of a race car's cockpit opening just from a single photograph. Even geniuses probably wouldn't be this amazing.
"Ah."

With a simple nod, Chen Xiangbei turned and walked towards the drivers' lounge.

The more explanations you provide, the more loopholes you uncover.

Briatore's personality means that as long as core issues like interests are not involved, everything else is unimportant and will be quickly ignored.

After taking a shower and changing his clothes, Chen Xiangbei saw Trulli sitting in front of him on the sofa, watching his first-person perspective replay of his qualifying match.

Using the same set of red soft tires for the Q3, Trulli didn't risk pushing for two flying laps, or perhaps he felt that if he couldn't achieve a faster speed, there was no need to do such a pointless thing.

To his surprise, Chen Xiangbei ultimately improved his ranking by one place.

Trulli was very curious about how Chen Xiangbei managed to do that!
Both sides agreed to share data, but Trulli, out of consideration for the veteran's pride and dignity, did not check Chen Xiangbei's tuning feedback or the first-person vehicle video recording.

Now, facing repeated setbacks, Trulli has realized that the Chinese rookie may be far stronger than he expected. He did not obtain a formal driver's contract by relying on Chinese capital to acquire shares in the team.

Chen Xiangbei may very well be relying on his own abilities.

Faced with Trulli's action, Chen Xiangbei remained silent, quietly left the drivers' lounge, and returned to his hotel to rest.

Throughout the afternoon and evening, Chen Xiangbei did not engage in high-intensity physical training. Instead, he spent most of his time in his room watching the qualifying broadcasts on TV, trying to learn the driving styles and racing lines of the four "strongest" teams.

He was well aware of the gap in F1, which, though seemingly insignificant, could actually be an insurmountable obstacle.

If the speed is increased even slightly, the same wiring pattern will risk getting out of control!

In his previous life, Chen Xiangbei had limited talent and, to be honest, could only be considered an average driver. Even if he eventually managed to cross the threshold of F1 racing through sponsorship, his upper limit would probably only be around fifteenth place.

A conservative style won't result in too much damage to the car, making one a director like Ma Zeping and Latifi.

Similarly, he couldn't break through his own "divine circle" and attract the world's attention.

Talent determines the ceiling; even if someone at this level studies other drivers, they still won't be able to grasp the subtleties of handling.

Just like Verstappen's many teammates, such as Albon, Lawson, and Hiroki Tsunoda, if they can't drive Red Bull's extremely biased "custom-tuned car" well, wouldn't they try to imitate and learn from them?
The answer is that it's useless to learn it.

With the same racing line, Verstappen's driving feel allows him to control the car's drift; if you try to imitate it, you'll definitely lose control.

The current Chen Xiangbei is different. He can sense the dynamic balance changes of the race car and knows where the limits of certain driving lines are.

Watching other drivers' race videos gives you a different perspective.

In particular, players like Vettel, Hamilton, and Rosberg, who are currently on the rise, as well as Alonso and Button, who are at their peak, can all contribute to Chen Xiangbei's progress.

The hotel was peaceful that night, but a media storm was brewing outside.

As one of the world's most influential sporting events, the qualifying results of the F1 opening race have been reported by various media outlets.

To the audience's surprise, the Chinese driver, who was previously unknown and even implied to have paid for his seat, actually finished seventh overall, outperforming a number of well-known drivers!
In particular, the BBC took advantage of the buzz and even wrote a special feature on Chen Xiangbei.

The strongest newcomer has emerged; can Chinese driver Bei become the dark horse of the season?

The article's title seems to praise, but its content is actually full of veiled criticism, and it also puts down a number of drivers, emphasizing Chen Xiangbei's offensive actions against Sutil during his exit from the pits, highlighting the traditional British style of stirring up trouble and being a troublemaker.

At the breakfast meeting the next morning, Briatore, with a cigar in his mouth, looked at the newspaper article describing Chen Xiangbei in his hand, a satisfied smile on his face.

“In the BBC report, you really look like a bully.”

"Wasn't cutting in line your order?"

Chen Xiangbei responded with a curt reply.

"No, no, no, I was just hinting."

Briatore shook his finger, immediately denying Chen Xiangbei's "accusations".

Then, a seductive smile appeared on Huabu's face as she said, "Admit it, Bei, there's a big difference between your inner self and your outward appearance. You're full of unruliness and rebellion."

"I'm simply asking you to unleash your true nature and become your authentic self!"

Under normal circumstances, Chen Xiangbei always kept a clear head in the face of Briatore's various seductions and PUA tactics, and was very vigilant about this old Italian rogue, so as to avoid the situation where he was sold out and then helped count the money.

But Chen Xiangbei fell silent after hearing this.

The intense competition on the track can actually get your blood pumping, and you could even say you enjoy being in the eye of the storm.

His outward humility couldn't hide his rebellious nature.

As many people have said, Chen Xiangbei is not like a traditional Asian driver, much less a typical Chinese athlete.

While Chen Xiangbei was still in a daze, Odeto had already led his team members in.

"Bei, let's decide on our starting lineup strategy now."

The FIA's cancellation of the refueling policy for the new season means that the strategy group now only has tire strategy left.

The main decision-making direction is to determine the number of pit stops in the main race, or simply "how many stops".

Under normal circumstances, the lifespan of F1 tires, in the eyes of engineers, is actually much shorter than the general public realizes.

Take the most commonly used soft red tire as an example; its theoretical lifespan is only eight tires!
Yes, you read that right, red tires can only run for forty kilometers.

The first lap is considered the "golden lap" by the team's strategy team, where grip reaches its peak.

The tire tread begins to granulate on the third lap, and the speed drops by 0.3 to 0.5 seconds per lap after the peak speed.

By the eighth lap, the rubber layer melts excessively, causing a sharp drop in grip. The old tires can be more than 1 second slower per lap than the new tires.

After more than twelve laps, the tire structure becomes fatigued, posing a high risk of sudden tire blowout!

Of course, if the driver manages the tires well in advance and has excellent tire retention, it is not impossible to run more than 20 laps on red tires.

It could even be said that, under the constraints of modern F1 regulations, tire management ability has become the most important indicator of a driver's skill level!

Lap speed may reflect talent, but tire management can guarantee results.

"I think that for Xiang Beijun, who is a newcomer and has achieved excellent results in the qualifying matches, maintaining his ranking is the biggest victory. We can be more conservative and adopt the conventional two-stop strategy."

Hiroki Sawano was the first to express his opinion.

The FIA ​​racing rules clearly state that two sets of tires with different compounds must be used in a race, which means that a pit stop is the bottom line; you must pit to change tires no matter what.

In later generations, watching F1 races, one might see a track with low tire wear, where a superb tire-maintaining driver could start on hard white tires and complete the entire race.

Even though the team had already risen into the points zone by not stopping at the pit lane in the final stage, they had to stop to change tires, wasting more than 20 seconds.

This is due to FIA regulations, which require a pit stop for tire replacement.

In addition, reducing the number of pit stops has another advantage for newcomers like Chen Xiangbei and new teams like HRT.

That is to avoid mistakes and disruptions to the rhythm caused by entering the station, and to improve the fault tolerance rate of the crew team.

No matter how intense the pit stop tire-changing training is, HRT technicians can never match the duration of training with the big teams.

The reason is simple: the cost of actual vehicle training is staggering, and the HRT team cannot afford to maintain it.

Meanwhile, in order to save costs, the members of the mechanic team are all part-time engineers of the team. They also have their own jobs of repairing race cars and operating various equipment, so it is impossible for them to switch to full-time tire changers indefinitely.

Don't say that the HRT team is no good. Even for elite teams like Ferrari and Mercedes, they can't afford to support two drivers and more than fifty full-time tire mechanics.

Hiroki Sawano's words prompted the strategy team members to nod subconsciously.

Being conservative is not necessarily wrong, and being radical is not necessarily right. Right and wrong depend more on whether they are reasonable in the context of the current situation.

"Odetto, what do you think?"

Briatore asked Odette a question.

Odeto's expression turned somewhat indifferent in response to the ill-intentioned question from Huabu.

After a moment's thought, he gave his answer: "Stop."

“Odette, you’re really getting old, becoming more and more conservative and out of touch with the times.”

As expected, the old rivals from the "Red vs. Blue" battle have started their sarcastic remarks again.

Despite Briatore's taunts, Odette couldn't contain his anger, even though Briatore was the team manager.

Just as he was about to retaliate, Hua Bu turned to Chen Xiangbei and said, "Bei, remember that times and rules have changed. Tire strategy is no longer a simple tactic, but a math problem!"

After saying that, Briatore looked at Mizutani Sho again.

"Mizutani, it's your turn to speak."

Upon hearing Briatore's instructions, Sho Mizutani, who usually doesn't participate much in decision-making, unusually offered his opinion this time.

"I believe the best approach to entering the station is to make three stops."

"Tell me your reasons."

Odeto immediately countered, saying that Briatore would spout nonsense, while Mizutani Sho would definitely provide a convincing argument.

"The Bahrain Grand Prix is ​​a 57-lap race. According to the traditional two-stop red-yellow-red or red-white-red strategy, it means that each set of red tires must run at least 15 laps to ensure the lifespan of the yellow or white tires for the entire race."

"But according to my calculations, even if this running method is excellent at maintaining the tire, the overall speed loss will still be greater than the 22 seconds of a standard pit stop, as long as the window period is well grasped and no special circumstances occur."

"Theoretically, the three-stop tactic can be 2.531 seconds faster than the two-stop tactic."

Briatore is right. With the progress of the times and changes in the rules, the tactical choice of the number of times to enter the station can now be calculated to obtain the optimal result.

There's even a standardized formula: Window period = (Old tire lap speed × Remaining laps) vs (New tire lap speed × Remaining laps + 22 seconds)
Once calculations show that the latter takes less time, an inbound command will be triggered.

However, these are only theoretical figures. Weather changes, opponent strategies, track accidents, and even mistakes during tire changes will all affect the final result.

The answer, to some extent, comes back to the original question: should we choose to be conservative and reduce variables, or face unpredictable risks?

Mizutani Sho's words silenced everyone present.

Everyone was weighing the pros and cons in their minds, but Briatore was completely relaxed, crossing his legs.

Team managers who can establish themselves in the F1 paddock all have their own unique skills.

Not only can they establish themselves, but they can also become top managers, demonstrating outstanding abilities.

Without a doubt, Briatore was the latter.

Despite his seemingly carefree and unserious demeanor, his actions—photographing the aerodynamic shapes of other racing teams' cars and contacting data engineer Sho Mizutani for calculations—indicate that Hanabusa had already familiarized himself with the new FIA regulations ahead of time.

"In the North, the two-stop strategy will indeed slow down the lap time when the tires have passed the peak grip, but it can better maintain the current ranking and get points."

"The three-stop strategy means that you have to make up for the theoretical 22 seconds lost during the pit stop, and the pit stop time may be even longer. At the same time, there is also the issue of overtaking on the track to regain the ranking."

"You might fall out of the points zone, or even be eliminated from the competition. Can you accept that expectation?"

Odeto explained the pros and cons to Chen Xiangbei in more direct terms.

He planned to leave the decision-making power to Chen Xiangbei himself.

"Odette, what are my pre-race expectations?"

Chen Xiangbei did not answer directly, but asked a question in return.

[Pre-match expectations?]

If we accept the "bold words" made at the season press conference, then Chen Xiangbei's pre-season expectation was to finish in the top six of the main competition.

However, not only other teams, but even the HRT crew members didn't really take it seriously.

"Simply maintaining seventh place is not what I expected."

"I'll choose the fastest track strategy!"

Chen Xiangbei gave his answer in a simple and straightforward manner.

He doesn't dwell on the pros and cons of "how many stops"; he just chooses whichever is faster!

"Bei, you need to think this through. Besides the difference in ranking points, there are also external factors at play."

"Public opinion will put a lot of pressure on you."

Hiroki Sawano offered a reminder, as he was an experienced person and well aware of the hidden discrimination and arrogance within the Formula One community.

Chen Xiangbei is currently in the spotlight, surpassing all previous generations of Japanese drivers.

The more praise you receive, the more criticism you will receive!
If Chen Xiangbei fails to finish in the top six, as long as he gets points, the overall public opinion atmosphere is still within a controllable range.

Scoring points in a debut performance is actually a very good performance for a newcomer.

It's just that they didn't live up to their pre-match boasts, so the mockery won't be too intense.

If Chen Xiangbei fails to score in his debut, he may become the "clown" in the paddock, suffering ridicule and abuse from all sides.

Just like Lawson in later generations.

He was merely mocking Perez, but Chen Xiangbei was deliberately trying to take advantage of Raikkonen!
Furthermore, Chen Xiangbei's past arrogance far surpasses that of Lawson...

"Sawano, mental fortitude is also an essential standard for becoming a top F1 driver."

"If you can't handle the pressure, what kind of F1 driver are you?"

Chen Xiangbei replied with a smile, saying that Zeye underestimated his mental fortitude.

Having experienced the internet age that followed, public opinion in this era is merely child's play.

It's nothing more than being arrogant when you win and bearing the consequences when you lose.

"NICE, it's decided then, the three-stop tactic!"

Briatore had no interest in continuing the discussion; Chen Xiangbei's words prompted him to make a decision immediately.

I was right after all; Chinese boys are inherently rebellious!
The Bahrain Grand Prix officially starts at 3 p.m., but most drivers arrive at the track around noon to carry out various pre-race promotions and preparations, such as conducting pre-race interviews with a few drivers and the pre-race parade of floats.

Given the grand scale of the opening race and the return of racing legend Michael Schumacher, it was natural that newcomers like Chen Xiangbei wouldn't get a chance to be interviewed before the race.

After arriving at the team's pit garage, he went straight to the driver's lounge, watching the broadcast on the screen and constantly replaying the track lines in his mind.

When it was two o'clock, Odeto informed Chen Xiangbei to go to the racetrack assembly area, and then join the other twenty-three drivers on the parade float to receive cheers from tens of thousands of spectators!

After adjusting his racing suit, Chen Xiangbei followed Odette from the back door of the pit garage to the exit lane.

Just like when football players take the field, the area is packed with enthusiastic fans who are expressing their excitement and joy with cheers and whistles.

Looking at the "deep" passage in front of him and the countless waving arms, Chen Xiangbei felt as if he were in a dream.

He had been on the F1 track countless times, but this was the first time he walked through this dedicated lane as a formal driver to receive cheers and tributes from the entire audience.

There was a time when Chen Xiangbei could only watch with envy.

At this moment, he himself is the protagonist that everyone has been waiting for!

(End of this chapter)