Why race if you don’t have money?

Chapter 265 McLaren's Plan B
Hamilton was stunned when he saw the HRT race car suddenly appear in front of him.

McLaren had considered the possibility of a pit lane undercut, but they had great confidence in their team of mechanics.

The former "Big Three" and the current four major racing teams are not just empty names!

In fact, McLaren made no mistakes during this pit stop. The overall tire change took much faster than before, completing the entire operation in just 2.4 seconds, far exceeding the average time of around 3 seconds.

But to their utter surprise, the HRT fleet suddenly exploded with power.

The entire tire change took only 2 seconds!
If Ferrari, Red Bull, or even the former Renault team had done this, Hamilton wouldn't have been surprised at all. The big teams have the resources to pay their mechanics full-time salaries and can use hundreds or thousands of practice sessions to enhance teamwork.

Do the small team of part-time technicians rely on "love" to practice countless times?

McLaren's prediction was correct; the HRT team's mechanics were not outstanding, and they were not willing to work overtime or do any unpaid work.

There were three factors that truly triggered the qualitative change. The first was that Briatore integrated the team and fired some unqualified mechanics, making everyone realize that HRT was not a team where you could just coast along.

The second point is the addition of Chinese members such as Liang Chi and Chen Xiangbei.

Liang Chi, A Yong, Lei Ge, and others demonstrated what hard work and perseverance mean. They joined the F1 technician team with zero experience, but later became the fastest and most efficient tire group in the tire changing process.

At the same time, their countless days and nights of practice also had a ripple effect, indirectly motivating other team technicians.

Team atmosphere is often like this: if one person slacks off, the whole team will easily slacken off. When the chief technician takes the lead, the subordinates naturally have nothing to say and have to show their professionalism.

In addition, Chen Xiangbei's improved performance is also a great boost to the team members!

Effort is something that only yields sufficient emotional value when it brings rewards.

If the mechanics are the fastest at changing tires in the paddock, but the driver is the last on the track, anyone would be frustrated after a few such incidents, losing their drive and fighting spirit.

Chen Xiangbei has repeatedly proven with his speed that HRT becoming a championship contender is no longer just empty talk.

Then everyone in the convoy will move forward together toward this goal!

Finally, and most importantly, Briatore provided the team with substantial financial benefits and rewards through various business partnerships.

Regardless of how much of the advertising on Chen Xiangbei and HRT racing cars was done by Hua Bu in a desperate attempt to make easy money, the team ultimately profited from it, and the team members also got a share.

There may be a difference between the full-time salary and that of a large racing team, but at least the overtime pay for extra practice will not be less.

Nobody likes to be free labor, and you shouldn't drain the team's enthusiasm, otherwise the momentum won't last long.

Having the right money and the right emotional support is the key to long-term success!
As the team principal and chief race engineer, Odette had witnessed the changes in the atmosphere within the HRT team, which is why he dared to formulate McLaren's plan for the pit undercut.

As it turns out, Odette succeeded; the team led by the chief Chinese technician was on par with the four major teams in the paddock.

Perhaps from this point onward, HRT has officially earned the right to be considered a top team!
"Great job! We did it!"

"Undercut successful! North's ranking has risen another place!"

"Go, Xiangbei! Go, HRT!"

"For HRT! For the championship!"

The HRT team's pit garage was in an uproar as they watched Chen Xiangbei drive ahead of the McLaren race car.

If the team's previous victories were not obvious, this time they defeated the McLaren team purely by their speed of progress, highlighting the role of the entire mechanics team to the fullest.

A great racing team must have a strong team, provided that there is sufficient cohesion and team spirit.

There is no doubt that HRT has become an increasingly cohesive whole!
The team members' cheers not only affected the entire maintenance corridor, but the audience also snapped out of their surprise and joined in with thunderous applause.

"Holy crap, they can overtake like that? Looks like the HRT team isn't weak at all."

"Of course, don't underestimate the HRT fleet; it represents the final dance of the Toyota Group!"

"That's right, Honda won the championship in the final dance last year. Let's witness the new team win the championship again!"

"Go HRT!"

These cheers were pleasing to Chen Xiangbei, but unacceptable to Hamilton.

In particular, Chen Xiangbei's "cut in" was extremely forceful, almost a replica of the scene where he cut in for Sutil. How could the proud Hamilton tolerate such treatment?

"Boss, I must surpass the North."

Hamilton coldly uttered these words through the team's voice chat system.

At this time, Hamilton had not yet developed the kingly aura of his seven-time champion days, and was still filled with a youthful spirit.

Even during regular training, McLaren owner Dennis had to push him to do it, otherwise Hamilton would slack off and complain that the races were too tough.

However, Chen Xiangbei's appearance and his tough actions completely ignited Hamilton's competitive spirit.

He will use every means to surpass Chen Xiangbei!
"Don't act rashly, wait for instructions from the convoy."

Dennis, who is known as the "godfather," knows Hamilton's character very well; this guy is definitely not lacking in toughness or even the courage to crash a car.

In later years, Verstappen, known as "Turret," dominated the track, relying on his fearless attitude and forcing renowned champion drivers such as Alonso and Vettel to back down.

Hamilton was the only one who didn't indulge him.

If this guy gets carried away, it could end up being a lose-lose situation.

"Boss, what should we do?"

Whitmarsh, the McLaren team leader standing nearby, asked a question, though he could vaguely guess what his boss was thinking.

"Let's wait and see, it's not the crucial moment yet."

Dennis shook his head without saying anything. The race was only a third of the way through, with forty laps remaining.

Anything can happen during this process, so the trump card cannot be used prematurely.

Moreover, Chen Xiangbei's offensive ability is indeed very strong, but his defensive ability remains to be confirmed.

Dennis didn't believe the Chinese rookie possessed both the strongest offense and the strongest defense. He thought Hamilton, coupled with the McLaren's performance, had a chance to pierce through Driver North's defense! "Turulli, can your tires hold up?"

On the HRT team's side, Odeto also asked Trulli a question via radio.

"No problem, I can still manage."

From the start, Trulli maintained an absolutely defensive posture, fully implementing the team's wingman strategy, without any intention of pushing forward.

As for Sutil and Kovalainen, who started on soft red tires, they were unable to break through Trulli's defense and did not wait for the yellow flag and safety car to be deployed. Unfortunately, their tires wore out early, forcing them to pit early to change tires and fall to the back of the pack to cruise and wait for an opportunity.

This means that Trulli, who also starts on neutral yellow tires, will have a much longer tire life than Chen Xiangbei, at least delaying his pit stop for tire changes is not a problem.

"OK, the planned stop at this station is cancelled. We will continue running and wait for instructions from the team."

“COPY.”

Without asking why, Trulli simply responded with a single sentence.

The reason is simple: this is the fate of the number two driver; the team's interests have been put above personal interests!

The HRT and McLaren race cars drove out of the pit lane one after the other.

With the speed limit removed, Hamilton immediately floored the accelerator, almost touching the rear of Chen Xiangbei's car.

His intention was clear: he was ready to overtake and was just waiting for an opportunity to cut in front of the other car!
Hamilton, are you so eager to surpass me?

Chen Xiangbei saw this scene in the rearview mirror, and the corners of his mouth turned up slightly, revealing a playful smile.

If Verstappen's later career accompanied Chen Xiangbei's advanced Formula career, then Hamilton's consecutive championships accompanied Chen Xiangbei's introduction to lower-level Formula.

However, due to his age and rank at that time, Chen Xiangbei found it difficult to regard Hamilton as a role model. After all, if an elementary school student were to read a college student's textbook, he would not understand it at all, and there would be no point in learning from it.

By the time Chen Xiangbei could understand it, it was already the Red Bull dynasty era, with Verstappen at the height of his power!

But this doesn't mean that Chen Xiangbei was unaware of how strong Hamilton was.

This is a driver who is capable of stepping onto the "Mount Rushmore" of F1. The powerful performance of Mercedes cars and the lack of sufficiently strong opponents at the time overshadowed much of his brilliance.

The thrill and excitement of facing Hamilton is no less than that of Schumacher and Alonso, and it can also get Chen Xiangbei's blood pumping!

True drivers are never afraid of strong opponents, but rather regret the lack of rivals!
Faced with Hamilton's acceleration, Chen Xiangbei did not hesitate at all, and also stepped on the gas to accelerate, while swaying the car body to create turbulence and prevent the car behind from grabbing the low-pressure area at the rear and getting a "slingshot effect".

However, he underestimated the strength of the future seven-time champion. Hamilton, who had been driving F1 for three years and had won the world championship, caught the HRT car's slipstream almost at the same time Chen Xiangbei tried to change lanes.

He pulled away, made a U-turn, and changed lanes to the left to overtake. The entire maneuver was executed flawlessly and with incredible smoothness!
Wow! That's really impressive!
To be honest, compared to the injured and aging racing legend Schumacher, Hamilton's handling and reaction made Chen Xiangbei truly feel the state a driver in his prime should be in.

The entire reaction time was much faster than Chen Xiangbei had expected, almost synchronized with his own actions.

Another crucial point is that the performance enhancements that HRT race cars are so proud of are nothing more than the McLaren cars' normal state compared to them. Trying to outpace them with acceleration is just a pipe dream.

With its formidable performance and the added acceleration from the wake effect, the McLaren race car's orange front wing instantly swept past the left rear wheel of Chen Xiangbei's HRT race car and continued to climb upwards.

It had the overwhelming momentum of overtaking Chen Xiangbei on the first lap after changing tires!
"Fast, too fast! Hamilton has completed the headbutt on Chen Xiangbei. It seems that a world champion is still a world champion after all!"

Commentator Li Bing remarked that Hamilton's attack on Chen Xiangbei was similar to Chen Xiangbei's previous attacks on mid-table drivers.

It was filled with a sharp and resolute air.

The only difference is that the roles are reversed, and Chen Xiangbei is the one being attacked.

Can Chen Xiangbei withstand a world champion-level opponent?

Let alone his commentary, Chen Xiangbei's face under his helmet had lost its previous playful smile and become somewhat solemn and ugly.

He knew Hamilton was strong, but he didn't expect him to be this strong.

His defensive measures seemed to have been easily seen through by his opponent, giving him the feeling that any skill was futile in the face of absolute power.

But it's impossible to make Chen Xiangbei admit defeat!

By revving the engine and downshifting, Chen Xiangbei revved the engine to its maximum and utilized the strong torque in the low gear to achieve faster acceleration.

Through this series of maneuvers, the power performance of the Toyota engine was fully unleashed. The McLaren's orange front wing, which was about to surpass the middle of Chen Xiangbei's car, was once again suppressed by this instantaneous acceleration.

During the winter testing phase, my friend drove a Honda tractor and still managed to outperform McLaren's famous "Silver Arrow". Now that the "Silver Arrow" name has changed to Mercedes-Benz, how can it outperform the TF110 on a long straight?

HRT cars are now comparable in performance to McLarens, Hamilton really picked the wrong opponent!

While overtaking the McLaren 2, Chen Xiangbei also changed lanes with a swift turn, blocking Hamilton's best cornering line before entering the corner, once again putting him behind his own driver.

The entire lane change was extremely fast, and the car was extremely aggressive. The distance between the front and rear vehicles was less than 30 centimeters, and Chen Xiangbei's right rear wheel almost experienced what it means to be "the golden left front".

"FUCK! Ferrari has unleashed a beast in its quest to sell engines!"

McLaren owner Dennis slammed his fist heavily onto the control table.

He finally understood that the HRT race car's absolute performance was no less than that of the McLaren race car.

It's worth noting that in theoretical test data, McLaren's racing car is second only to Red Bull!
Now, with the help of the Ferrari engine team, the HRT has become the second fastest car in the paddock, even faster than Ferrari itself, which is quite ironic.

"Boss, should we activate Plan B?"

Whitmarsh asked again, "It seems unlikely that Hamilton can easily surpass Chen Xiangbei."

Both drivers opted for a one-stop strategy, meaning they would have to complete the remaining 40 laps on the white hard tires.

Even if Hamilton eventually succeeds in overtaking with his continuous aggressive attacks, he will eventually wear out his tires and have to pit for another tire change.

With a single entry window lasting up to 19 seconds, catching up to them is no easy feat!
Faced with this situation, Dennis's expression was uncertain. After hesitating for a moment, he finally pressed the special voice button.

However, this time the call wasn't answered by the McLaren team, but by the Mercedes team!

That's right, McLaren's Plan B is cross-team command!
(End of this chapter)