Why race if you don’t have money?

Chapter 294 Completely Suppressing Teammates

The moment the qualifying session for the Korean F1 Grand Prix ended on Saturday, it immediately caused a huge uproar online.

Chen Xiangbei's double pole position can be said to have overturned the perception of previous world racing fans. There is no home advantage here, and it is also a very difficult track after the rain. For a newcomer, it is a real hellish challenge.

But Chen Xiangbei did it. He overpowered Hamilton and other top drivers, announcing his rise to the world!
Even the European and American audiences who had previously been cold and mocking towards Chen Xiangbei set aside their prejudices and acknowledged the birth of another new star in F1 when faced with this highly prestigious pole position result at the Yeongam Circuit in South Korea.

Of course, the South Korean media and the internet were filled with outrage. Chen Xiangbei's use of the word "conquer" was unacceptable to them, not to mention his pre-match insults against "Koreans" and his openly giving the middle finger to the audience.

Any one of these actions could be considered a provocation against the entire South Korean nation!
What frustrates South Korean netizens even more is that they utterly despise Chen Xiangbei, yet they are powerless to do anything about it.

Previously, they could even use Hamilton's influence as a pretext to try and defeat Chen Xiangbei with the help of external forces.

Contrary to expectations, the Chinese player became even more arrogant after the game, and once again openly showed his arrogance in the interview!

Unfortunately, South Korea can't even find an F1 driver to punish Chen Xiangbei, let alone a professional driver who dares to openly challenge him. All they have are a few random nobodys barking wildly online.

Chen Xiangbei wasn't even interested in glancing at it. How could a stray dog ​​on the roadside be worthy of challenging a tiger?
As the spectators and racing crews left, the Lingyan Circuit became somewhat quiet at night. Only the HRT team's lounge was lit up, where Chen Xiangbei and Perez had arrived at the same time to prepare for simulator training.

As it turns out, the intense simulator training was effective. At least through continuous practice, Chen Xiangbei had firmly imprinted the entire terrain of the Lingyan track into his mind.

This is why he was able to maintain an extremely consistent racing line during qualifying, laying the foundation for ultimately securing pole position.

However, the qualifying route is often not applicable to the race.

In addition, Chen Xiangbei was able to secure pole position, to some extent thanks to the sudden downpour, which helped him bridge the gap in car performance.

Otherwise, with a tuning scheme geared towards the main race and weak car performance, even if Chen Xiangbei were fearless enough to floor the accelerator, he wouldn't be able to achieve any outstanding results.

Objectively speaking, Chen Xiangbei also has a significant psychological advantage.

That is because he knew where the lap time limit was on the Lingyan Circuit.

Often, a track record is an honor, but it's also a reminder of a driver's limits. It's like telling everyone how fast a lap time is possible on this track; if you can't reach it, it's either because your car is too slow or you're not good enough.

However, without track records, drivers don't know where the temporary limits are. The ideal lap simulated by computers often differs greatly from reality, and they lack a target to refer to.

Chen Xiangbei didn't have this kind of mental hesitation. Even if Hamilton set an extremely good lap time, he knew that it wasn't the fastest lap time on the Lingyan Circuit, and he could break it as long as he performed well.

As the old saying goes, there are no absolute novices in F1 driving. The skills of top drivers are evenly matched, and it all comes down to who has the better car or who is in better form.

Psychological advantage is a state of mind, and Chen Xiangbei can remain calm and composed.

However, the main race involves more than one lap, which requires absolute long-distance consistency to maintain.

Moreover, Chen Xiangbei believed that the Korean heavens wouldn't send another rainstorm to help him, and the only way to close the gap in racing was through his own strength.

The foundation for increasing strength lies in hard work and relentless effort!
Chen Xiangbei held this view, as did Perez.

Perez was just as impacted by his teammate's pole position lap time in Q3 as any other driver in the paddock.

After all, no one knew better than him just how weak Chen Xiangbei's racing car was.

The close performance in practice and the first two qualifying sessions greatly encouraged Perez and boosted his confidence.

Chen Xiangbei is indeed very strong, but I still have a chance to defeat him!
This belief was somewhat shattered in the third qualifying session. Perez couldn't even understand how Chen Xiangbei could achieve such a high speed; the only explanation was his high-intensity driving in the racing simulator.

That's why Perez came to the drivers' lounge again.

He also hopes to become as strong as Chen Xiangbei through continuous simulation training!

Do you want to train using the simulator?

Seeing Perez's hesitant expression, Chen Xiangbei asked.

"You use it."

Perez replied.

There is no doubt that both of them came to the drivers' lounge at this time with the same idea in mind.

There is only one racing simulator, and Chen Xiangbei, as the team's number one driver, enjoys priority access to the resources.

"It's okay, you can run."

Chen Xiangbei shrugged and then sat down next to him.

This isn't to say he's being overly modest, but rather that Chen Xiangbei's current need for the simulator isn't as strong as his need for ranked matches.

Qualifying is only one lap, but the race is fifty-five laps, giving him enough time to get used to the race rhythm in real competition.

Another point is that Chen Xiangbei is also concerned that simulator driving will affect his feel for actual combat.

This is why many top drivers don't transport racing simulators during race week. If Chen Xiangbei wasn't trying to familiarize himself with this unfamiliar track, he wouldn't need to use a simulator during breaks in the race either.

Perez's expression instantly became complicated upon seeing Chen Xiangbei's "modestness".

After staring at each other for a few seconds, he finally spoke: "Aren't you afraid I'll surpass you?"

Surpass me?

Upon hearing this word, Chen Xiangbei's lips curled up slightly.

"The word 'fear' doesn't exist in my dictionary, and besides, you can't surpass me."

Chen Xiangbei never showed any sense of superiority in front of the number two driver, but he would use absolute confidence to make the other party understand why he was the number one driver.

Even if we consider Perez for the next decade, he will still be considered one of the top drivers in the paddock.

Despite being thrashed by Verstappen, in a sense, it's similar to Barrichello becoming Schumacher's teammates.

Does being utterly defeated by Schumacher mean you're bad?

I'm afraid not.

Perez is similar; he started his career at Sauber and defeated teammates like Kobayashi Kamui, Hulkenberg, Ocon, and Stoll, only losing to world champion Jason Button in an internal battle during his McLaren era.

It was precisely because of this record that Perez was able to rise from a pay driver to partner with Verstappen in a top paddock team like Red Bull.

It can only be said that during the Red Bull dynasty, whoever became Verstappen's teammate was destined to be crushed.

Whether you're a pro or a bad player, you're still not as strong as Verstappen.

This is just like during the Ferrari dynasty, whoever was Schumacher's teammate had the same fate.

Barrichello and Massa, both world runners-up, were simply thrashed.

Even if Perez isn't bad, Chen Xiangbei is still absolutely confident he can crush him. Perhaps history has changed, and his fate as the number two driver is unlikely to change. Chen Xiangbei will become Perez's "Verstappen" teammate!
Of course, Perez was unaware of his future fate, and hearing Chen Xiangbei's confident declaration stirred up his inner pride.

"Bei, you are indeed very strong, but I am not weak either. Don't be so confident."

Perez's face turned pale and then red as he said this. He sensed a kind of contempt; Chen Xiangbei was too arrogant!
"It's not that I'm confident, it's that you're afraid."

“Perez, that’s why you can’t surpass me. I never use the phrase that my opponent is strong, but I’m not weak either.”

"Does this put you in a weaker position?"

Chen Xiangbei still had that faint smile on his face. Perez was actually no different from most of the historically famous number two drivers, except that he lacked the confidence to stand out from the crowd.

Barrichello would often make sarcastic remarks about Schumacher after the game, venting his dissatisfaction and frustration like a wronged woman.

However, on the track, they still had to obediently follow the team's instructions and dare not disobey in the slightest.

When Perez was doing well, he also had the ambition to challenge Verstappen, but he lacked the strength and determination to shake his opponent.

Because from beginning to end, he positioned himself as the weaker party.

Chen Xiangbei, on the other hand, is now only thinking about how to "slay a god"!
Upon hearing Chen Xiangbei's words, Perez was stunned and didn't know how to respond for a moment.

As a rookie who entered the F1 paddock as a temporary substitute and obtained his seat through a paid transfer, Perez lacked sufficient confidence and self-assurance, which made him seem powerless in whatever he said.

Chen Xiangbei didn't continue speaking. He didn't want to mock or humiliate Perez; he just wanted to clarify his own position.

To become a king, one must not be challenged!

"Go ahead and train, I'll just sit here and watch."

After saying that, Chen Xiangbei sat down on the sofa next to him.

Faced with this situation, Perez took a few deep breaths, his chest heaving, and tried his best to calm himself down before sitting in the simulator cockpit.

If they want to retaliate against Chen Xiangbei, they must prove that they are faster and stronger!

Driven by his pride, Perez had never been so eager to defeat another driver as he was today!
The simulator racer sped across the screen, the lap count in the upper right corner increasing with each lap, from single digits to double digits and then to triple digits.

Perez no longer paid attention to how many laps he had run; he only knew that the clock on the wall had silently followed it for many laps.

To defeat a strong opponent, all you can do is work harder and fight harder than them.

Unfortunately, Perez chose the wrong opponent; he can't beat Chen Xiangbei just by trying.

Even without driving a racing simulator, Chen Xiangbei didn't rest or leave. He sat next to Perez, watching him circle around the track, and memorized every cornering line and braking point of the complex first half of the street race layout.

A race car with poor performance will inevitably suffer on the high-speed tracks in the second half of the race; this is determined by the laws of physics.

The only section where Chen Xiangbei could make up for lost time was the first half of the Lingyan Circuit street race.

As night fell, when Perez turned around, exhausted, and looked at Chen Xiangbei sitting behind him watching, he felt an indescribable shock and awe.

"You've been watching like this for hours?"

"Ah."

Chen Xiangbei nodded.

Have you always worked this hard?

"Ah."

"why?"

Perez countered with a question.

“Back in Formula Renault, I trained longer and at a much more intense pace than any other driver.”

"Because I know that when you lose to your opponent at the starting line, the only way to win is to fight hard, and rest is a luxury."

After speaking, Chen Xiangbei stared at Perez and asked meaningfully.

"Perez, you and I are actually the same kind of people."

Indeed, Perez's experience is very similar to Chen Xiangbei's. Both traveled across the ocean to compete in Europe. They had no prominent family background or financial resources, and no national residency. All they could rely on was to seize every opportunity!
"I understand."

This time, Perez nodded solemnly; he finally understood his teammate.

A night passed and it was time for the main race on Sunday.

The pre-race media hype, coupled with Chen Xiangbei's provocations against the entire South Korean region, made this Korean F1 Grand Prix exceptionally popular. Even the temporary addition of grass tickets could not accommodate the surging crowds, and the area around the track was packed with dense crowds.

Many people held up banners and waved the Taegeukgi (South Korean flag), hoping to suppress Chen Xiangbei's momentum!

At nine o'clock in the morning, the HRT team members arrived at the pit stop to prepare. Chen Xiangbei and Perez had stayed in the driver's lounge until the early hours of the morning last night, but there was no sign of fatigue on their faces. On the contrary, they were both filled with a fervent fighting spirit.

Chen Xiangbei came for the Grand Prix, aiming to forever etch his name in the history of the first Korean F1 Grand Prix and become an insurmountable obstacle for future Korean drivers.

As for Perez, it's simple: he just wants to defeat Chen Xiangbei.

This isn't about the resources and status of being the number one driver; it's simply about wanting to prove myself.

Before the main race begins, there are support races and various opening ceremonies. The F1 Grand Prix has never been just a sporting event; it is also a window for a country to promote itself to the world.

Just like the Olympics.

Ten years ago was the peak of the cold wave that swept across Asia. Undoubtedly, girl groups like Girls' Generation and boy groups like TVXQ became the opening performance guests to promote K-pop culture.

Chen Xiangbei wasn't interested in boy bands or girl groups. He did recognize a few of the members, but now that he was practically a "public enemy of South Korea," even if he wanted to greet them out of curiosity, they would probably avoid him like the plague.

While he was helping the race car with its final checks at the pit lane, he saw a group of reporters appear in the pit lane, vying to interview a certain guest.

"Brother Bei, which Korean celebrity is so famous that all the reporters are surrounding them?"

Ah Yong also witnessed this scene and curiously asked Chen Xiangbei a question.

"Korean celebrities aren't that famous, it's not them."

Chen Xiangbei replied casually.

"Who is that?"

"Jackie Chan and Will Smith."

(End of this chapter)