Why race if you don’t have money?

Chapter 296: Trust from the Team
"The first half of the Lingyan Circuit is narrow, and the temperature has been low these past few days, making it difficult for the neutral yellow tires to suppress the soft red tires at the start."

"If you can't defend, don't try to be brave and cause an accident."

In the final moments of preparation before departure, Odette stood beside the race car and gave Chen Xiangbei a word of advice.

The first half of the Lingyan Circuit is a street circuit layout, with concrete protective walls that leave no buffer space. If a tough defense is used, not to mention Chen Xiangbei's reputation as the "public enemy of the track," he will have made many enemies in the paddock and is very likely to suffer a malicious crash.

Even if others don't have the intention to cause a collision, if everyone is squeezed together, there's no space to avoid each other.

There is an old Chinese saying that goes, "Take a step back and you'll see a brighter future." The HRT team's strategic goal is to win in the long run, so there's no need to fight over short-term gains or losses.

"I see."

Chen Xiangbei nodded.

He is tough, but not reckless.

Getting into a collision with someone else while in pole position isn't just a personality issue, it's a matter of intelligence.

Even a tough player like Verstappen during his "turret" era was always the one who bombarded the front line from the back; there was never any story of him going to the front line to trade one-for-one with the back line.

Just as Chen Xiangbei was talking to Odette, a commotion arose from the crowd to his left rear. A group of reporters, mainly from South Korean media, had surrounded Hamilton, who was in the second starting position.

From the perspective of South Korean journalists, Hamilton is the most promising driver for this race, without exception.

"Lewis, you finished second in qualifying by 0.1 seconds. Do you have anything to say about the race?"

"I will perform even better in the main competition."

Hamilton replied expressionlessly.

Seeing Hamilton's somewhat bureaucratic response, a reporter on the scene asked further: "In the post-qualifying interview, North said that he would beat all his opponents in the race, and emphasized that this included the world champion in the paddock."

"As the youngest world champion in F1 history, can you accept this kind of statement?"

If the previous questions could still be phrased in a bureaucratic manner, then this question was tantamount to crossing Hamilton's bottom line.

A champion cannot be challenged, let alone a world champion who makes history.

This is seen as cowardly and lack of response, and the damage to morale it would cause is unimaginable.

Often, the best duels between drivers rely on a "I am the only one who can beat me" attitude.

I am number one in the world!

"If you want to defeat me, you must first have the qualifications to challenge me."

"Hamilton, what do you mean by that?"

"I'm the world champion, what kind of champion is Bei?"

Hamilton said this with a hint of contempt in his voice.

At the same time, a burst of laughter erupted from the audience.

Indeed, just like the famous internet saying of later generations, to be compared with each other, one must at least be on the same level.

A simple "What champion are you?" is more powerful than a thousand words!

"Haha, Bei said he was the champion of the leg."

"Does the person in charge even deserve to talk to the World Cup? How can he compare to Hamilton!"

"I still remember Chen Xiangbei's debut when he tried to bluff Kimi Räikkönen, and now he's gone a step further by trying to bluff the world champion."

"The Chinese are just talking big, using every word they say to gild their own image and build momentum within the paddock!"

Faced with such ridicule, even Chen Xiangbei's fans and racing enthusiasts in the paddock looked embarrassed and didn't know how to refute it.

In Formula 1, results are the only constant!

"Ignore them and focus on the game."

Seeing Chen Xiangbei fix his gaze on Hamilton, Odeto took a step to block his view and gave him a reminder.

For this leg of the race, Chen Xiangbei and Perez need to maintain a very safe running style, and there can be no instances of them sprinting impulsively.

Chen Xiangbei's ability to temporarily change the strategy of pushing at Donghai Station relied on the performance advantage brought by the high-power engine. Without this premise and foundation, any rash move would lead to a complete tactical and strategic defeat.

Young people can be impetuous, but they must never be impetuous when they shouldn't be!
Odette had already blocked Chen Xiangbei's view, but at that moment a microphone was thrust over.

Sky Sports' Hank captured this scene. As a professional on-site official reporter, he naturally had to do his best to enhance the viewing experience and popularity of the event. What's the point of everyone just running slowly and peacefully?
Of course, the fiercer the fight, the more exciting it will be.

Perhaps Hank's personal opinion of Chen Xiangbei has changed a lot, and he may even like and approve of this young man.

However, this does not affect his professional ethics; he will not hesitate to dig pits and fan the flames when necessary.

"North, is there something you want to say to Hamilton?"

Following past practice, Hank assumed that Chen Xiangbei would grab a microphone and start spouting nonsense into the camera.

But this time he waved his hand, signaling Hank to move aside.

Hank did as instructed with a puzzled and confused look, until he saw Chen Xiangbei and Hamilton's eyes meet, and he instantly understood the Chinese boy's intention.

If you can confront someone face-to-face, why broadcast it on camera?

Chen Xiangbei pointed his finger directly at Hamilton and said, "You're doomed to lose this round. I'm telling you, even Jesus can't save you!"

To be honest, Chen Xiangbei greatly admired Hamilton's driving skills, but he didn't quite approve of his character and conduct.

If Verstappen's poor driving etiquette can be attributed to the pure retaliation of a racing machine and the mindless control of the desire to win, then it is a consequence of his racing prowess.

Hamilton often preferred to use public opinion campaigns and paddock politics rather than confront people directly.
This wasn't the first time Hamilton had mentioned Chen Xiangbei; on the contrary, during the Australian game, Chen had been subtly hinting at it when asked by reporters.

From Chen Xiangbei's perspective, you might as well just say I'm a newbie who can't even see the taillights of a car in the paddock.

“oh~~~!”

The moment these words were spoken, the entire paddock erupted in an uproar.

Even though everyone had sensed that Chen Xiangbei was somewhat arrogant, they hadn't expected him to be this arrogant.

To directly challenge a world champion on the rise is truly arrogant.

Even the two commentators in the studio had expressions of anticipation on their faces.

Korean guest Park Dong-wook excitedly said, "Red, Chinese driver Bei has now completely offended Hamilton. He will experience what it means to be a world champion."

Reid, who had previously been a supporter of Chen Xiangbei, echoed this sentiment, saying, "Hamilton isn't exactly a nice guy, and McLaren isn't Lotus or Force India. Chen has really bitten off more than he can chew this time."

The drivers who had public feuds with Chen Xiangbei in the past were all at the level of Sutil and Kovalainen, and the strongest was Rosberg of Mercedes.

Putting aside individual skill, even Mercedes, with its factory team reputation, can't actually outrun HRT race cars in terms of performance alone.

Perhaps with the factory team's funding and R&D capabilities, Mercedes-Benz's subsequent upgrades may be able to catch up with or even surpass HRT, but at least for now, it is an undeniable fact that it is lagging behind.

Chen Xiangbei's provocation actually gives him a high chance of winning.

But this time it was different; the opponent was Hamilton, driving a McLaren race car.

Regardless of the car's performance or the driver's abilities, he was generally considered to be superior to Chen Xiangbei at this race.

Pole position may have really made this young man arrogant, thinking that F1 world champions are nothing special.
Compared to the fact that most outsiders, including the commentators, were not optimistic, Chen Xiangbei's fans and car enthusiasts in the stands, who had been suppressed, suddenly erupted, their hearts filled with an endless sense of exhilaration.

"Holy crap, Chen Xiangbei is incredibly arrogant! He dared to challenge the world champion face-to-face in his rookie season!" "That's fucking awesome! Whether he wins or not, at least Chen Xiangbei didn't back down!"

"The reason I became a fan of driver Bei is because of his courage and confidence."

"So what if you're a world champion? Fear is what makes you a loser your whole life!"

"Car God North, let Hamilton witness your strength!"

Compared to the hundreds of thousands of home fans, Chen Xiangbei's thousands of supporters are far fewer in number.

However, the sound they made at that moment was deafening throughout the track!
They've seen far too many Chinese athletes who are gentlemen, but Chen Xiangbei is the only one who doesn't tolerate being provoked by his opponents to their faces.

Regardless of winning or losing, at least they dared to draw their swords!
Losing is just one game.

Being afraid is tantamount to losing your whole life!

"I'm waiting for you, North!"

Hamilton replied with a livid expression, then pushed down his helmet visor.

This British black driver may lack the purity of a true driver in many ways, but he is by no means lacking in the toughness of a driver.

The fact that he could utter those words meant that his anger and fighting spirit had reached their peak.

Hamilton will prove to Chen Xiangbei that he provoked the wrong person.

Inside the HRT team's pit garage, Briatore, oblivious to everyone else, clapped and swayed his head, saying, "Oh~~~, brilliant, truly brilliant."

Seeing his reaction, the design director Bob Bell, who was standing next to him, and Cheng Jian, the chief engineer from Huali, had very complicated expressions on their faces.

Bell spoke first: "Briatoli, Hamilton is absolutely a super genius of F1 history. He has gotten himself into a lot of trouble and sowed the seeds of trouble for this race."

"trouble?"

Briatore burst into laughter.

"Bale, would anyone have put an F1 rookie on the same level as a world champion in the past?"

"will not."

Bob Bell shook his head.

"That's it."

“You see, everyone subconsciously believes that Hamilton and Chen Xiangbei will have a private showdown in the future, which means they are equals.”

"Whether we win or lose is no longer important. From now on, when people mention Hamilton, they will definitely think of the North. That's the best marketing ever!"

Briatore didn't care about the outcome; he only saw Chen Xiangbei's soaring status and identity.

Once Chen Xiangbei is paired with a world champion, he will have completely shed his status as a rookie and lost the naivety of a first-year student in the paddock.

Just like how he and Kimi Räikkönen were considered the twin stars of the paddock.

"If Bei loses, people will only think of him as a loser and mock him. Will it really have no impact at all?"

Bell countered that Briatore was being too "optimistic."

"What impact will it have? Isn't Bei already being ridiculed enough?"

"Bell, you really underestimate North's mental fortitude."

Briatore's tone was somewhat flippant. After nearly a year of contact, even the old Italian rogue was amazed by Chen Xiangbei's ability to withstand pressure.

"I mean if."

Bell emphasized it again.

"That makes it even simpler, you know what I mean."

Briatore smiled mysteriously. As one of the Renault trio, he and Briatore had worked together for many years and knew each other's temperaments well.

F1 never lacks drivers; if they can't withstand the pressure, they're replaced by the next one!
Trulli is injured, Perez can fill in.

Chen Xiangbei is no good. I heard that GP2 champion Maldonado is quite good, and more importantly, he has a huge sponsorship from Venezuela's national oil company. Briatore has long had his eye on this cash cow.

The conversation taking place inside the paddock was naturally inaudible to Chen Xiangbei on the track.

At that moment, the whistle blew to clear out unrelated personnel. Odeto and Chen Xiangbei exchanged a glance. He didn't say anything more, just patted Chen's shoulder and turned to leave.

On the contrary, Ah Yong and the others said "good luck" before pushing the tires away.

On the way back to the outdoor command post, Hiroki Sawano said with concern, "Team Leader Odeto, it's probably not a wise move for Kita-kun to provoke Hamilton like this."

"Are you afraid the North will lose?"

"Can you win?"

"The North has won before."

"The situation was somewhat different before..."

Just as Hiroki Sawano was about to continue speaking, Odette interrupted him, saying, "Sawano, Kita has already shed the conservative nature of Asian drivers, but you still haven't broken free."

"So what if you're a world champion? Do you look down on the North that much?"

I think he can win!

As a member of Ferrari's strategy team, Odeto witnessed firsthand the young Schumacher challenge the so-called "god" Senna.

In the San Marino Grand Prix where Senna died, it was the then-rookie Schumacher who overtook him, leading the racing legend to make a desperate chase, resulting in one of the most tragic accidents in motorsport history.

In the same year, Schumacher reached the pinnacle, winning his first World Championship title.

At that time, Schumacher was only a sophomore, yet he was challenging the three-time world champion.

In terms of gap, it far exceeds the current levels of Hamilton and Chen Xiangbei.

Schumacher didn't back down and even defeated the racing legend, so what does Chen Xiangbei have to be afraid of?

"Sawano-senpai, I also think Mukai-kun can win!"

Sho Mizutani, who has always been respectful and obedient to his seniors, stood up this time to express his opposition.

Throughout the journey, he didn't think Chen Xiangbei was inferior to anyone else, so why couldn't he provoke Hamilton?
"I also believe in the North."

Test engineer Mazzola made his stance clear.

"And I."

"Me too."

"Brother Bei is the strongest driver!"

Each member of the HRT team expressed their trust and support for Chen Xiangbei.

Their feelings and impressions of Chen Xiangbei had long transcended the service relationship between crew members and drivers; it could be said that they had become a true team.

Without Chen Xiangbei's efforts and the confidence he brought, HRT would be nothing more than a third-rate fleet!
Chen Xiangbei's career has changed not only himself, but also the entire racing team.

He is the spiritual pillar of the HRT team!
(End of this chapter)