Why race if you don’t have money?

Chapter 305 The Team's Challenge Against Higher Levels

"Schumacher didn't choose to stop him?"

Park Dong-wook's face was filled with disbelief upon seeing this.

It's important to understand that at this time, East Asian countries generally had similar impressions of Schumacher, still stuck on his peak era as the Ferrari Prancing Horse.

Even though he was defeated by Alonso, it did not affect Schumacher's reputation for skill.

The reason is simple: Ferrari has been increasingly heading in the direction of "clowns" in recent years. As the oldest and most influential factory team in the F1 paddock, it has not only failed to produce a Martian car, but in many cases, it is not even as good as a championship contender.

The speed at which it has declined in just a few years is beyond imagination; only Renault can rival it.

However, Renault had its reasons. Key members of its R&D team, including the design director, were suspended, and then Briatore poached a group of people to the HRT team. Given these changes, its decline was quite normal.

Ferrari, on the other hand, seemed to have fallen from its peak without warning.

Even though Raikkonen won his last world championship in 07, he only had a one-point advantage, and the whole process was fraught with risk.

It can only be said that Raikkonen was in his prime, using all his luck and strength on the Ferrari championship. From then on, he went on to become a "health-conscious" driver, never again regaining his former status as a super genius.

From Park Dong-wook's perspective, Schumacher's comeback was about creating history with eight world championships, making him an invincible force.

Even if their condition fluctuates, it wouldn't warrant "avoiding battle."

But it went straight into the station?

"Schumacher's tires were already at the pit window, and it was a wise move for him not to engage in a battle with the two HRT cars."

Reid offered an explanation for Schumacher, saying that it was normal for the soft red tires to need to pit after running more than ten laps.

If there is no external pressure and the HRT vehicles can maintain their speed and drive safely, they will inevitably show strong overtaking maneuvers as the two HRT vehicles approach aggressively. There is no need to risk missing the pit stop window and staying on the track to block other vehicles.

However, after saying that, Reid added, "Judging from his performance in the last few races, Schumacher's form has been fluctuating a lot, which may be one of the reasons why he chose to pit for tire changes."

"Even the legendary racing champion has grown old."

Although Renault offered a reasonable explanation, he still subconsciously shared the same emotional thoughts as Park Dong-wook.

That's why he would say the phrase "a hero grows old".

If it were the Schumacher of the past, even if he were hit by a tire and driving a tricycle, even if his gearbox failed and he couldn't shift gears, he wouldn't have avoided the attack. At the very least, he would have let the two young HRT drivers experience the power of the racing legend.

Many people hoped to witness Schumacher's triumphant return, and did not believe or were unwilling to believe that the racing legend's competitive level had declined and that he could no longer maintain his former dominant position.

But just like the setting sun, even gods have their moments of decline.

A new generation replaces the old; this is the eternal melody of the F1 paddock.

As commentator Reid finished speaking, many people in the audience felt a pang of sadness, especially Ross Brown and Jean Todt, who were standing in the Mercedes-Benz pit stop.

As members of the Ferrari dynasty's iron triangle, one has now become the Mercedes team principal, and the other has become the president of the FIA.

Although they are still in the racing industry, it's not like they've gone their separate ways, but they have already said goodbye to their past identities.

"Does Schumacher's old injury still have an effect?"

As one of Schumacher's closest friends and one of the few people who could visit him in the future, Jean Todt was well aware of the reasons for Schumacher's decline in performance. In addition to the effects of age, the main reason was the injuries caused by the motorcycle accident.

Jean Todt, however, was not so clear about Schumacher's rehabilitation. After all, he was busy with his duties as the president of the FIA ​​and often did not have time to watch F1 races, let alone keep track of his old friend's physical condition.

"Ah."

Without saying much, Ross Brown simply responded.

Schumacher's physical condition is currently a closely guarded secret by the team, and any leak of it would have a significant negative impact.

First, his commercial value decreased. Sponsors also expected Schumacher to create a global sensation by becoming an eight-time world champion.

If we are told that it is difficult to achieve, then the sponsorship amount and endorsement fee, if not significantly reduced, should at least be reduced by 20% or 30%.

The second point is the deterrent effect of the convoy!
Regardless of Schumacher's fluctuating form, his name in the F1 paddock is equivalent to "nuclear deterrence." No one dares to be complacent in the face of this racing legend, let alone make any rash moves to challenge him.

Injuries are not the same as regular competitive performance; their occurrence means that one will only go downhill and it is difficult to rebound.

With his "golden streak" broken, Schumacher, now without any threat, will face even fiercer competition. If his form is no longer sufficient to maintain his victories, then the entire team's situation will become increasingly difficult.

This is somewhat similar to the scene before the retirement of the elderly Raikkonen and Vettel, who have completely become gods descending from the mountain.

It's clear that the ambitious Mercedes team can't accept this, so they'll have to hide Schumacher's injury and condition, waiting for the veteran to create a miracle!
"We're getting old too."

Jean Todt did not mention Schumacher's injury, only making this one remark.

Each version has its own legend, and Ferrari's glory may have ended in the summer of 05.

"Perez, PUSH!"

Schumacher's concession undoubtedly gave the HRT team a shot in the arm, and even Odette was so excited that he immediately gave instructions.

It is foreseeable that a chain reaction will occur, with vehicles with soft red tires coming to the station to change tires. Perez and Chen Xiangbei will try to keep their distance as much as possible to create a full twenty-second window for themselves to enter the station.

Without the hot air and turbulence from the car in front, it's now up to Perez and Chen Xiangbei to find a balance between speed and tire maintenance!

“COPY.”

Perez responded, and you could clearly hear the excitement in his voice!
As a reserve driver making his debut, he has done a near-perfect job, qualifying for Q3, overtaking his teammate at the start, and forcing Schumacher to pit during a chase. He is currently still in the points zone.

Let alone paid drivers who joined the team with their own money, even among the super talents cultivated by the teams' youth training programs, there are not many who can reach Perez's current level of performance.

Car #14 advanced rapidly, and with the pit window brought by Kubica and Schumacher, the drivers ahead also did not want to fight with the HRT team, thus giving their teammates who pitted first an opportunity for an undercut.

In just two laps, Perez moved into the lead car position, with Chen Xiangbei in second place.

However, this provisional ranking is an illusion. If Perez and Chen Xiangbei want to maintain this ranking, they need to create at least a 20-second gap in pit stop window time with the third-place driver.

Only in this way can the opponent still be suppressed behind the car when both cars leave the station.

"Fleet, how far am I from the car behind me?"

When the race reached the seventeenth lap, Chen Xiangbei took the initiative to ask a question.

"17.53 seconds."

Behind him was Vettel from Red Bull Racing. The RB6 displayed truly phenomenal performance this race, and even with Hamilton's determined defense and high spirits, McLaren couldn't stop Red Bull on the high-speed second half of the track. Even second driver Webber overtook Alonso to take third place.

"Vettel is on a neutral yellow tire, and it may take about two more laps to fully reach operating temperature. This is the best opportunity to open up the pit stop window."

Odette gave a reminder and instructed Perez's race engineer, Bird, to relay it.

There is no warm-up lap during the race, which means that Vettel's neutral yellow tires are currently too cold to reach their maximum speed.

The average time for pit stops at Lingyan Circuit is 23.77 seconds. If Chen Xiangbei and Perez want to ensure that they pit before Vettel, they need to be at least 23 seconds ahead of him.

Of course, this is only in theory and is difficult to achieve in reality.

The reason is that even during Vettel's warm-up period, Chen Xiangbei and Perez were able to maintain a lead of more than 3 seconds per lap.

However, Chen Xiangbei and Perez cannot pit for tires on lap 19. They need to continue running on the track until the best pit window after lap 25.

After lap 19, the gap between HRT and Red Bull will narrow again.

Then it's time to wait for the Red Bull car to make its second pit stop, and then calculate the distance between the two cars to choose the right time to advance.

This is why F1 tactics are essentially a math problem; the strategy team needs to frantically calculate the lap difference between themselves and their opponents in order to obtain the optimal pit stop window.

Even when smaller teams have significantly inferior car performance, they can still use this method to complete an undercut (tactical overtaking).

In order to allow for pit stops for tire changes and tactical maneuvers, it was best to take advantage of the opponent's weakness and establish a lead as much as possible, which is why Odeto issued the order to advance.

Having received clear instructions from race engineer Bird, Perez abandoned his idea of ​​saving the tire and stepped on the gas again to accelerate.

Chen Xiangbei's initial initiative to let Perez pass prevented excessive wear on his tires. In addition, Chen Xiangbei's blocking of Barrichello's offensive could be considered, to some extent, "protecting" Perez.

Ultimately, considering the consecutive avoidance by the front row drivers, Perez never experienced any particularly intense battles. Coupled with his exceptional tire-keeping talent and driving skills, his tire condition was far better than expected.

Keep in mind that this was a pro who could drive over thirty laps on a set of soft red tires in later generations. For Perez, the neutral yellow tires, which could only last for less than twenty laps, still provided ample tire life for propulsion!
Perez accelerated, and Chen Xiangbei quickly caught up with him, taking advantage of the "east wind." The two cars sped off together.

"Perez has sped up again, seemingly trying to create a pit stop window with Vettel. If the previous test was about Perez's ability to maintain his position, now it's about his absolute speed."

"Both HRT cars are very fast; I wonder how much they can outpace Vettel in a single lap."

Reid has extensive experience commentating on F1 races and immediately guessed the HRT team's tactical intentions.

The young Mexicans performed exceptionally well in maintaining their lead, but the race wasn't just about that; to win in the end, they needed sheer speed.

If Perez is equally outstanding in this aspect, even if Trulli recovers from his injury, he may find it difficult to retain his place next summer.

“Vettel’s Red Bull car is very strong in this race, and Perez is a rookie driver, so he can’t create much of a gap.”

Park Dong-wook offered his perspective, which was largely free of personal bias and presented from an objective standpoint.

Reid nodded in agreement; he also didn't think Perez could widen the gap.

The Toyota engine roared deafeningly, but Perez's expression was very serious. He knew this was the moment to demonstrate his absolute speed, which would greatly help him replace Trulli and secure a regular driver's seat.

Since arriving at the Lingyan Circuit with the team on Thursday, Perez has been constantly practicing and learning on the simulator, but the way he demonstrates absolute speed and long-distance driving while maintaining tire speed is completely different.

One is speed, the other is stability!
Perez's lap times were not slow, and he was able to keep up with Chen Xiangbei's car because he was a follower.

To become a leader today, one needs to create one's own cornering routes and challenge the limits of every corner on the track. The demands on a driver's reaction time, driving skills, proficiency, and even courage have increased exponentially.

Perez had to admit that he was under tremendous psychological pressure.

At that moment, he felt a sense of admiration for Chen Xiangbei. This Chinese teammate had only played a few more games, so how did he manage to maintain such composure under pressure, never letting his own mistakes or external pressure break down his mental defenses?
17.95.

18.33.

19.07...

Track monitoring data is constantly being updated, and the lap time gap between Perez and Vettel is widening.

After one lap, the gap had reached just over 20 seconds, which was basically in line with the team's expectation of a 3-second lead per lap.

Just when everyone thought everything was going to go well, on the next lap, as Vettel's tires warmed up and he put on more power, Perez's ability to pull away from the car decreased sharply, and he came to a standstill when the gap reached 21.5 seconds.

Seeing Vettel's speed increasing, Bird couldn't help but urge, "Perez, can you push any faster?"

Bird was Perez's game engineer. Putting aside their personal relationship, Bird was extremely eager for this young Mexican man to seize the opportunity to showcase his abilities, simply because it was a matter of mutual benefit.

It's important to know that absolute speed is the benchmark for judging a driver's potential.

If you have absolute speed, even if your performance is poor, others will still think that you have potential to be tapped.

If not, even if your points and ranking are good throughout the season, you may still be eliminated by the team.

"can."

Perez agreed without hesitation.

A driver who can't seize opportunities will be eliminated, no matter how capable they are.

You grit your teeth and floor the gas pedal to accelerate again, but sometimes you can't just go faster whenever you want to.

The excessive entry speed into the corner caused the Perez car to skid, and its previously smooth racing line was now completely messed up, with the driver even frantically trying to recover the car.

Chen Xiangbei, who was in the car behind, saw all of this. Instead of taking the opportunity to overtake, he reported the tire situation to his teammate Perez.

The reason is simple: Chen Xiangbei's tires were also at their limit. If he didn't take advantage of Perez's slipstream, even if he overtook him, he still wouldn't be able to increase his speed.

If that's the case, why take advantage of a teammate's illness and try to kill them?
Fortunately, Perez has good basic skills and managed to keep the car stable and avoid a collision with the barrier in a very dramatic manner.

However, this incident caused Perez to immediately revert to a conservative pace, making it impossible for him to widen the gap with Vettel.

The only thing we can do now is to avoid being caught up by Vettel as quickly as possible.

"Liang, prepare for both trains to enter the station."

Odeto immediately gave instructions to the team's mechanics: the original strategy of running around 25 laps would be brought forward, otherwise Vettel would close the tire gap by about two seconds per lap, and they wouldn't be able to create a pit stop window!

But now there is another severe test: the arrival of two trains at the station.

This is a pit stop operation that even top factory teams cannot guarantee to complete smoothly. For HRT, a new military team, it is simply a challenge beyond its class!
(End of this chapter)