Why race if you don’t have money?

Chapter 310 God-level driver takes on two opponents
Faced with Reid's direct reminder, Park Dong-wook, despite his inner resentment, dared not utter a word of rebuttal.

After all, the title of South Korea's first F1 commentator requires an invitation from the FIA. Openly showing prejudice against a driver in the paddock means that he is not far from being kicked out.

The "smoke and fire" in the studio did not affect the audience at the scene. They did not care too much about safety issues, but were more concerned about whether the drivers could bring them speed and passion.

That's the essence of motorsport, isn't it?

"Chen Xiangbei is awesome! You beat Schumacher!"

"Holy crap, this is the first time I've ever won a head-on battle against the racing king. I never even dared to dream of it before."

"Has Bei officially advanced to the ranks of top-tier drivers this time?"

"He's definitely the strongest rookie of the year."

A series of thunderous cheers erupted. If someone had said six months ago that a Chinese driver could surpass Schumacher through his driving skills, it would have been like showing off one's skills in front of Guan Yu.

Don't you have any idea whether it's feasible or not?

Today, however, it actually happened. Chen Xiangbei overtook Schumacher on the most difficult double-apex S-curve, demonstrating the ultimate control of the race car. No top driver can compare to this!

Despite the shock, jubilation, and anger throughout the hunting grounds, Chen Xiangbei remained calm.

The reason is simple: surpassing Schumacher is just the beginning; the key is how to defend against being overtaken.

Mercedes' standard pit stop strategy means that Schumacher doesn't have to worry too much about tire wear, allowing him to launch a more extreme and aggressive attack until Chen Xiangbei's defense collapses!
Furthermore, Chen Xiangbei was well aware that once Schumacher overtook him, there would be absolutely no second chance to surpass him.

The shame of defeat will activate the fully-fledged Schumacher, at which point he will show what it means to do anything to win!
However, Chen Xiangbei forgot a crucial element: behind Schumacher was his teammate Perez.

Perez witnessed Chen Xiangbei's attack on Schumacher as if he were a war correspondent. The shock he felt was no less than when Chen Xiangbei predicted his defensive route and accurately hit the bumpy spot.

Perez has always believed that his silent observation and learning of Chen Xiangbei far exceeds the extent to which the other party understands him.

Reality, however, overturned his beliefs; indeed, the person who understands you best is often your enemy.

Unfortunately, your teammate is your biggest rival!

In addition, Chen Xiangbei's surpassing of Schumacher also gave Perez a surge of courage.

That's right, it's courage.

Perez finally realized that Schumacher was no longer the unattainable idol, no longer the "god" he could not defeat.

If Chen Xiangbei, as a rookie, can do it, why can't I?
Even if it's truly impossible, don't we at least have the courage to take on the challenge?
As Perez thought about these things, his eyes gradually hardened. He stepped on the gas and sped after Schumacher. The two cars were not far apart to begin with, and soon they entered the wake turbulence area.

"OH MY GOD, does this mean that both of HRT's rookies are planning to challenge Schumacher?"

When the broadcast camera saw Perez accelerate into attacking range, commentator Reid instantly understood the Mexican newcomer's intention.

It's unbelievable, but two first-year students challenged Schumacher, and one of them actually succeeded.

It seems the F1 paddock has really changed.

"Young people are really hot-blooded."

Jean Todt looked at the monitor screen and said something meaningful.

"Yes, they will pay the price for their actions."

Ross Brown chimed in from the side.

This time, he did not view the event from a "neutral" perspective; instead, his tone revealed a hint of disdain.

No matter how much they admired Chen Xiangbei, they made a serious mistake: they shouldn't have provoked Schumacher excessively.

Once the racing legend is ignited, the two young men will understand why Schumacher was able to win seven world championships!

Sure enough, just as Perez was about to launch his attack, Schumacher moved first.

He didn't even consider any defense, and stepped on the gas to overtake Chen Xiangbei.

This time I'm going to take on two at once!

To be honest, when Chen Xiangbei saw Perez catch up with Schumacher's driver through the rearview mirror, his first reaction was to breathe a sigh of relief.

This means that Perez can help him hold off Schumacher, escape this predicament of being fully on the defensive, and chase down Massa and Rosberg as much as possible.

However, the situation took a sudden turn. Schumacher completely disregarded Perez and launched an even more ferocious and aggressive offensive, causing Chen Xiangbei's defensive pressure to increase exponentially.

Faced with this immense pressure, Chen Xiangbei completely abandoned the idea of ​​shaking off Schumacher and instead shifted his focus from chasing the car in front to defending the car behind, while simultaneously making a swerving maneuver to block the car.

Using extreme methods, he thwarted Schumacher's attack by blocking his car from behind, and even made several sideline blocking maneuvers that nearly caused a collision between the two cars!

"Holy crap, is this the fully-fledged Schumacher?"

Watching the broadcast, A-Yong couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.

While Schumacher attacked Chen Xiangbei, he was also able to perfectly block Perez's overtaking maneuver, and even subtly gained the upper hand against two opponents.

"Schumacher is just that strong; anger brought him back to his peak form."

Odeto replied calmly.

If Ross Brawn abandoned a "neutral" perspective, then Oddoto actually took a "neutral" stance to praise Schumacher.

Memories of Schumacher on the track flashed through Odette's mind like a slideshow; this was the performance and aura that the invincible racing king in the paddock should have.

"Team leader, this defensive strategy might cause the two vehicles to collide."

Hiroki Sawano gave a worried reminder, clearly noticing that Chen Xiangbei's rhythm in the game had been disrupted, and that if this continued, he would make a mistake.

"We can crash into them, but we absolutely cannot be afraid; we must be tough to the end."

“Once the North shows any sign of fear or avoidance, he will not be able to hold on.”

Odeto replied coldly.

Even from the perspective of the convoy, Chen Xiangbei's crash caused enormous damage, yet he still cannot issue a warning or reminder.

A head-on confrontation is Chen Xiangbei's only hope for victory.

Meanwhile, the person who found it most unacceptable was Perez, who was attacking from behind.

The greatest contempt is not in words or deeds, but in ignoring!

Schumacher never paid any attention to Perez who was attacking from behind. His only target was Chen Xiangbei in front. This disregard was a blatant insult to Perez!
I must prove myself.

At that moment, Perez had only one thought in his mind. He frantically used the wake slingshot effect to launch overtaking attacks on Schumacher in front of him.

Perez completely disregarded concerns about pregnancy maintenance, long-distance travel, and stability.

At twenty years old, Perez was still just a young man, and we can't expect him to be as composed as he was during his Red Bull era. It's perfectly normal for him to get carried away.

Even with memories of two lifetimes, Chen Xiangbei was still somewhat caught up in the excitement. Thirty-five laps, thirty-six laps, thirty-seven laps…

The three race cars battled fiercely for three laps, each displaying their full effort.

Furthermore, Chen Xiangbei had to admit that at this moment he finally felt the terror of a legendary driver. If Perez hadn't been attacking relentlessly from behind, he probably would have been overtaken by Schumacher.

Even with double lane changes that skirt the edge and serpentine maneuvers, it still couldn't stop the racing king's offensive!
However, in this intense battle, Chen Xiangbei's tire lifespan dropped rapidly, exceeding the critical value for safely maintaining the tire and finishing the race.

Just when they were locked in a stalemate they couldn't break free from, something both logical and unexpected happened: Perez's attack went awry, and he crashed into the rear of Schumacher's car, causing the two cars to collide and veer off the track one after the other.

Extreme offensive and defensive battles are inherently a tightrope walk, let alone dancing on the edge of a knife for several rounds in a row.

"WHAT? The HRT team is doing that crash thing again?"

"Ban Chen Xiangbei and Perez, and thoroughly investigate Briatore. People without sportsmanship do not deserve to stay in the paddock!"

"The Chinamen are as despicable as ever. Is this how you win the game?"

"FUCK, can the FIA ​​really tolerate such a black sheep?"

"His super license is revoked, get out of the paddock!"

Schumacher's influence was on full display at this moment. Not only were the Korean spectators cursing Chen Xiangbei, but even spectators from Europe and the United States were filled with righteous indignation.

If it were just a single track accident, it wouldn't be so bad, but the HRT team has a history of such incidents.

Putting aside Briatore's "crash incident," Chen Xiangbei and Trulli caused several accidents at the last Donghai Circuit.

If you say it wasn't intentional, who would believe you?
Chen Xiangbei couldn't hear the audience's insults, but his surprise and astonishment were no less than theirs.

He never expected that Perez would be so reckless as to follow him and rear-end Schumacher!
Honestly, if his role were reversed with that of the audience, they would also suspect that this might be a secret order from the HRT team, since a temporary substitute rookie driver isn't worth much anyway.

Trading one car for one Michael Schumacher is a very worthwhile deal.

However, Chen Xiangbei knew very well that the team had never issued any instructions from beginning to end, and was even free enough to ignore the infighting between the two drivers!
But this thing is inexplicable; one can only suffer in silence, unable to express the bitterness.

Odeto and other members of the strategy team also felt aggrieved. Sitting on the outdoor command platform, they could hear the voices coming from the audience. The feeling of being wronged and unable to explain themselves was truly unpleasant.

The only person among them who can maintain a good mindset is probably Briatore.

He had experienced similar scenes before and was already used to being the "big villain" in the hunting grounds.

However, after today, HRT will probably become the "big bad team" in Weichang.

The car crashed into the run-off area, and a single yellow flag for the speed limit appeared in the paddock. Perez sat blankly in the cockpit, not reacting until the track staff came to him.

He didn't expect to run into Schumacher and ruin his instinctive scoring debut.

It's important to know that the score in the debut race is crucial for a rookie driver's signing bonus, as it directly impacts the team's and the outside world's evaluation.

Perez carries the hopes of tens of millions of Mexicans who desperately want another official F1 driver. Everything was progressing smoothly toward signing a contract, but this crash has brought him back to the same situation as Trulli.

Ultimately, I couldn't control my emotions and wasn't able to remain absolutely calm.

Compared to Perez's frustration and regret, Schumacher was much calmer.

If this newcomer had rear-ended him a decade or two ago, he would have been furious and confronted him, perhaps even having the urge to fight.

But Schumacher simply came up to the HRT race car and gently patted Perez on the shoulder as a gesture of comfort.

People change; different ages and circumstances bring different insights.

For a newcomer who came on as a substitute to be able to attack himself for several rounds in a row is actually a very good performance.

Feeling comforted by Schumacher, Perez was overwhelmed with mixed emotions. It's worth noting that most American drivers idolize Senna and often have some reservations about the German driver.

Of course, Massa is an exception.

"Team, how's Perez?"

Taking advantage of the lull in the speed, Chen Xiangbei asked a question.

Trulli was still recovering from his injury and didn't want Perez to follow in his footsteps, even though it had nothing to do with him.

"It was a minor rear-end collision, nothing serious."

Odette had already seen Perez and Schumacher getting out of the car through the guardrail, and the overall structure of the car was intact, with only the front wing damaged, which theoretically would not cause any harm to the drivers.

"receive."

Chen Xiangbei breathed a sigh of relief, then immediately asked, "How much tire life is left?"

Thirty-one percent.

Mizutani Sho's voice came through the earpiece: Chen Xiangbei's tire wear from those intense battles and crazy lane changes was too great.

"How many laps can it maintain peak grip under normal conditions?"

"After about five laps, your lap speed will drop significantly."

How far away am I from the car in front?

Chen Xiangbei asked another question.

"It's not possible to make a direct comparison right now because the two cars ahead are from Red Bull, who opted for a two-stop strategy. Further ahead are Massa, Rosberg, Hamilton, and Alonso, who are using a three-stop strategy and will also need to pit once to change tires."

"Indirectly comparing the pit stop window time, you are 31.47 seconds behind Alonso, the leader of the three-stop strategy, and 39.39 seconds behind Vettel, the leader of the two-stop strategy."

The pit stop window at Lingyan Circuit lasts approximately twenty seconds, meaning that with Chen Xiangbei's one-stop strategy, the distance to the car ahead will be reduced by one pit stop window period. Therefore, the real difference is 7 to 8 seconds slower than Alonso in third place and more than ten seconds slower than Vettel in first place.

"What if I enter the station one more time?"

With 18 laps remaining, relying solely on the hard white tires with only five laps left to reach peak grip, it's theoretically possible to complete the race. However, the speed will drop dramatically towards the end, and the actual ranking will only be slightly better than the current seventh place, around fifth.

Fifth place is a respectable result for an average rookie driver and even for the team.

But for Chen Xiangbei, his goals went beyond that.

Aiming for the championship is what he wants to prove himself with!

"So in the next five laps, you need to be almost two seconds faster per lap than you are now in order to complete the tactical overtake against him."

Just as Chen Xiangbei was listening to Mizutani Sho's answer and weighing whether he could do it,

Oddo's voice came through the headphones.

"North, Alonso's tire life is even worse than yours. He battled Hamilton for more than a dozen laps."

"It's not impossible for me to be two seconds faster than him in a single lap!"

(End of this chapter)