F1: Absolute Car Feel

Chapter 149 This is the gap between Wu Shi and you

Wu Shi gained a lot from spending a day on the Mercedes-Benz simulator, especially after Peter, as an engineering consultant, joined in with the simulator engineers.

At 6 p.m., the third training session officially began.

The results were similar to those of the second practice session, and at this point, some drivers realized something was wrong.

Wu Shi's time of 1 minute 45.879 seconds seems a bit terrifying!

Especially for many of the teams at the back, they figured that even if they raced as hard as they could in qualifying, they still wouldn't be able to achieve that lap time.

Reporters seized the opportunity to conduct interviews, asking for everyone's opinions on Wu Shi and his achievements.

Japanese racer Kamui Kobayashi said, "I think he just has a fast car."

Bianchi, who had a good relationship with Wu Shi, was very certain:
“He was so outstanding from a young age that when I first met him, I knew he would achieve extraordinary things in this sport.”

Maldonado, Perez, and Hulkenberg did not offer their opinions, but instead gave some platitudes.

Like Magnussen, Patton, and Kobayashi Kamui, they believed that Wu Shi simply owned a fast car.

Grosjean, Vettel, and Ricardo expressed their admiration for Wu Shi's stunning performance.

Massa couldn't help but say:

"No matter which team he's on, I always feel that his appearance at Italie will excite a lot of fans, especially young girls. Some people around me are already asking me for his contact information, but unfortunately I don't know him well yet."

Louise, who saw the clip shortly afterward, was so angry that she reported it.

Kimi joked, "If he didn't start learning to drive while he was still in his mother's womb, then my talent must be far inferior to his."

Alonso said, "I'd love to finish this Grand Prix as soon as possible and talk to him."

If he hadn't not yet started his own agency at that time, many reporters would probably have directly reported that this two-time world champion was trying to poach players.

Bottas said he had nothing to say, as he had at least heard some rumors and his impression of Wu Shi was far from good.

Hamilton and Rosberg refused to be interviewed, believing that it would be pointless to express any opinion at this time.

In short, what should have been an interview focusing on everyone's performance in the third practice session turned into an interview about how Wu Shi and the other drivers in the paddock viewed him.

The atmosphere at the stadium only really got heated when it reached 9 p.m.

The first qualifying round begins!

A total of 22 drivers were subsequently released from the pit area.

Because their times in the second and third practice sessions had improved to around 1 minute and 46 seconds, the leading team showed no intention of taking their time and quickly started making laps.

After only four or five laps, everyone's results were in.

This is significantly shorter than the previous time of seven or eight laps.

Six drivers, Sutil, Maldonado, Bianchi, Kobayashi Kamui, Chilton, and Ericsson, were eliminated.

One of them was a Sauber, one was a Lotus, two were Marussia, and two were Caterham.

The two Ferraris, which is unusual for them, took first and second place. Kimi was the fastest, but still failed to break 1 minute and 45 seconds, with a time of 1 minute and 46.685 seconds.

Alonso came in second, 0.204 seconds slower.

Hamilton finished third, 0.236 seconds slower than Alonso.

The drivers who can finish in under 1 minute and 46 seconds are in the top three.

This result was not unexpected. As long as Q1 can advance smoothly, the front-row drivers will not push too hard.

After starting in Q2, Hamilton set a time of 1 minute 46.287 seconds after just two laps, surpassing Kimi's time in Q1, and then he entered the pit lane.

With just a little effort from Mercedes, Ferrari could only desperately try to keep up with them.

阿隆索和Kimi在分别刷出1分46秒328和1分46秒359的成绩后，也选择了进入维修区。

The two Red Bulls were moving slower, but the commentator said they believed the Red Bulls were still hiding.

Rosberg didn't pit for a long time, and like the drivers behind him who were at risk of elimination, he ran a full six laps!

But he wasn't trying to avoid being eliminated; he was trying to surpass Hamilton's performance, and for that purpose, he even switched to a new set of supersoft tires!
Fortunately, Wu Shi didn't use it, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to drive another set of tires.

Before stopping the clock, he started his sixth lap, setting two consecutive fastest laps, and then beat Hamilton's time with a time of 1 minute 45.825 seconds.

clap clap clap!
Applause erupted in the Mercedes-Benz service area.

At this moment, the broadcast camera was pointed at Wu Shi; the director clearly understood the language of camera work.

Wu Shi, wearing headphones, clapped along with the convoy, remaining remarkably calm.

He had long anticipated that the two senior figures would surpass him.

It would be problematic if they couldn't surpass themselves.

At 9:50 PM, Q3 starts its clock.

To enhance the appeal of Q3, the 2014 regulations stipulated that an extra set of supersoft tires would be provided specifically for Q3 qualifying, and would be collected after the race.

Q3 gives the drivers a total of twelve minutes to perform. After switching to supersoft tires to warm up, everyone takes turns doing flying laps.

Ricciardo set the fastest lap of the day with a time of 1 minute 45.987 seconds, currently in first place.

The two Mercedes drivers in the first sprint failed to achieve good results, only ranking sixth or seventh. When it was Kimi's turn, his first flying lap saw him directly improve Ricciardo's time in the first two segments.

Just when everyone thought Ferrari was about to break the 1 minute 45 second barrier, Kimi's car suddenly slowed down and stopped on the side of the road.

KIMI TR: "NO POWER".

The Finns seemed somewhat disappointed, but their tone remained calm.

The brief yellow flag forced the drivers to complete one more lap.

Upon seeing this change, Wu Shi pursed his lips.

"Time is running out, and there's only one flying lap window left for all the drivers!"

The commentator, seeing Wu Shi's figure appear on the screen, also became tense.

Two minutes later, Vettel crossed the finish line in 1 minute 45.902 seconds!

"Hiss! Slower than the speed Wu Shi left behind in the first practice session! Could it be that...!"

Before the commentator could finish speaking, the camera focused on Alonso again, but he was 0.3 seconds slower in the second timed lap, a difference that was fatal.

Even though he broke his own fastest lap record in the third time slot, his final result was still not good enough.

Only 1 minute 45.907 seconds! Slower than Vettel.

"Alonso is even slower than Wu Shi. Does this mean Wu Shi's performance in the first training session is really going to put him in the top three?!"

The commentator shouted, "Alonso represents Ferrari, Vettel represents Red Bull, and their lap times are authoritative enough within their teams!"

In other words, at this point, only two Mercedes cars should remain capable of surpassing Wu Shi's lap time.

"Let's see, there are still three drivers racing on the track, and Rosberg has launched the first sprint!"

"The first timeout is the fastest lap! That's terrifying!"

"Hamilton begins to speed!"

"Rosberg has broken the fastest lap record again in the second period! What is he trying to do?!"

"Ricardoca started his final flying lap before the clock stopped!"

At this point, only three racing cars remained on the field, and the timing data for all three cars appeared simultaneously at the bottom of the screen.

"Rosberg crossed the finish line! His time was 1 minute 45.688 seconds! Wow, is this the first time we've actually broken Wu Shi's record?!"

"Hamilton locked up at Turn 1! But he's still three-thousandths of a second faster than Rosberg!"

The old man drove the silver arrow at high speed. In street races like Singapore, pole position is extremely important!
He would not allow victory to slip through his fingers again.

He drove so aggressively that he had to make corrections at several corners, but his corrections did not affect his lap time!
The second timing segment is one-thousandth of a second faster!
At this moment, Ricciardo's time for the first time slot came out: 27.798 seconds, 0.12 seconds slower than Wu Shi!
The commentator felt caught in a dilemma, torn between Hamilton's Star Circle and Ricardo's crucial Circle!
Everyone on the field held their breath; no one had expected that the battle for third place would be just as captivating as the battle for first.

"Hamilton crossed the finish line! He was four-thousandths of a second faster in the third period! 1 minute 45.661 seconds! We can already congratulate Hamilton in advance! He has secured pole position for the Singapore Grand Prix!"

"That was an incredibly thrilling lap!"

After the commentator's roar ended, half of the stadium erupted in cheers, while the other half stared at Ricardo.

The second timeout was 40.013 seconds, which is 0.083 seconds faster than Wu Shi's time!
“Let’s look at Ricardo! His time, he just finished the second timed section, and even with both sections combined, he’s still slower than Wu Shi.”

Shortly after crossing the finish line, Hamilton asked in the radio, "How was my time?"

Because of the new regulations, teams are not allowed to inform drivers of the gap in the TR (Tracking Team) system.

“We’re watching Ricardo,” Peter said.

"What? His lap time is faster?"

“No,” Peter denied.

Hamilton remained silent.

In the blink of an eye, time slipped by in the exchange of a few words.

Ricciardo rounded Turn 21 and charged toward the final two high-speed corners, the red and black livery flashing past in a blur of light.

Swoosh!

Ricciardo crossed the finish line, and the final results were announced.

1 minutes 45 seconds 854.

"YES! YES! Wuhu!"