F1: Absolute Car Feel

Chapter 172 I only did my part

The idea that the rain would stop soon was just wishful thinking on the part of many drivers. The rain did gradually lessen, but it did not stop.

"We received notification from the tournament organizers that we need to prepare for Q3," Jonathan told Wu Shi.

"Okay." Wu Shi didn't say much. After putting on the balaclava and helmet, he got into the race car.

There are two challenges in qualifying in the rain: one is that driving is difficult in the rain, and the other is that track conditions are very unpredictable.

If the rain is light, the last driver to start might get better track conditions; if the rain gets heavier, the driver who started earlier will gain an advantage.

“According to the weather forecast, the rain will be steady for the next twelve minutes, so there’s no need to worry too much about the timing,” Jonathan told Wu Shi.

"clear."

Wu Shi wasn't too worried, because it wasn't something he needed to worry about. He couldn't guess how much rain would fall; this job was for the motorcade.

"First, familiarize yourself with the track conditions, be careful not to collide, and bring them back safely," Jonathan added.

This is something all engineers worry about – the ability of rookie drivers to perform in the rain, regardless of how well they perform in lower classes.

Wu Shi made an "OK" gesture, and the crew in front also indicated that the vehicle could proceed.

Buzz!

The vehicle drove out of the pit lane and onto the track.

Without the shelter of the house, raindrops pattered down on the helmet. Although the goggles had a hydrophobic layer, traces of rainwater were still visible until the speed increased, at which point the rainwater marks decreased.

Wu Shi's start was timed to the very end, presumably because the team thought it was necessary for a driver to run out of the racing line first, so that he, the rookie, could follow.

Wu Shi's entrance circle was like a dragon drawn on the track.

"What is this guy doing? Warming up the tire? It can't be that much warming up half a tire, can it?" Jonathan muttered.

This is certainly not about warming up the tires; it's about finding grip on the ground.

The recent storm not only blew gravel into the track, but also scattered rubber granules along the track's edge, resulting in significant differences in grip in different areas.

In addition, the Sepang circuit has elevation changes and undulating surfaces, and the water accumulation varies in different areas.

After one lap, he had a pretty good grasp of the tire condition and the track surface.

On the second lap, he informed the team that he was going to start speeding and asked them to keep him informed of the road conditions.

hum!
As the rain tires rolled over the road, water gushed out along the tire grooves, turning into mist at the rear of the car and spreading into the air.

“In this kind of rain, the water that flies up can reach a height of six meters,” David explained.

"The Sepang circuit has always been known for its unpredictable weather during many Grand Prix races, and this year is no exception."

"In rainy weather, drivers' lap times will drop significantly, but the gap between drivers will also widen significantly."

David didn't say it directly, but many drivers are just not good swimmers, and it's already a miracle if they don't crash in the rain.

"We see that both rookie drivers Wu Shi and Verstappen have successfully made it into Q3. The upcoming rainy laps will be a significant challenge for them."

"Of course, there are some things worth mentioning. Wu Shi and Verstappen demonstrated their excellent rain-fighting ability in F3."

"Wu Shi, in particular, performed exceptionally well in both F3 rain races. Verstappen even defeated Wu Shi in the rain at Norrislin to win the championship."

"It can be seen that both of these rookies have impressive driving skills in the rain."

"However, F1 is far superior to F3 in terms of horsepower, speed, and driving difficulty. I cannot say whether they can perform well in today's qualifying session until they have fully demonstrated their strength in the rain."

"However, I also heard good news: there will be no rain in tomorrow's race, which is a relief for most drivers."

David spoke at length, which also allowed many F1 fans to learn about the previous races of the two newcomers, Wu Shi and Verstappen.

“Wu Shi has already started speeding,” David said.

At this moment, in the broadcast footage, Wu Shi, Massa, and Verstappen were performing their first flying lap, and their speeds were all quite average.

Even Wu Shi needed to go through a high-speed lap to feel the constantly changing grip of the ground and find a suitable line.

In rainy weather, even the slightest difference in the route can cause a loss of vehicle speed. In particular, if the driver does not accurately remember the location of the water accumulation, driving over the water can result in either being slowed down or skidding.

Compared to civilian cars, where the left and right sides have different grip and resistance when one side is pressing water and the other side is not, thus affecting car control, F1 cars can adjust the differential to deal with different grip. But who can keep adjusting it?
Wu Shineng.

He used a high-speed loop to obtain basic data from the ground, and his brain rapidly recalled all the memories he had just had.

Every time a race car passes over the road, it causes changes to the road surface, so he doesn't plan to wait until the last moment like the other drivers for his second flying lap.

After completing the cooling loop, he immediately began racing again on the fourth lap.

Jonathan: "I don't recommend you start so early, but if you think it's okay, I can only tell you that the road conditions are good and everyone is driving slowly."

"Ah."

Wu Shi responded, but the vehicle slowed down and swayed left and right in the huge hairpin bend No. 15. Only after feeling the incredibly clear friction between the tires and the ground again did he align himself with the starting straight.

Buzz!

The vehicle suddenly accelerated, like a beast unleashed from its cage. Rain splashed onto the vehicle, only to be instantly swept away by the airflow.

The first set of curves is a combination of right curve #1 and left curve #2. Normally, when entering curve #1, it is best to stay on the left side of the road.

However, at this point, the water accumulation on the right side of the track is more similar, in other words, the grip fluctuation is smaller, which is necessary to ensure the stability of the race car.

Swish, swish, swish!
With the rain and fog obscuring the sky, Wu Shi downshifted and changed lanes to the left as he approached Turn 1. After passing the DRS white line, he slowed down even more drastically and slowly plunged into Turn 1, which is shaped like a hemisphere.

The apex of this "Ω" shaped bend is located at the exit of the bend, so you have to make a long detour to reach the apex.

After slightly crossing the curb, immediately straighten the steering wheel and turn into the left-hand corner 2. You don't need to hit the apex of the corner here, because the next right-hand corner 3 is not very demanding on the car's position.

This is also a characteristic of the Sepang Circuit: it is spacious and has many routes, thus providing many exciting overtaking maneuvers every year.

In turn 3, the car gradually accelerated, and the front wheels once again kicked up water spray, like wings spreading out.

Wu Shi was certain that he could accelerate freely here.

Buzz! ! !

The engine sounded somewhat muffled in the rain and mist, yet it was still full of power.

Jonathan TR: "At Turn 4, Verstappen is passing, we have already notified you, be careful."

Before even entering the bend, I saw a small Red Bull flash by in front of me.

Visibility is so low on rainy days that it's easy to overlook your surroundings without warning.

Wu Shi downshifted at his own pace and adjusted the differential, navigating the right-angle bend with a wide arc.

This is the significant difference between rainy and sunny days: when race cars lose grip, forcing them into the apex of a corner will result in even slower speeds.

Turns 5 and 6 are a set of large S-curves, which are the most challenging part of the entire track. They are not only the fastest corners on average, but also the ones with the highest average speeds – typically around 225 km/h.

It's also the place with the lowest downhill pressure in the entire arena, because it's downhill.

At the same time, high-speed changes in direction will put enormous pressure on the engine, especially in the oil lines, where the oil will be biased to one side.

Therefore, if a driver cannot skillfully control the accelerator pedal, he will not be able to push the speed to its limit.

Wu Shi controlled this point with extreme sensitivity and precision; the slight adjustment of the throttle opening made Jonathan mistake it for a natural change caused by the vehicle bouncing.

The combination of curves 7 and 8 is a typical double-curve section, with the true apex of the curve located between the two curves.

As I exited the corner, I shifted to 4th gear, and the speed was already 200 km/h!
“It seems a bit fast,” Claire said.

No one in the crew spoke; they were all observing the road conditions, with Jonathan constantly informing Wu Shi about the wind direction, rain intensity, road surface flooding, vehicles in front, speed, differential adjustment, brake ratio, and gear ratio.

It wasn't that Jonathan wanted to handle every little detail, but the rainy weather was too complicated, so he had to help the driver as much as possible.

Before the 9th and 10th bends, Jonathan informed Wu Shi again that there were vehicles blocking the way.

Wu Shi knew, of course, because everything in front of him was white and he couldn't see anything. He didn't know who had suddenly sped up, stirring up all the water on the ground.

Did he make the turn?

"Passed, has changed lanes to the right."

"Copy".

Wu Shi immediately changed his running style, moving closer to the right edge line, with his wheels almost entirely on the white line, but he dared not go onto the shoulder at all.

Then slow down and downshift, turning into the curve at a position almost parallel to the apex, and quickly move close to the left side of the curve.

Two curtains of rain flew up at the same time, almost covering the entire track.

Immediately, Wu Shi slammed into Turn 10, his tail just a few centimeters away from colliding with Ricciardo, who was slowly approaching the apex of the turn from the right sideline.

No one saw the dramatic car cut in front of the other except Ricardo.

Ricardo slammed on the brakes, nearly skidding, but he was good-natured and didn't speak in the TR, just watching the long line of cars in the rain rushing forward.

Turns 11, 12, 13, and 14 were wide, open bends that were easy to navigate. In addition, there were virtually no slow-moving cars around, so Wu Shi passed through them at top speed without exception.

Next up are the only two long straight sections on the entire track. No matter how heavy the rain is, just keep going!

Jonathan TR: "Pay attention to the wind direction. It's a westerly wind, a tailwind, and the speed will be even faster at the end. You need to brake 30 meters in advance."

Swish!

In the blink of an eye, the race car approached Turn 15. Wu Shi slowly slowed down, and as he rushed into the turn, the rear wheels experienced a slight sideslip.

His reaction was extremely quick. He instantly slacked off the accelerator, and then, the moment the grip was restored, he pressed the accelerator again, bringing stability back to the vehicle and accelerating forward.

The final straight lay before him, and Williams, number 59, sped through the rain like a white dragon bursting through the clouds, "whoosh," and crossed the finish line.

"How much?" Claire asked.

"1 minute and 49 seconds." Jonathan paused, then continued, "779."

Everyone held their breath because of the number "779". The fastest lap on the track so far is Rosberg's 1 minute 50.376 seconds.

Just how fast did Wu Shi improve his lap time?!
"I made a mistake in the end. The rain got heavier, it was too slippery there, and I didn't pay full attention to the wind speed either." Wu Shi's voice rang out in the TR, bringing everyone back to their senses.

“No, you’ve done very well, you’re amazing!” Jonathan said. This wasn’t a compliment or encouragement, but a genuine expression of appreciation.

"Thank you."

Wu Shi slowed down the car. The rain intensified, and the road's grip changed again. He was glad he hadn't hesitated.

Back in the pit area, no one started a second flying lap.

In those short two or three minutes, the intensity of the rain changed slightly several times.

They only started speeding away when everyone was on the sixth lap and there wasn't enough time left.

By this time, the rain had lessened somewhat, but the wind situation had become complicated.

埃里克森和博塔斯最先冲过终点，前者1分53秒260，后者1分53秒259。

Bottas beat Eriksson by a fraction of a second, but compared to Wu Shi's performance, it seemed somewhat insignificant.

However, this is normal, as Bottas' ability to fight in the rain is generally average.

Verstappen then crossed the finish line with a time of 1 minute 51.980 seconds, which is quite good.

Because a large number of riders were lapping in one go, a lot of the water on the road was washed away, making the dark racing lines more visible.

“You got the short end of the stick,” Jonathan said.

“I really liked what happened on that lap just now,” Wu Shi said.

This kind of drastic change in road grip can actually prevent him from fully utilizing his strengths.

Swish!

里卡多、科维亚特、马萨相继过线，成绩分别是1分51秒541、1分51秒950、1分52秒473。

Massa's inability to swim is no less than Bottas's.

With three drivers remaining, Hamilton crossed the finish line first in 1 minute 49.834 seconds.

"Fifty-five-thousandths of a second!" Jonathan exclaimed in surprise, his heart pounding. Could it be pole position?!
The breathing of everyone in the Williams team became heavy; it was almost unbelievable!

With Vettel crossing the finish line in 1 minute 49 seconds, his time was 908-thousandths of a second slower than Hamilton's!

The heavy breathing of everyone stopped abruptly, and they couldn't help but hold their breath as they looked at Rosberg at the back. Then they saw—

Rosberg slipped!
"Wow wow wow!!!!!"

The Williams pit lane erupted in cheers as everyone jumped and cheered wildly. Wu Shi was surrounded by a group of muscle engineers and was almost crushed to death.

Finally, it was the deputy team leader Claire who spoke up, and only then did the others release him.

"Everything you have done still feels like a dream to me."

Claire said, then hugged Wu Shi tightly, closed her eyes, and even squeezed out some tears.

No one knows how much pressure she, as the daughter, had to bear to take on the responsibility of running the caravan as her father's health deteriorated.

Williams' financial situation is truly a disaster. Although Wu Shi's investment injected into the team this year, it has not been able to maintain a balance between income and expenditure.

Fortunately, Wu Shi was not a paid driver, but a pure genius!
Even if today's genius still can't save Williams, it can give her more room to maneuver in her operations.

"Sorry, I got too excited." Claire wiped her eyes after letting go of Wu Shi.

“I’m also a member of the team. These are things we all pursue together. I just did my part, didn’t I?” Wu Shi said with a smile.

clap clap clap!
Applause suddenly broke out. Having known Wu Shi for so long, everyone agreed with this statement: once this young Chinese man sits in the cockpit, all he cares about is lap time, lap time, and more lap time!
His pursuit of pure speed surpasses that of many others!

Isn't every extreme battle driven by the pursuit of ultimate speed?

Q3 is over.

Ultimately, Wu Shi, at just 16 years and 115 days old, secured his first pole position in his F1 career.

He also became the youngest pole position winner in F1 history.

His subsequent lap times are as follows:

Hamilton, Vettel, Rosberg, Ricardo, Kvyat, Verstappen, Massa, Bottas, Eriksen.

Bottas was penalized two places for an unsafe release, so Eriksen is ninth and Bottas is eleventh.

The last ten drivers are: Kimi (tenth), Grosjean, Hulkenberg, Perez, Sainz, Nasr, Button, Alonso, and Mersey.

Stevens was unable to participate, and Melchi's lap time was also below 107% of the fastest lap in Q1, so he would not have been able to participate. However, the organizers granted him an exemption, maintaining his eligibility to participate.

After the result was announced, the drivers in the paddock had various expressions, and the reporters were even more eager to conduct interviews.

　I made it! The 4.6k long chapter isn't split today!
　　
　
(End of this chapter)