F1: Absolute Car Feel

Chapter 311 Next Target

Wu Shi's early crowning as the 2017 world champion has already made the competition much less interesting.

With Ferrari experiencing major problems in two consecutive races, Vettel was unable to compete with Hamilton for second place in the standings, leaving Ferrari fans feeling even more disappointed.

Liberty Media continues to actively promote the races, especially with the 17th race of the season, the U.S. Grand Prix, taking place this weekend.

At Thursday's press conference, Wu Shi gave another interview, but there wasn't much of substance to share.

However, reporters always manage to come up with something interesting. Someone asked:

"After winning the world championship, will you help your teammates get more points to end the season perfectly?"

Wu Shi was taken aback. Not wanting to appear too aggressive, he said:
“This is a competition, and I will do everything according to the rules of the competition. The word ‘let’ should never appear in this way in a competition.”

The reporters understood, and upon returning, they wrote headlines such as "Wu Shi: I will not yield to Lewis, I will win all the victories!"

Wu Shi didn't care after seeing this. If he had created a persona of someone who only cared about the competition beforehand, perhaps people would be more understanding of any conflicts that might arise later.

Alonso has finally settled things; he has reached an indefinite contract with McLaren.

In an interview, he stated that he was very satisfied with McLaren switching its engine supplier to Renault, as Renault already had a considerable amount of cooperation with him.

His own go-karting academy uses Renault engines, and Wu Shi also has a similar collaboration with Renault through TouGe.

The fact that the boss is satisfied inevitably leads to conspiracy theories. His reluctance to sign the contract with McLaren could be a way of putting pressure on McLaren to end its cooperation with Honda so that Renault can join in.

Things are certainly not that simple, but they're not that complicated either.

Shortly after Tobias Verstappen's official announcement, during a practice match on Friday, October 20th, Red Bull also officially announced that Verstappen's contract had been extended until 2020.

Although Verstappen's overall performance this season was not as good as Ricardo's, with Marco's favoritism, these are not problems.

Verstappen himself has also demonstrated a number of amazing driving skills. The paddock believes that he mainly lacks experience at the moment, and that after a few more years of driving, he will become one of the top drivers.

Based on these expectations, his salary also increased significantly.

However, F1 drivers' contracts are always kept confidential, and the exact amount is currently unknown.

Ricardo's situation is somewhat turbulent. He's almost thirty and seems unwilling to remain stagnant at Red Bull.

He has connections with both Mercedes and Ferrari, and is clearly eyeing Hamilton and Kimi's seats.

However, Hamilton is definitely out of the running for the World Cup; the old man still wants the title.

Ricardo isn't going to put all his eggs in one basket; he's also in contact with Renault.

In short, every driver is doing their best to plan for their future, and on this basis, no race should be overlooked.

Friday's practice match ended with Wu Shi and Hamilton dominating the game once again.

Hamilton did complain about the grip, saying he was still looking for a better setup.

Vettel also expressed his dissatisfaction with the car, and said that changing the chassis did not solve the problem.

When the qualifying session came on Saturday afternoon, Wu Shi and Hamilton once again took the front row together, leading many media outlets to remark that they already knew how the race would end.

Even though the competition has become this dull, Liberty Media still manages to run it quite well.

They invited many celebrities and potential stars, most notably former President Clinton and sprinter Usain Bolt.

In addition, to make the Grand Prix more attractive, an "American-style show" was specially organized.

Twenty minutes before the start of the main race, renowned boxing and wrestling announcer Michael Buff climbed onto the stage to introduce the members of each team to the audience.

The drivers then walked out onto the red carpet between the two rows of cheerleaders, like models on a runway, and even struck a pose when they finally stood still.

The flashy and gimmicky approach made Wu Shi feel embarrassed and his scalp tingled, while Vettel was also speechless.

Hamilton, on the other hand, really enjoyed the atmosphere; he was practically bursting with excitement himself.

However, the old man was happy before the game started, but he couldn't smile when the game began.

An inexplicable starting malfunction caused him to drop to fifth place from the very beginning.

Even though he had a good pace at this station, he was still blocked by Vettel and Kimi.

Just as he was about to launch an attack on the second-place finisher, Verstappen, who had better tire management, caught up.

After a "fierce" struggle, Verstappen overtook him, pushing him down to fourth place.

Hamilton, on the other hand, remained calm and seemed somewhat indifferent.

The match ended with Wu Shi in second place (PTW), Vettel in third, and Verstappen in third.

In the lounge, Verstappen watched the replay on the screen, then made a gesture of fiddling with the steering wheel and said:
"It was very dangerous when I overtook Kimi. If I had veered any further out, the difference in grip would have been significant, and I would have not only lost the chance to overtake, but also..."

Before Pan Zi could finish speaking, a staff member from the event suddenly came in, tugged at his clothes, and said:

“You were penalized 5 seconds for exceeding the track limits, so this position is Lewis’s.”

"What?" Verstappen was dumbfounded.

"That's the situation right now," the staff member continued.

Verstappen threw his hat on the table, grabbed his water, and went out the door.

Hamilton was called in and asked, "What's going on?"

“Uh, Max seems to have gone too far when he surpassed Kimi? He got penalized.” Wu Shi stared at the video for a few more seconds.

"Oh, the markings on some parts of the track are indeed unclear." Hamilton waved his hand after seeing this.

"Why didn't they let him give up his position on the track?" Vettel also said.

Clearly, none of the three understood what the tournament was about.

After the match, Verstappen immediately launched into a tirade:
"These stupid rulings are ruining F1. I know there's a stupid person on the refereeing panel who always makes decisions against me."

Pan Zi was simply criticizing Australian referee Gary Connally.

Horner naturally stood up to support his own driver, saying:

"Fans want to see Verstappen make some spectacular overtaking maneuvers."

“If you don’t want riders to ride there, place larger curbs, gravel or other deterrents.”

Finally, it was subtly mentioned that Bottas repeatedly went out of bounds while trying to hold his position, but received no punishment whatsoever.

Even Lauda didn't want the race organizers to strip drivers of their podium honors in this way, saying:

"This is the worst decision I've ever made."

“Verstappen did nothing wrong.”

"We are race car drivers, we are not on normal roads, this decision is absurd."

Lauda's stance is quite normal; he doesn't want such a precedent, otherwise, when the punishment falls on Wu Shi or Hamilton, there will be no room for argument.

However, this is a minor matter, and public opinion has absolutely no impact on the refereeing panel.

Shortly after the US Grand Prix, F1 arrived at the Mexican Grand Prix.

Mercedes' W08 didn't seem to adapt well to the environment, and Wu Shi only managed to start third, with Hamilton behind him.

After the match started, Verstappen overtook Vettel.

Wu Shi was following Pan Zi when he collided with Vettel while overtaking, and the two fell to the back of the pack.

Because the side box was damaged in the collision, Wu Shi believed the engine was damaged, so he chose to withdraw from the race.

In the end, Verstappen led the entire race and won a stage.

Hamilton is second, Kimi is third.

The new race winner stood on the podium, finally giving fans something to watch; Wu Shi and Hamilton's cruising lead was just too boring.

However, what's even more exciting than the races is the power transition in F1.

During the Mexican Grand Prix, F1 finally and completely ousted its former boss Bernie Ecclestone, making it clear that the track no longer welcomes him.

It makes sense, considering that at the beginning of the season Bernie was trying to return to the center of power by leveraging his influence on various F1 circuits, and now he's being retaliated against.

It seems that at that time, the Liberty Media simply wanted to exploit Bernie Ecclestone before abandoning him.

Martina's prediction was wrong; Bernie didn't make any waves.

Liberty Media's approach is understandable. They've already bought out the entire F1 team, so why would they want the old management to fight for power within the team?
However, Bernie was not willing to give up, or rather, he did not want to fade out of the media spotlight. After all, he had been doing this his whole life, and he was not used to suddenly having nothing to do.

Then he dropped a few bombshells.

First, he told the media that during Max Mosley’s tenure as president (1993-2009), the FIA ​​and FOM frequently showed favoritism towards Ferrari both on and off the track.

Isn't this a veiled criticism that Ferrari's fifth consecutive championship was not a fair victory?
He also said that last winter, Mercedes helped Ferrari develop a hybrid system and reaped rich rewards for it!
Toto Wolf and Maurizio Arrivabene immediately and categorically denied this.

Wu Shi couldn't help but sigh, he had no idea about this at the Mercedes-Benz Arena!

However, considering Allison, perhaps it's true?

But it's also possible that Bernie is just talking nonsense. In any case, these things certainly seem much more interesting than the game itself.

After the Mexican Grand Prix, F1 was still discussing another topic.

That is, the technological rules of the 2020s.

There is considerable controversy surrounding whether to continue using hybrid engines.

Liberty Media is well aware of the technological requirements, which is to reduce costs in order to attract more players, whether they are large companies like Porsche or small companies like Cosworth.

After discussion, the final proposal was to simplify the powertrain and lower the budget ceiling.

In short, MGU-K (kinetic energy recovery) will continue to be used, but MGU-H, a device that involves the utilization of turbocharger heat, will be eliminated.

This change immediately provoked Toto's dissatisfaction:

"I regret that the free media wants to attract potential people instead of consolidating those who have been working for years."

After all, the Mercedes-Benz hybrid engine is great precisely because of these devices that involve the reuse of kinetic energy. Such a change will inevitably cause more trouble.

Red Bull Racing chairman Cyril Abiteboul also believes that this change will lead to another "arms race" and will not achieve the goal of cost reduction.

However, the strongest opponent of this matter is Ferrari Boss Sergio Marchionne, who opposes the cost reduction and efficiency improvement discussed, as well as the increase of standard parts for racing cars.

Because this would allow the team to buy many readily available parts instead of developing them themselves, he directly criticized the Liberty Media:

“I’m ready to talk about everything, but if we’re going to turn F1 into a shopping mall, I’m not interested in it at all.”

"I don't want to compete in NASCAR globally. If I do, Ferrari will withdraw from F1."

This is a significant threat, and the free press certainly has to continue to consider the practical implementation of this issue.

In fact, what Ferrari dislikes is the "budget cap," also known as the budget cap.

Mercedes and Renault are the same; for them, money isn't the big problem, but limiting spending is!
In short, with F1 in the hands of the free media, change is inevitable; however, how and when that change will take place can only be carried out gradually through continuous consultation.

The F1 management was in complete chaos, and two-time world champion Lewis Hamilton was also brought into the spotlight by the media.

He is accused of using offshore investments to evade €400 million in taxes related to his private jet.

This doesn't count as tax evasion because it's not illegal; it's just a way of avoiding taxes by exploiting the rules.

Wu Shi was also heartbroken when he saw this news, as he had been heavily taxed over the years!
However, there's no way around it; this is the problem faced by high-net-worth individuals. They can only try their best to plan rationally.

Because it also involves domestic investment, the idea of ​​tax avoidance in Monaco cannot be carried out effectively.

He could only accept these things with a heavy heart.

Fortunately, he wasn't very materialistic and didn't spend much on personal expenses. He didn't have much interest in things like private jets or yachts, which saved him a lot of money.

However, as an F1 driver, it is inevitable to travel all over the country, so having a private jet would be much more convenient.

Amidst the heated discussion, the date arrived at Thursday, November 9, 2017.

This weekend belongs to the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Russell got the chance to drive Wu Shi's car in Friday's practice session.

However, when they returned that night, one of the Mercedes-Benz buses was robbed on the street!

Wu Shi experienced a genuine fear of security in Latin American countries for the first time, and thought to himself that he should try to avoid taking too many actions.

However, the chaos did not end there. After qualifying the following day, Sauber, Williams, and FIA staff were attacked again as they left the track.

Wu Shi sat down with Russell and couldn't help but say, "It's too dangerous here. To be honest, I want to get as far away from here as possible."

Russell didn't have many thoughts on this; instead, he was more focused on Hamilton.

"Lewis crashed in Q1, I didn't expect him to make such a serious mistake."

Seeing that Russell had no reaction to the chaos, Wu Shi thought, "He truly lives up to his British reputation," and stopped discussing the topic of security. Instead, he went along with it, saying:

Everyone makes mistakes.

“Really? I don’t think you’ve ever made a mistake.” Russell spoke bluntly.

“I’ve made mistakes too.” Wu Shi thought of Monaco in 2015.

“How did you do that? So few mistakes,” Russell continued.

"Run more, and the more you run, the more it becomes a fixed routine."

Wu Shi said that his absolute perception of the vehicle helped him drive at the most extreme levels, but the adaptive adjustments for each lap were also accumulated through experience in running laps.

Cruising in a race car is ultimately a skill that relies on experience; the more you drive, the more stable you become.

“Oh, how long do you run on the simulator before each race?” Russell asked again.

“I kept running whenever I had time. The longest I ever ran in a day was 14 hours, just like going to work,” Wu Shi said.

“Oh.” Russell said thoughtfully.

The following day, the Brazilian Grand Prix began.

As expected, Hamilton, who started from the back of the grid, showcased a series of overtaking maneuvers and finished in fourth place.

Wu Shi dominated Vettel throughout the race, securing another stage victory.

Then, as everyone left the track that night, the truck rented by Pirelli was attacked again by thugs.

Fortunately, the people had already escaped before the robbery, but the attack resulted in the cancellation of the tire test scheduled for next week.

Brazil's performance this year has been so poor that it's questionable how long São Paulo can continue hosting F1 races.

Wu Shi found Pan Zi and vented his fear of the riot once again. Perhaps having died once, he knew how fragile life was.

Verstappen nodded and said, "I don't like coming to places like this to compete either; it's very unsafe."

"When are you planning to buy the plane?" Wu Shi asked.

“Hey! Bro! You want to ask me how much my salary is too?” Vestager shouted.

"Hahaha! No, I was just thinking that having a private jet would allow me to leave here faster," Wu Shi laughed.

Pan Zi has indeed developed PTSD recently due to the reporters.

"Don't you consider buying one yourself?" Verstappen asked.

"I don't have that idea for now; all my money is invested in the company," Wu Shi said.

"Oh, I'm not really interested in those."

Verstappen shook his head and said, "I'd rather build a racing team than run a company."

“Okay, I’ll drive you then, BOSS!” Wu Shi said immediately.

“Oh! The world championship is in my hands, of course there’s no problem!” Verstappen joked.

Two weeks after the Brazilian Grand Prix, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will take place.

Over the past two weeks, drivers have generally been in a relaxed state.

Alonso then went to participate in test events for races such as the 24 Hours of Daytona and the World Endurance Championships.

The teams are still tense. Some teams have confirmed their starting drivers for next year, and all negotiations have reached the final stage.

Ferrari and Sauber are deepening their cooperation, with Sauber expected to receive powertrains rebranded as Alfa Romeo next year.

At the same time, Sauber will become Ferrari's "junior team," announcing that Charles Leclerc will replace Pascal Wehrlein in the starting lineup.

Antonio Giovanni Zidane may replace Eriksen.

Toro Rosso has also confirmed its lineup for next year, with Pierre Gasly and Brendon Hartley teaming up.

On the other hand, various teams have used many kits that meet next year's regulations on their race cars to conduct preliminary verification of their speculations.

As for the competition itself, it still wasn't very interesting.

Wu Shi completed another PTW, while Hamilton had the idea of ​​surpassing him, but was ruthlessly blocked.

Vettel spent the entire match running against himself, which was very boring.

After the race, Wu Shi drew donuts on the track to celebrate his final victory.

Fireworks lit up the night sky, and the sweltering wind was no longer bothersome.

After the match, both Hamilton and Alonso were asked about their thoughts on Wu Shi, who also holds two world championship titles.

Alonso said, "He's very good, and he's young. His future is limitless."

Hamilton also acknowledged Wu Shi's driving skills, but he was more focused on looking ahead to 2018:
“I think next year will be a year for me to give it my all; he is much stronger than Nico.”

Vettel was not spared from reporters' questions either, and his opinion on Wu Shi was quite simple:
"He's very strong, but I'm a four-time champion."

Wu Shi smiled in response to Vettel's remarks and said:
"My next goal is to win four championships."

(End of this chapter)