F1: The Making of a Racing God

Chapter 192 Texas Doesn't Support Idlers
The phone vibrated in the darkness, hovering precariously on the edge of the table, sliding uncomfortably as if it might fall with a "thud" at any moment.

Finally, at the critical moment when life hung by a thread, a ray of warm light shone through the crack in the bathroom door. Shu Long, wrapped in a bathrobe, yawned and walked out, casually smoothing his still slightly damp, messy hair back as he lazily approached.

"Hello?"

"Honey, I'm not sure if you're awake yet. How's it going in New York?"

Before the man could speak, a soft chuckle came from behind him—a chuckle that was clearly from a girl and was incredibly ticklish.

The focus that had been on the dragon gradually blurred and slowly settled on a pair of chubby, slender white feet on the large bed behind it.

As if sensing something, our protagonist sat down next to the girl, pinched one of her feet, and tickled the sole of her foot twice with his fingers, eliciting a few muffled laughs that seemed to be suppressed behind a pillow.

If you ignore the male voice on the other end of the phone and judge solely from the content of the conversation, it's clear that he's a scumbag who's having affairs with other women while maintaining a stable marriage at home—a picture of decadent lifestyle.

However, the camera slowly zoomed in on Shu Long, giving a close-up of the phone screen pressed against his ear, finally revealing the identity of the person he was talking to—"Christian Horner".

Shu Long stared with lifeless, dead fish eyes, his face perfectly displaying a slight "sense of death" typical of a working-class person.

"If I hadn't received that call, I think I would be doing even better."

Meanwhile, our team leader was sitting on a small folding chair behind the crew, winking at Shu Long while reciting the rest of his lines into the microphone in his hand.

"Sorry to disturb your dream, but we have confirmed the date for the inaugural Miami Grand Prix!"

"Wow—how did you know I've been looking forward to this day for a long time (in a monotone voice)? When?"

"See you in Miami in May!"

Just then, sirens blared outside the window, and after a burst of noisy electronic sound effects, it sounded like—"We'll meet you in Miami, mate!"

"What did you say? Today or which day?"

This time, however, the sirens outside were even louder, and it was clear that neither person on the other end of the phone could hear what the other was saying.

After things finally calmed down, Shu Long only heard Horner repeat "Yes, yes" a few times on the other end of the line, and then say the polite phrase "We'll meet soon" before hurriedly hanging up the phone.

"capitalist"

Shu Long muttered something in dissatisfaction, and the female protagonist on the bed behind him sat up and asked weakly, "Are you going to work?"

"Yes, I'm sorry I don't have time to spend with you again."

"Hehe~ Go for it, good luck!"

Shu Long gave the girl, whose face was blurred by the camera, an apologetic kiss on the cheek, then got up from the bed with a helpless expression and opened the navigation to check the route from New York to Miami.

"Good heavens, I can't get there by myself, I need some help. Crew! Assemble!"

With an incredibly childish tone, he shouted out a line that sounded like Kamen Rider transforming. Shu Long grabbed the collar of his bathrobe and pulled it outwards, revealing the Red Bull racing suit he always wore underneath.

"Haha, you look so silly!"

After reviewing the footage again, and after some simple editing, it actually turned out quite well. However, Gan Mengning, who was squatting next to Shu Long, seemed to have been tickled by something and kept laughing non-stop since the beginning.

The two planes landed almost simultaneously. After seeing Shu Long's girlfriend, the Red Bull film crew had a sudden inspiration and added a scene involving the girl to the script.

If her identity could be kept confidential, she had no objection, so Gan Mengning readily agreed and contributed her first "bed scene" in her acting career.

Some of the lines Shu Long said earlier were actually his true feelings. He was just a little shy about expressing his emotions so frankly, so he took this opportunity to say them.

Unfortunately, there were still some scenes to film on the streets of New York to shoot over the next three days, so Shu Long's schedule was packed and the young couple didn't have much time to spend together.

Originally, a stunt driver was specially hired to perform the stunt, but Shu Long's perfect body proportions, defined by the panel as "the theoretical limit of human beings," are really hard to find a replacement for, and it is also difficult for ordinary people to replicate his special aura when he wears a racing suit.

In addition, since Shu Long himself was also very interested in driving the RB7 around town and causing a ruckus, the production team simply decided to let Shu Long do everything himself during the entire New York storyline.

So over the next few days, the roar of a V8 naturally aspirated engine could be heard from time to time on the streets of New York. The rare opportunity to touch this muscular old-fashioned vehicle made Shulong extremely happy, and he couldn't wait to drift around every corner.

In addition, considering Shu Long's identity, Red Bull added a lot of scenes for him in Chinatown.

If you startle an elderly woman who is just passing by while you are walking through a narrow alley, say in Cantonese: "I'm so sorry, grandma!"

I also stopped at a breakfast stall to buy a few char siu buns, and while I was at it, I grabbed a bottle of Red Bull to advertise my own beverage. When I came out, I found that my RB7 had been ticketed by the traffic police.

Unfortunately, due to scheduling conflicts, many of the remaining scenes involving the journey to Miami had to be performed by stunt drivers who acted as stunt doubles.

Fortunately, most of the shots were taken from inside the vehicle, and throughout the entire film, only the helmet and hands were visible. Shu Long only needed to add voice-over and that was enough to complete the job.

Gan Mengning is quite professional when it comes to voice acting, and someone can be said to have enjoyed a rare treat from his wife.

After handing over the work here, Horner took Shu Long and the other man on their way. They still needed to go to Dallas in northeastern Texas to participate in a roadshow.

Verstappen had been waiting there long after finishing his filming duties, and then he had to rush to the Austin COTA (Circuit of the Americas) circuit, 300 kilometers away, to participate in the race. He was so busy that he barely had time to breathe.

There was no other way; Red Bull is indeed very wealthy and powerful. They even deployed a helicopter specifically for filming a funny video.

However, if we don't take advantage of the opportunity to transport the competition, it would be too extravagant to find another time to organize a filming session. That's not how you spend money.

Shortly after landing in Dallas, Shu Long finally met Teng Weifeng and the two content creators he had mentioned.

One of them is Sheng Jiacheng, who is also a familiar face. He was a key employee of Film Hurricane before, and after Shulong made an investment, he was strictly speaking still the other party's boss.

However, shortly after the Shanghai International Circuit in 19, Asheng went solo and now focuses on creating automotive media content while also vigorously promoting motorsport culture in China.

However, Shu Long's mother also made a portion of the investment when they started the business, so strictly speaking, Shu Long is still their boss.

As for the other Shulong, I'm not very familiar with him. I heard Teng Weifeng and Asheng call him "Old Li". His Bilibili ID is "Captain Old Li".

It seems that I met Teng Weifeng through playing Rainbow Six Siege and Call of Duty. He is also a million-follower content creator in the lifestyle/gaming category and is currently studying in the United States.

At the beginning of this year, Lao Li was invited by A Sheng to participate in the spring track day event held by their Upspeed studio. After boldly experiencing a McLaren 720 worth 400 million RMB in China, he suddenly became interested in racing.

Given their existing connections and network, and considering that the Chinese Grand Prix had been postponed and canceled for several years in a row, they decided to come to the U.S. Grand Prix to join in the fun.

Old Li bought all three tickets, but the rich second-generation's spending money was limited, so Teng Weifeng didn't have the nerve to insist on bringing Chen Tingya, whom he had been seeing for a while, along.

Then, taking this opportunity, I wanted to record some VLOGs, hoping to borrow some popularity from Shulong.

Now, we can basically only make VLOG videos that don't involve copyrighted content. There's a reason why neither Speedy Buddies nor Movie Hurricane have continued to follow up and film content related to Shulong and F1 in recent years.

Back in 19, Jussex granted copyright licenses to many independent media outlets out of consideration for Shulong. Many people received paddock tickets along with a media pass, but this privilege was limited to the Shanghai International Race. Even so, the content they could film was strictly restricted; otherwise, they would be held accountable by the FIA ​​and the relevant teams.

However, if it's just shooting short documentaries about life, such as the experience of watching games in the paddock, then there are no such strict restrictions.

The roadshow ended on Sunday, October 17th. After the event, Shu Long asked Horner for a few days off. He wanted to take Gan Mengning and these friends to play in the neighborhood for a few days and promised to report to the team before the media day on Thursday.

Horner, of course, had no reason to refuse and readily granted the young men their freedom.

Of course, the most important reason is that the team did not bring any new upgrades this week, and the pre-race preparations were not that complicated.

So what's there to do in Texas?

Shu Long didn't actually know either. He only knew that he had promised Gan Mengning several years ago that he would bring her to this shooting range to experience the feeling of real firearm shooting.

Unfortunately, 19 coincided with Gan Mengning's work schedule, and then the US Grand Prix was canceled due to the pandemic, so she hasn't been able to find a suitable opportunity since.

It's well known that people in Texas are quite tough, and many silencers and fully automatic weapons that are restricted in the United States are allowed to be possessed there.

If you want to get a complete experience with firearms, then Texas is definitely the best choice in the United States.

And when they talked about firearms and shooting...
A passion for shooting games combined with studying in the US – you can imagine what kind of sparks would fly when these two elements come together.

Teng Weifeng nudged Captain Li's elbow and gestured to Shu Long, who was still searching for shooting ranges and gun shops on the map.

"Li? It's rare to run into something that matches your expertise, why don't you show off your skills?"

"I deserve it. I'll show it if I want to!"

Unfortunately, despite his good intentions, he didn't have the opportunity because Shu Long's face is now quite recognizable in the United States, and even wearing a mask couldn't hide the fire marks on his neck.

His inherent dramatic flair made him a favorite of DTS, who provided him with numerous storylines each season. Coupled with the dramatic season he played for Haas, his popularity among Americans was exceptionally high.

As a result, the owner recognized them as soon as they entered the store. After asking for an autograph and a photo, he insisted on personally showing them around and bringing out many of the store's treasured items for them to try.

Poor Lao Li was all set to showcase his knowledge as a seasoned gun enthusiast and FPS fan, but the boss rattled off everything in a flash, leaving him barely a chance to speak.

Fortunately, he is an optimistic person. It seems that he was already very happy to have the opportunity to appear on screen. After receiving the invitation to play games together, he was so happy that he almost flew away.

The three-day holiday passed in the blink of an eye.

Under repeated urging from his unscrupulous boss Horner, Shu Long reluctantly boarded a plane to Austin.

Teams don't really have much to prepare before the race. The biggest change to the COTA circuit this year is the removal of the sausage shoulder on the outside of Turn 1 for safety reasons, along with stricter track restrictions.

If a skilled driver can get the timing right, they can start accelerating earlier here and push the limits.

However, it is a left-hand bend with an uphill slope and a slight outward sloping, and the road surface is not very smooth. Pushing to the limit does not always mean going faster. Whether to adjust the driving style will have to wait until Friday's practice session to experience the car on the track firsthand before we can decide.

Horner was in such a hurry mainly because he had a lot of events to attend on media day.

This year is quite special, as F1 returns to the United States after a two-year hiatus, coinciding with the start of the new NBA season and the 75th anniversary.

The two sports with the world's largest commercial scale immediately agreed to hold a number of joint activities during the competition week, and many NBA stars will also come to the scene to join in the fun.

Red Bull, unfortunately, loves nothing more than joining in the fun.
However, Red Bull's two current star drivers are only feeling somewhat annoyed, though Thursday's penalty challenge was somewhat interesting.

Shu Long is practically cheating in this kind of spot shooting game. As long as he makes the first shot, the rest can be handled by his photographic memory and extremely high body coordination, which can ensure a shooting percentage of over 95%.

Unfortunately, Verstappen put almost all his talent points into driving, and only spared a little bit into football, so he only managed to score two goals in total!
In the end, they lost by a single point to the Aston Martin's "Tilted-Head Uncle" and "Young Master," allowing them to receive $20,000 that they could donate to a charitable foundation.

"How could you do this to me? You made me leave my girlfriend behind and rush back to play with you, and now I've ended up losing everything."

Seeing Shu Long's fake crying face, Verstappen picked up a ball somewhat embarrassedly, dribbled it a couple of times, and took a good look before deciding to shoot.

"Shh-!"

The net made a crisp sound, and that was it—just a crisp sound.

It didn't go in.

"Bullshit!"

Losing to Aston Martin wasn't so bad, but Shu Long's (_) gaze deeply stung Verstappen's competitive spirit, and he stubbornly grabbed a large basket of basketballs to start betting on probabilities.

"4 out of 15? Not bad, not bad, that's progress!"

"What's the use of accurate shooting? Let's make a bet: can you score?"

"buckle?"

Shu Long picked up a ball that Verstappen had thrown from the ground, patted it once, and then took two short runs before jumping up and slamming the basketball into the hoop.

The move was neither elegant nor cool, but according to the dictionary definition, it was a hook!

Huh~
Sometimes, if I don't show off a little bit, you won't know what the theoretical limits of human athletic ability are!
Chris Bosh, who was specifically leading the interaction between them, was almost speechless with astonishment. To the 186cm tall Shu Long, who was 211cm tall, he looked like an adorable elementary school student. The visual impact of this scene on him was no less than seeing an elementary school student dunk.

"Go and learn 'fusion' properly!"

After leaving Verstappen with only this one sentence, Shu Long limped away, his feet still aching from the impact.

Despite the numerical values, Shu Long is essentially just a super homebody who prefers indoor sports. His clumsy attempt to show off across disciplines will eventually come at a price.

After a chaotic day on Thursday, the fleet returned to normal operations on Friday.

Fortunately, Red Bull was fast at this stop, very fast indeed.

In the first two practice sessions, Shu Long and Verstappen took turns dominating the leaderboard, while Mercedes looked gloomy.

Mercedes is also fast, but Bottas' power unit has run into problems again. If it can't be repaired in time, he may face another retirement penalty, and Hamilton may have to fight two opponents again.

However, Red Bull had other suspicions; they suspected that Mercedes's distress was feigned.

Bottas' previous two engine sets were only used for one or two races each. If it were just a simple reliability issue, the problem should have been discovered long ago. Even if this set fails, the old one can be used instead. There is absolutely no need to take the risk of a penalty.

On the other hand, apart from the seemingly upgraded replacement in the last race, Hamilton has a lower failure rate despite his more aggressive driving, which is quite unusual!

Therefore, Red Bull suspects that Mercedes is deliberately using Bottas as an experiment for some kind of engine overclocking upgrade.

(End of this chapter)