Speed ​​God

Chapter 68: No Sound, No Talk
Lu Zhizhou made a fool of himself, and in a way that was utterly ridiculous.

On this Barcelona circuit, GP3 practice times are generally around 1 minute and 37 seconds, with the top ten all under 1 minute and 36 seconds, and the difference is not significant.

However, Lu Zhizhou's current practice lap time is around 1 minute and 40 seconds, and his ranking has fallen out of the top 15, basically at the bottom of the pack.

Look at the other three ART team drivers who are ranked in the top five, and then look at Lu Zhizhou. Without comparison, there is no harm. The gap is truly shocking.

No wonder it's always emphasized in the world of Formula racing that a driver's strongest partner and biggest rival is their own teammate. Because you're driving the same car, even if the parameters are slightly different, the overall performance is still very similar. The direct reference point for measuring a driver's performance is their teammate.

Before defeating other teams, you first need to defeat your own teammates.

Clearly, Lu Zhizhou is currently holding the ART team back.

What is Nicholas thinking?

"Vassel probably misjudged this time."

Has Ferrari lost its mind?

Various jokes and complaints were heard incessantly.

So, what about Lu Zhizhou?
Borrepeller was slightly surprised, and even he was a little anxious, worried that Lu Zhizhou had not yet achieved good results, and that young people are easily impatient and prone to rushing things.

Moreover, this was Lu Zhizhou's first public appearance, and it was perfectly normal for him to be fluctuating in his mindset when suddenly exposed to the spotlight.

He was considering how to comfort and guide the child, but he didn't expect that Lu Zhizhou would remain professional and calm. After the first quantitative test was completed, he communicated accurately and clearly, and then used the same set of tires but modified some parameters to start the second quantitative test in an orderly manner and continue to test the data.

Instead, Borrepeller became less certain, and after a moment's hesitation, asked, "Are you alright?"

Lu Zhizhou's voice came through the radio, "No."

Borrepell breathed a sigh of relief; this was more like it. But before he could speak, Lu Zhizhou continued on the radio.

"At Turn 4, the wind direction changed, and the tail wing was noticeably swaying."

"It had been a southerly wind all along, how did it suddenly turn into a northerly wind?"

Borrepeller paused for a moment, then for some reason, a smile appeared on his lips. “Yes, that’s the characteristic of the Barcelona circuit. The wind direction is constantly changing; occasionally, unpredictable gales can appear, which can become an unpredictable factor in the race. This is one of the few highlights of this circuit.”

Lu Zhizhou: ... "Pierre, were you just telling a joke?"

Borrepeller: ...

Lu Zhizhou: "Haha. You and Charles are friends, right? Or are the French always like this?"

After a brief exchange, their relationship became noticeably closer, and Borrepeller quietly changed the subject, saying, "We need to be careful of the crosswinds at Turn 3 and Turn 9."

It wasn't until the second quantitative phase ended that Lu Zhizhou finally understood why people always said the Barcelona circuit was "boring".

Here, there are many high-speed curves and a lot of consecutive curves, and the tires are severely worn, which means that the space left for drivers to overtake is very limited.

Because drivers cannot follow another car for an extended period of time, once they are caught in the dirty air of the car in front, tire wear will accelerate, potentially worsening an already poor condition. At the same time, consecutive high-speed corners and consecutive combination corners make it difficult to create overtaking opportunities and require drivers to be patient.

Due to the combined effects of these back-and-forth movements, overtaking is not easy on the Barcelona circuit, and once an advantage is gained, it is often a race that continues until the very end.

Naturally, without the thrill of close-quarters combat, a race can easily become "boring." However, unpredictable wind direction is an unknown factor that, in a dull lap race, can be like a time bomb, potentially causing chaos. This requires drivers to remain vigilant and alert throughout the race so that they can take control of the situation in time when unexpected events occur.

This is why qualifying has become increasingly important, with the first and second row having a more than 90% chance of winning.

In the first quantitative test, Lu Zhizhou ran six laps as a simple assessment; in the second quantitative test, Lu Zhizhou ran thirteen laps, focusing on communication and dialogue.

According to Lu Zhizhou, the gap between GP3 races is very small, and it is unlikely that the gap can be widened by relying on the straights. Both teams and drivers tend to focus on the corners and rely on their rhythm in the corners to win.

But is that really the case?
These drivers have all been selected through multiple rounds of competition. Unlike amateur street racers, they have both experience and skill. Their skill ceiling is higher, but their skill floor is also higher. In a close-quarters race, it is much more difficult to gain an advantage by relying on cornering speed.

Therefore, instead of struggling to squeeze through the bends, it's better to find another way.

On the Barcelona circuit, for this race, Lu Zhizhou preferred to set the brake balance in the understeer position, allowing him to control the cornering rhythm. He did not pursue the extreme cornering, but relied on his dynamic balance adjustment and driving line to strive for higher exit speed and widen the gap on the straight.

After exiting Turn 16, you enter the straight, pass the starting line/finish line, and cut into Turn 1. This super long straight is 1047 meters long and can push straight-line speed to the extreme.

In other words, while everyone else was focusing on the curves, Lu Zhizhou concentrated on the straightaways, taking a different approach to interpreting the track.

Of course, it wasn't just because of the straight road; wind direction was also a factor Lu Zhizhou considered.

Turns 9, 10, and 14 are all very susceptible to wind interference, but no one can accurately predict the wind direction, so the chance of making a mistake is greater when pushing forward at a high speed. Lu Zhizhou, on the other hand, prefers to keep the curves under control and adjust them in real time according to the wind direction.

Borrepeller's slight surprise stemmed from the fact that Lu Zhizhou's strategy was not commonly used in GP3, with a small window of opportunity and high risk. More importantly, it was because his attitude of actively and bravely expressing his views on his first time on the track was not the arrogance of a privileged child, but rather a confident and well-founded one.

It's refreshing.

Borrepell actively analyzed, discussed, and verified Lu Zhizhou's strategy, and finally agreed with it.

However, qualifying is slightly different from the main race, and the two of them developed a detailed strategy for qualifying, which is why today's free practice session has finally come to an end.

After all the communication was over, Borrepeller looked closely at Lu Zhizhou's profile as he pondered intently. His youthful face revealed an unbelievable focus. It was only his first day working in the paddock, but he already felt that he should get to know this young intruder who had sprung up from the cracks in the rocks.

“Zhi…zhou…?” Borrepeller was unsure of his pronunciation, but Lu Zhizhou didn’t seem to mind. He looked up from the pile of data and gazed at him. “Dinner. It’s dinner time. If I remember correctly, you need to complete the task of three meals a day according to the recipe, right?”

Lu Zhizhou said seriously, "No, I'm having pizza tonight."

Borrepeller was taken aback.

Lu Zhizhou stood up, patted Borrepeler on the shoulder, and turned to leave. Only then did Borrepeler realize that Lu Zhizhou had just made a joke that he hadn't expected. He helplessly raised the corners of his mouth and said loudly, "You better do this, I'll treat you to pizza tonight."

Lu Zhizhou's cheerful laughter could be heard from outside.

However, the next second he was overwhelmed by familiar, upbeat music, and Borrepeller involuntarily strained his ears—

"Baby, baby, baby, oh..."

Baby, baby, baby, no…

Wait, that's——

　First update today. This is the final sprint of the new book period, and I humbly request everyone to persevere. Thank you all! A heartfelt thank you!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)