F1: Starting with a Simulator Master

Chapter 124 Ferrari's Compromise

"—He crossed the finish line! Leclerc——got—5th place?"

The commentator's voice suddenly seemed to be choked, and the entire audience erupted in uproar.

"Ferrari's top speed on the straights this weekend was absolutely disastrous. What were they doing?!"

"—Brother Fei, what do you think?"

In the five-star studio, the commentator's equally excited voice only subsided when Leclerc crossed the finish line.

"Uh... not fast enough. The track conditions have evolved, but he's still not as fast as Luo Xiu in his first flight lap—"

"—Yes, Luo Xiu still has a new set of red tires, but if he doesn't leave the track soon, he won't have time for his next flight lap. Why does Ferrari always break down at times like this?"

"—Isn't it too late?"

"It's still not too late, but we need to get off the train immediately."

Time ticked by, and Leclerc's performance proved Roche's judgment right.

Vasser made a quick decision: "Immediately adjust the canard angle to reduce downforce, as Luo Xiu requested! Quickly, quickly, quickly!"

The technicians responded immediately, giving hand signals. They increased the tire pressure by 0.1 bar, leveled the front wing at lightning speed, and reduced the downforce to an extremely dangerous level that would make it very easy to lose control and crash into the wall.

As the wrench was turned, the front wing dropped at an angle that was barely perceptible to the naked eye but extremely deadly. The air in front of the car was instantly cut open and reassembled, and a mechanical weapon with extremely erratic steering was completely awakened.

The motor and engine on the steering wheel switched to the strongest discharge mode, and the fuel supply was locked at the absolute minimum, just enough to complete the next flight loop and return to the P-room.

Finally, with only 2 minutes and 10 seconds left before the clock stopped, car number 55, like a wild horse, launched out of the pits.

However, fate played a cruel joke at this moment, and the Jeddah circuit seemed unwilling to let Ferrari get this chance to win so easily.

Just a few turns past the exit lap, two Williams cars appeared ahead, slowly making their way down the lap, like two moving roadblocks, firmly blocking the narrow street line.

Luo Xiu was forced to slam on the brakes, and the car's speed dropped sharply.

Even more deadly, the track engineer's urgent voice kept exploding in the headphone's TR channel like a series of deadly curses.

"Watch out behind you! Hamilton is entering the flying circle and is rapidly approaching. Give way immediately!"

Forced into a corner, Luo Xiu swerved the car towards the outer edge of the track, which was covered in shards of rubber.

A few seconds later, a black Mercedes-Benz sped away, skimming past its side.

And then, the action of turning the steering wheel left and right to forcefully increase the tire temperature was once again forced to stop.

The traffic ahead had just eased up, and Luo Xiu hadn't had time to downshift and catch up on the gas.

"Watch out! Alonso is closing in quickly from behind you, let him pass! —"

"—Make way for traffic, Perez is speeding!"

'

""

One race after another was stuck in the final time window for a flying lap, each one whizzing past him like a gust of wind.

In just one and a half time segments, Luo Xiu was forced to the dirty side of the track to get covered in dust three times in a row. Even with his good temper, Luo Xiu was getting a little angry at this moment.

The starting lap, which should have been a golden prelude for carefully protecting the tires and accumulating battery power, was instead shattered.

Looking at the tire temperature data on the steering wheel that wouldn't rise, Luo Xiu's expression turned grim.

就在赛车即将驶入T23至T26的连续全油门高速路段时，罗修瞥见了赛道旁大屏幕上的Q3倒计时面板，提示Q3排位赛时间仅剩30秒不到！

The temple of thought is operating at full power like never before.

Remaining track length, current speed, wind direction, cornering angle—countless data points were transformed into dark blue lines, completing a precise, almost eerie, time calculation in his mind.

The conclusion is disheartening.

If he continues to use the current power-saving mode—which aims to conserve energy for the next lap—in the final S3 stage.

..

He will be several car lengths away from the starting line when the countdown reaches zero!

3 seconds left!

That's too late.

Any technical micromanagement becomes futile in the face of absolute time at this moment.

Without a second's hesitation, Luo Xiu pressed down hard with his left thumb on the "Overtake" button on the steering wheel, which had a yellow warning circle around it!

At the end of the warm-up period when rest and recuperation are necessary, on the edge of a cliff where only one step remains before the final sprint.

He resolutely cut off the recharge and forcibly started the engine in MGU-K mode, in full-power motor discharge mode.

With a tremendous sense of acceleration and the ferocious roar of the V6 internal combustion engine, race car number 55 was like a savage beast injected with adrenaline, soaring to new speeds on the full-throttle stretches of the third season!

Meanwhile, in the broadcast studio, Fei Ge, who was constantly monitoring the telemetry data across the entire venue, almost popped his eyes out.

"He's charging up! Ferrari's strategy team is seriously malfunctioning! Why did they take off so late?! If the rim isn't fully charged, how are they going to compete with Verstappen?!"

In the commentary booth, Ran Ge exclaimed in shock, "But if he doesn't turn on the electricity now, he won't even be able to touch the starting line! — Go for it, Luo Xiu!!!"

The broadcast camera focused on car number 55 during the final stretch of Luo Xiu's warm-up lap.

At that moment, viewers around the world stared intently at the television screen, their palms sweating profusely.

0————————.——————3————2————1 in the main stands

With just one second left on the countdown, the fully loaded Ferrari race car, accompanied by a violent gust of air, swept over the timing coils beneath the starting blocks.

The chassis transponder signal was triggered instantly.

"drop-

'

A short notification tone sounded in Luo Xiu's earpiece.

At the same time, the lap timer on the steering wheel display in front of him resets and immediately starts ticking from 0.000!

For the driver, this sound and this data mean only one thing.

He made it.

He secured the permit for the last legal flight loop in the entire event!

At this point, the clock had stopped in Q3 of qualifying, and the other cars on the track had either returned to the pits or were on slow return laps.

Verstappen had already crossed the finish line, with a final lap time of 1:27.472, currently ranking first overall.

"Watch out for a fast car behind you! Give way immediately!"

Drivers from various teams gradually received reminders from their teams in TR.

Under the cover of night, the roar of the only V6 engine echoed in Jeddah. Four or five cars on the track that were returning to the track all obediently slowed down and moved to the off-track lanes, waiting for a red figure to appear in their rearview mirrors and then pass them.

Right now, only Luo Xiu is still moving at full speed in the flying circle.

All the spotlights in the stadium focused on the only red Prancing Horse, number 55, that was still roaring at full speed.

In this invincible era belonging to Verstappen, despite the drawbacks of insufficient battery power, poor tuning, and low top speed, the tires have successfully entered their working window.

Luo Xiu's performance in this Grand Prix was truly a serious lap—a battle of all strength, without holding back, a fight to the death.

Officially begin!

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