F1: Starting with a Simulator Master

Chapter 133 Exquisite Wheel-to-Wheel

Luo Xiu's most troublesome crisis right now is the heat dissipation problem of his racing car engine and the thermal management of the tires.

The Red Bull race car ahead, with its massive rear diffuser and complex aerodynamic design, completely cut through the incoming fresh, cold air.

Luo Xiu, who was following behind, was forced to endure a vicious cycle of hot exhaust fumes constantly being swallowed by the engine air intake and side radiator due to the lack of sufficient cool air.

Luo Xiu's gaze swept over the LCD screen in the center of the steering wheel. The temperature of the tires was soaring wildly. If this continued, the tires would be ruined from overheating in less than two laps.

"Luo Xiu! You've drifted off the lane! Move to the outside to cool down!"

Through the helmet headset, the competition engineer's voice lacked its usual composure and sounded somewhat anxious.

"The brake discs are overheating, and the engine needs cooling! Get out of the exhaust duct and find some fresh air!"

On Jeddah’s long, straight coastal road, the most enjoyable and efficient driving experience is usually the one where you feel the force of gravity pushing you back in your seat.

But Verstappen ahead remained as steady as a rock, while car number 55 behind him began to deliberately cut into the off-line on the long straight.

That wasn't about finding a way to turn around and overtake; it was about protecting the tires and engine.

At speeds up to 300 km/h, Luo Xiu had to tread carefully and slightly turn the steering wheel to allow the Ferrari to escape the Red Bull's wake and greedily inhale the unheated, room-temperature air at the edge of the track.

However, when trying to avoid the wake zone on a straight road, the price to pay is the complete loss of the speed boost provided by wake absorption.

Ferrari's disadvantages, including low top speed, overheated tires, and overheated engine, combined with the red tires, meant that the red tires not only failed to demonstrate their performance advantage on the straight, but also allowed Verstappen to pull ahead by a fraction of a second, almost leaving them out of the DRS range.

"Come on, Luo Xiu, we can try to overtake at the next overtaking point! Now, adjust your fuel strategy and maintain the pace—"

TR reminded Luo Xiu of the strategies for each stage of the race while cheering him on.

However, Luo Xiu realized that the team's current strategy would only waste the performance of the red tires.

The race has reached the third lap, and the red tires' peak grip is reduced to just the last two or three pitiful time segments.

"Be patient, we'll look for overtaking opportunities on the straight in the second time slot. Now conserve battery power —"

Second time slot? Straight road?

It's pointless; Luo Xiu can't wait that long.

The two race cars were close together, approaching the first section of the deadly serpentine bends, from T4 to T10.

There are no buffer zones on either side, only crash barriers right next to the track, and the cornering speed here can reach up to 270 km/h.

Whether you're a die-hard track fan watching the live stream or a strategist for each team, you know this is a dangerous zone where overtaking is impossible.

No one will overtake here; the speed is too fast, the turbulence is too strong, and once you deviate from the only clean track, it will be a catastrophic bottoming out or even crashing into the wall.

The muscle memory of countless top drivers, including Verstappen, is consistent here.

Reduce oil, protect the tire, get through the blind spot, and wait until the main straightaway to decide the outcome.

Just before entering the extremely dangerous left bend on the T4 highway, the taillights of the Red Bull ahead flashed for a very brief moment.

Verstappen eased off the throttle slightly here to protect the tires and recover energy, preparing for the discharge on the long straight ahead.

He was confident that as long as he kept up the current pace and wore down Luo Xiu's tires as quickly as possible, he could establish a significant advantage in the upcoming races and even achieve another PoletoWin.

Verstappen knew that Roche would do what he had done in the previous two laps: before T4, he would choose the same position as him to ease off the grenades and then follow behind him.

Ferrari's top speed on the straights is suppressed, and there will be no chance in low-speed corners and regular overtaking points. How can Luo Xiu break the deadlock?

unless-

Verstappen hadn't even had time to mentally rehearse this hypothetical solution.

Luo Xiu suddenly attacked from behind!

In this dangerous area known as the Death Corridor, Rosi did not follow the normal driving route like Verstappen did.

Instead, it went straight to full throttle, reaching a top speed of over 250 km/h, and inexplicably charged into T4!

This unreasonable cornering speed allowed Ferrari to instantly overtake Red Bull at the T4 exit, but the laws of physics are fair to everyone.

At this speed, it is simply impossible to properly handle the following right turn on T5.

Luo Xiu had no choice but to brake extremely late, essentially treating T4 as a fake corner, while T5, which usually requires acceleration, was treated as the first real corner, and he began a long process of tracking and braking into the corner.

Verstappen watched the red Ferrari crash into him with tremendous force. The defending champion, who was usually aggressive and irritable on the track, was extremely rational at this moment. He chose to ease off the accelerator and give the T5 some space in the paint.

Because if they don't let each other pass, the two race cars will undoubtedly collide before the next corner and then both go up the wall.

But this extreme battle between wheels has only just begun.

The next two turns, T6 and T7, are two consecutive high-speed left turns. Luo Xiu's car is still on the right side of the track, meaning he's stuck on the outside!

The reckless late braking of car number 55 into the corner only resulted in Luo Xiu having two cars side by side.

Verstappen showed no mercy after exiting the T5 corner, occupying the most comfortable inside line, flooring the accelerator, and entering the corner at the same time as the Ferrari!

Two massive machines, each with a thousand horsepower, roared forward side by side, their tires less than twenty centimeters apart.

The downforce from the high-speed bends caused their chassis to scrape up terrifying amounts of sparks on the road surface.

The two cars were like a pair of gears of fate meshing on the edge of being out of control, moving together to the left and right, getting closer and closer.

Despite the terrifying lateral centrifugal force approaching 5G, Luo Xiu forcefully bit into half of Red Bull's car body on the outside of T6 and T7, refusing to give an inch!

Because the real key is the combination of the next T8 and T9 corners.

As the two race cars wheel-to-wheel burst out of the T7 left turn, they headed headlong into the T8 and T9 combination turn.

Luo Xiu, who had been relentlessly chasing the right side of the track, finally revealed his true colors here!

On the right side of the track, between T8 and T9, it becomes the absolute inside line!

Luo Xiu, like the Grim Reaper closing the door, brought this long-planned killing scheme to a close.

Because at this moment, Verstappen, who was on the outside, was in a situation where he had nowhere to go.

T8 and T9 are two high-speed right turns that cannot be side by side.

If Red Bull forces his way into T8 from the outside, both players' speeds will drop drastically in that corner, while Luo Xiu will hold the inside and will inevitably be the first to exit T9.

What's even more fatal is that, because of the extreme battle between the two from the first lap to now, every turn has cost them both of them a decrease in speed.

In the rearview mirror, starting from third place, the DRS high-speed train, consisting of four or five race cars, was already menacingly closing in!

If this continues, he might not even be able to hold onto second place!

At that critical moment when the speed exceeded 250 kilometers per hour, countless extremely complex variables were instantly cleared up in Verstappen's mind.

Stay calm, be decisive, and cut your losses.

Verstappen applied the brakes to clear the T8 lane.

boom!

The red Ferrari roared past from the inside with a furious engine noise.

The instant that Roche's car completely passed the blue-black Red Bull, the stands at the Jeddah circuit were like a Middle Eastern powder keg that had been detonated, and the roar of more than 40,000 fans instantly overturned the entire night sky!

This is a visual and auditory feast for hundreds of millions of viewers worldwide, enough to send shivers down your spine!

The live broadcast's audio equipment was completely overwhelmed. Amidst the extremely chaotic audio signal, it was impossible to distinguish whether it was the hysterical screams of 40,000 spectators or the roar of a thousand-horsepower engine pushing its limits!

"They overtook them!! My God!! They were side-by-side at T4, driving wheel-to-wheel all the way to T7 —"

The soldier had already stood up from the commentary seat, gesturing wildly and talking non-stop.

"—Then he forcefully secured his position from T8!!! Verstappen backed down! Rosh, at a non-overtaking point that no one expected, completely outmaneuvered Verstappen! Well done!!!"

He had ripped half of the headphones off, and now he couldn't even think of how to explain or praise Luo Xiu's miraculous move.

After a moment, the soldier regained his composure and finally spoke, "Dear viewers, this is our own racing god, Luo Xiu!"

But after only three laps, Luo Xiu, who had successfully taken the lead, did not relax at all.