F1: Starting with a Simulator Master

Chapter 137 The Difference Between Offense and Defense

T1 is an excellent regular overtaking point. The Haas cars ahead have significantly reduced grip due to their old yellow tires, which have already been used for more than ten laps, so the braking point must be earlier.

But Luo Xiu didn't use it.

At the end of the straight, he made a sharp turn, pushing his braking point back a full five meters, and with a longitudinal load of up to 5G, he came alongside Magnussen just before entering the corner.

The carbon brake discs, instantly heated to over a thousand degrees, burst into a dazzling red light in the darkness.

Luo Xiu used an even more unreasonable method than Magnussen, hugging the side box of the Haas race car and cutting into the inside line at a distance of centimeters to occupy the apex of the corner.

The new yellow tires had a huge advantage in road grip. Ferrari could floor the accelerator when exiting a corner without any wobbling, cleanly and decisively finishing off Magnussen on the T2 outside line.

At this time, Zhou Guanyu had not yet entered the station. He was in 10th place and happened to record this wonderful scene for the audience from the perspective of a war correspondent.

The Haas race car didn't even finish its reaction maneuver of closing the door before it quickly disappeared from the Ferrari's rearview mirror.

First Blood, without bloodshed.

The same scenario plays out every lap, with Luo Xiu always on the offensive, but the background character changes every lap.

"Hehe, did you see that? Luo Xiu's braking efficiency is really high, almost on par with Verstappen!"

The soldier's tone carried a strange air of smugness, as if the mere fact that he spoke the same Chinese as Luo Xiu was enough to make him so proud that he forgot himself.

"One lap, one finish! Haha, one lap, one finish! That's awesome! That's so exhilarating!"

On the track, Luo Xiu showed no mercy, displaying superb late braking and a tough racing line in the high-speed street race of Jeddah.

With an almost terrifying efficiency of overtaking one car per lap, at the end of the straight, at T1, at T27, it seemed as if he could put on one spectacular overtaking show after another anywhere on the track.

"Hey, this is what the audience loves to see! This is exactly what they're looking for!"

Bing Ge's voice echoed in the live stream, and Fei Ge and Ran Ge also joined in with great enthusiasm.

"We like it too, hahahaha————"

In contrast to the cheerful atmosphere in the five-star studio, the control room for Haas, AIpine, and Williams was shrouded in gloom.

Haas TR: "Huckenberg, let him pass. He's not our competitor. Don't waste tires!"

AlpineTR: "Ocon, don't get entangled with him, he's not our target, save your tires!"

Williams TR: "Alben, let him pass—"

Within just seven laps, Rosicky and the teams ahead of him who hadn't pitted for tires developed an inexplicable tacit understanding, easily and cleanly taking down all the midfield drivers, including Albon, Hulkenberg, Magnussen, and Ocon, minimizing their time loss.

Even Yuki Tsunoda, the only one who stubbornly insisted on carrying out the defensive instructions, was no exception.

Yuki Tsunoda, who did not pit for tire changes, belongs to the Toro Rosso team and finished fifth overall.

Little Red Bull TR: "Block Luo Xiu as much as possible, don't let him pass easily!"

Hiroki Kakuta: "Copy, I know what to do."

Kakuta mentally rehearsed the strong centerline strategy for the next few combination corners, and then, with the advantage of a better exit line at the last key corner, he could quickly connect to the long straight and easily block Luo Xiu behind him, blocking at least seven corners!

Unfortunately, my tires had been holding on for too long, and their grip had severely decreased. Otherwise, I could have easily blocked them for another ten or eight laps.

However, less than ten seconds passed between Luo Xiu appearing in Kakuta's rearview mirror and Kakuta entering Luo Xiu's rearview mirror.

The race has reached lap 20.

For the past ten minutes or so, the broadcast cameras have been almost entirely focused on Luo Xiu's No. 55 race car.

Various angles and camera positions turned an F1 race into a personal overtaking show for Luo Xiu.

And that number 55 Prancing Horse lived up to the favor, winning six consecutive battles and returning to second place overall!

Once again, there was only one mountain left to climb.

After more than ten minutes of overtaking and chasing, time was still wasted due to the slower cars blocking the way, and Verstappen ahead had a 5-second lead.

At that moment, Verstappen fled, and Rosicky pursued.

Running in the clean air, Rochefoucauld accelerated once again, and the 5-second gap established by Verstappen was being erased at a rate of nearly 1 second per lap.

At this moment, Verstappen, who was at the very front, only needed to glance at the warning light below the steering wheel to smell the increasingly close stench of blood behind him.

On lap 23, Rosicky approached Verstappen's DRS zone.

And in the next 24 laps, the first section, I got a purple lap!

Second section, paint it purple!

In the third section, as the purple zone appeared, the fastest lap time of the entire event was announced!

The icon representing the fastest lap of the entire circuit was placed right next to "LUO," announcing that the fastest driver at the Jeddah circuit had changed hands.

"Ma, BOX, BOX!" (Marx, pull over to the pits immediately for a tire change!)

Red Bull's control room didn't even give Verstappen a chance to hold on, issuing a direct order to prioritize the overall situation.

Once a driver with an absolute tire advantage activates the DRS variable rear wing, any defense will ultimately be futile, even against a Ferrari with high downforce and a Red Bull with low downforce.

"Copy".

""

Verstappen swerved after leaving T27 on lap 24 and plunged into the pit lane.

Luo Xiu seized the opportunity to regain first place and sped away down the main road.

The situation on the field changed once again.

Since no one posed a threat to Verstappen after the safety car passed, the spacing between the cars gradually increased from the start of the race.

Although a normal pit stop for a tire change would result in a 20-second penalty, Verstappen only lost four positions, dropping back to fifth overall.

The camera then pans to the repair area.

Red Bull's lightning-fast exit from the station in 2.2 seconds was like a resounding slap in the face to Ferrari, which had just made headlines for its 7-second jamming incident.

The camera then shifts to the Ferrari pit crew, where all the mechanics have already forgotten about the seven-second incident.

The tire changers watched as Luo Xiu returned to P1 on the broadcast screen, clapping and cheering excitedly, and even giving a thumbs-up to the camera.

Only the track engineers and strategy team members stared intently at the constantly changing tire wear data on the screen.

"Xiu, Ma is 21 seconds behind you, but he now has a new white tire that can run until the end of the race."

Your current yellow tires suggest you can last another 15 laps before reaching the edge of the pit, with 25 laps remaining in the race.

Luo Xiu did not answer immediately.

After that unrestrained, rapid seven-hit combo, Luo Xiu originally thought his body would suffer a lot due to the distortion of the chair.

But something amazing happened: he discovered that the foam seat that had tormented him throughout the entire qualifying race had, under the repeated crushing of high G-forces, been molded by himself into a shape that fit his body even better.

Except for a few stress points that were still a bit uncomfortable, Luo Xiu's sitting posture became surprisingly much smoother.

This means he can perceive the road surface more clearly!

"Plan E."

Even though they needed to enter the station again, Luo Xiu remained completely calm.

Meanwhile, further back on the track, Red Bull, now in 5th place, like a wild boar that has just grown tusks, immediately launched a final, ferocious charge at the cars in front.

Verstappen just needs to keep running and overtaking.

At this moment, the balance of power shifts between offense and defense.

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