F1: Starting with a Simulator Master

Chapter 147 Ferrari's Statement

On the same day Ferrari officially announced that Rodriguez would continue to compete as a Ferrari driver in the Shanghai race, Rodriguez received a plane ticket to fly overnight to the Ferrari headquarters in Maranello, Italy.

This century-old powerhouse team, in order to make a carbon fiber seat mold for his racing car, actually put a real brake on its internal R&D line.

A special approval document personally signed by team leader Vassell directly suspended the ultra-low downpressure aerodynamic kit that was originally scheduled to be developed specifically for the Monza home game in September.

All the elaborate arrangements were made just to free up ten precious hours to mold a driver's seat that best fits the curve of Luo Xiu's back.

For a temporary replacement player who hasn't even signed a long-term contract and could be dismissed at any time, this is the highest level of goodwill Ferrari has extended to Roche.

Half-lying in the sophisticated Ferrari chassis simulator cockpit, everything was ready. The vacuum pump started working, and the resin bag under his body was instantly evacuated. As the chemical reaction during curing occurred, Luo Xiu felt his back getting hot, and the resin particles inside seemed to be alive, clinging tightly to the contours of his entire back.

Meanwhile, outside the workshop separated by only a wall, Vasser, who had personally ordered the work stoppage, was patiently waiting with his hands behind his back.

Young Chinese drivers on the road.

For the next half hour, the Ferrari team principal personally acted as Luo Xiu's guide.

The two passed through security and entered Ferrari Motorsport's extremely private F1 Glory Garage.

This is not an ordinary exhibition area. The red race cars that have won countless Grand Prix victories for Ferrari over the past seventy years are not scattered around, but are arranged in a very standard line according to the year, like war machines waiting for inspection.

Under the most central spotlight, two true behemoths lie dormant: the horizontally opposed 12-cylinder race car once driven by Niki Lauda, ​​codenamed 312T, and the invincible F2004, representing the peak of Michael Schumacher's V10 era.

There was no scent of genuine leather found in civilian supercars, only the cold, hard aroma of time.

Without needing any extra words, the dozens of championship race cars engraved with legendary names alone create an immense and sacred sense of pressure.

This was the negotiation venue that Vasser had carefully chosen. He walked at the front, like a king inspecting his fiefdom, a smile on his face.

"Rosh, are you familiar with the prize money distribution rules for F1 teams?"

Vasseur stood in front of a team championship trophy, didn't turn around, raised his left hand, spread his five fingers, and made a number.

"Every year, no matter how bad Ferrari's actual racing results are, we will unconditionally take five percent of the F1 annual prize pool first."

He turned around, deliberately speaking slowly: "This is a privilege unique to Ferrari in the entire paddock."

Vassell flexed his muscles in this way, wanting to let the young man in front of him feel the true heritage of a prestigious family through the most straightforward rules of the game.

However, Luo Xiu's face did not show the expected awe.

He merely glanced casually at the row of dazzling championship race cars, finally stopping in front of the F2004, which represented ultimate glory.

"The five consecutive championships back then were truly an unrepeatable industrial legend."

With his hands in his pockets, Luo Xiu spoke as calmly as if he were reading an encyclopedia entry. In that brief pause, his mental palace, like a computer, instantly retrieved Ferrari's infamous dark history, known to everyone online.

"After all, in this day and age, the FIA ​​will no longer allow teams to have indefinite track testing privileges, and tire suppliers will no longer develop special tire compounds just for your team."

This seemingly casual statement of common sense directly shattered the sacred and inviolable aura surrounding Ferrari.

The privilege that Luo Xiu mentioned was a unique product of that era.

There are strict testing bans in F1 now. All teams can only test for a handful of 3 days a year in Bahrain before the season starts. They are absolutely not allowed to drive their cars on the track at other times.

Between 2000 and 2004, the FIA ​​had no testing restrictions whatsoever!

Ferrari has a unique advantage in the entire paddock; they are the only team that owns two standard F1 test tracks.

Back then, Schumacher and test drivers Badoer and Gine were practically working year-round. As soon as a race ended, they would spend Monday through Thursday on their own track running laps to rack up data and test the chassis.

Other teams, such as McLaren and Williams, are limited by racetrack rentals and weather conditions, and simply cannot use unlimited mileage to feed a super car like Ferrari.

As for tires, Hyundai F1 has a Pirelli monopoly on supply, which means everyone is wearing the same shoes.

But in the early 2000s, it was the era of the tire camp war between Michelin and Bridgestone.

At the time, Michelin had to supply tires to several top racing teams, including McLaren, Williams, and Renault, so the tires had to be sufficiently universal.

Bridgestone tires have actually been indirectly sponsored by Ferrari.

Bridgestone practically became Ferrari's in-house tire supplier at the time. The rubber compounds and tire structures they produced were completely tailored to the characteristics of Ferrari race cars, Schumacher's driving habits, and the weight distribution of the F2004's chassis.

This exclusive technological bias gives Ferrari an almost overwhelming advantage in track grip.

Back then, Ferrari wielded immense political influence within the FIA, even possessing veto power over the rules.

Many controversial rulings favored Ferrari, leading to a famous old joke in the F1 paddock at the time: "The only thing that can beat Ferrari is the FIA's rules."

It was precisely because the F2004 and its exclusive tires were so invincible that Schumacher won 13 out of 18 races in 2004. This forced the FIA ​​to introduce a famously bizarre rule in 2005 in an effort to salvage viewership: a set of tires must be used for qualifying and the entire 300-kilometer race. During the race, pit stops to change tires were strictly prohibited unless a tire blowout endangered the driver's life.

This bizarre rule was specifically designed to target Bridgestone and Ferrari, which directly led to Ferrari's collapse in 2005.

This collapse has led to Ferrari's current predicament.

Furthermore, the tire scandal at the Indianapolis Grand Prix that year also ruined F1's market in the United States.

Turn 13 on this track is a high-speed corner with an extremely steep angle of inclination, where the cars will experience terrifying lateral G-forces and tire compression.

During Friday's practice session, Ralf Schumacher, driving for Toyota and using Michelin tires, crashed at Turn 13.

A left rear tire blew out, causing a serious crash.

Subsequently, Michelin conducted an emergency inspection of the tires and came to a disheartening conclusion: under the existing rules, Michelin tires could only safely travel for a maximum of 10 laps after experiencing the extreme pressure of Turn 13, otherwise a tire blowout could occur at any time, endangering the driver's life.

The Bridgestone tires used by Ferrari, however, remained undamaged.

Because Bridgestone's subsidiary, Firestone, has been supplying tires for the Indiana 500 race for many years, they have access to a wealth of real-world data on the track's sloping corners, and the tires they develop are fully capable of withstanding the entire race.

Michelin has informed the seven teams it sponsors, including McLaren, Williams, Renault, and 14 other cars, that they cannot allow their drivers to compete unless the track is modified, for safety reasons.

Michelin's suggestion was to temporarily construct a series of chicanes before entering Turn 13 to force the cars to slow down and preserve their tires.

Then-FIA President Max Mosley strongly rejected the proposal to modify the track.

His reasoning was that Bridgestone could make the right tires, while Michelin couldn't, which was Michelin's own fault. Forcibly modifying the track would be unfair to Bridgestone.

While the owners of the nine teams were holding an emergency meeting to try to find a compromise, such as adding a speed cutoff but not including Michelin in the points, Ferrari refused to attend the meeting and refused to agree to any proposals to modify the track.

Ferrari sees this as their only chance to win the championship after being completely dominated in the first five races.

As the FIA ​​and Ferrari refused to compromise until the very last second before the start of the race, one of the most absurd scenes in F1 history unfolded.

All 20 race cars drove onto the track normally for the warm-up lap.

But at the very moment the warm-up lap ended and they were about to stop at the starting grid traffic light, all 14 cars equipped with Michelin tires stood in a straight line, turned into the pit lane, and retired from the race.

Only six cars using Bridgestone tires, including two Ferraris, ultimately finished the race on the track.

Michael Schumacher and Barrichello unsurprisingly took first and second place.

But this farce became the biggest scandal in F1 history, and even changed the course of modern F1 development.

More than 10 American fans who had bought expensive tickets were already furious. They booed wildly throughout the stadium and rained beer cans, water bottles, and even trash onto the track.

After all, having only six cars running in a race is unbearable for fans in any country.

Ultimately, for safety reasons, the awards ceremony was hastily concluded, and there wasn't even a champagne-spraying segment.

This farce thoroughly enraged the American market.

Michelin subsequently refunded all ticket money to fans at the event out of its own pocket, but F1's reputation in the United States suffered a devastating blow.

The blow directly led to Indianapolis's complete withdrawal from the F1 calendar after hosting the 2007 race, and it wasn't until many years later at the Osjang Circuit of the Americas that F1 returned to the American market.

Ferrari is a typical European white culture enterprise; their very being is filled with endless greed and arrogance.

Luo Xiu's response to Vasel was simple and direct.

These dark histories about Ferrari flashed through Luo Xiu's mind, transforming into the utterly disrespectful look in his eyes when he looked at Vassal.