F1: Starting with a Simulator Master

Luo Xiu crossed his arms, his eyes lacking the fanatical red filter of a Ferrari enthusiast.

He wasn't interested in the physical battles on the track; instead, he was staring at the telemetry data screen in Red Bull's back office.

The team headset I was wearing was filled with various TR commands, mostly the ever-calm countdown from Giampiero Lambiaser (Verstappen's TR engineer).

Luo Xiu's gaze fell on Verstappen's brake pressure curve, throttle opening, and steering angle data.

He noticed that Verstappen, while closely following Sainz, braked extremely aggressively on his first attempt before entering a corner due to the highly unstable, polluted air generated by the wake of the car in front.

The braking force at that moment reached 130 bar, equivalent to 150 kilograms.

This is a force he can't achieve even when he's braking at full speed.

Moreover, when you release the brakes as you enter a curve, the braking curve is so smooth it looks like it was drawn on a computer.

This allows the race car's four tires to always exert maximum grip.

Luo Xiu felt he could achieve the same curve level in F3, but his strength couldn't reach that level.

The deductive mechanism of the mind palace was forcibly awakened.

The dark blue data streams constructed in my mind the RB19 on the Monza circuit.

What if I were sitting in that RB19 with its insane downpressure right now?

In the first consecutive deceleration corner alone, the Chicane consisting of T1 and T2, the race cars must brake hard from a maximum speed of 360 km/h to 80 km/h in a very short time, generating an instantaneous longitudinal braking G-force of up to 6G.

Luo Xiu's neck would give way, and he would crash headfirst into the steering wheel.

It's no longer meaningful to deduce the result.

Luo Xiu took a deep breath and subconsciously touched the back of his neck, which ached even when driving an F3.

The illusory sense of satisfaction from just winning a low-level Grand Slam was completely crushed into dust by the brake telemetry data of up to 130 bar.

But in his eyes, there was no fear or hesitation that an ordinary driver should have; there was only an insatiable greed for power.

He stared at the roaring RB19 on the screen.

To ordinary people, it was an untamed, reckless beast, but to Luo Xiu, it was a peerless weapon that could squeeze 100% of a driver's talent.

His driving instincts and understanding of cornering lines were fully prepared to devour the car whole.

But right now, I don't even have the right to sit inside and try it out, simply because my muscles can't handle that terrifying G-force.

This is the most obvious and the most unbearable gap for him.

It's not about driving skills, but about sheer physical strength.

On the track, this epic showdown in Monza was a highly entertaining spectacle.

Without any suspense, after a period of suffocating pressure, Verstappen, with his machine-like consistency and the terrifying efficiency of the RB19, overtook Sainz on lap 15 and ultimately won the championship, achieving a record-breaking ten-race winning streak in F1 history.

Teammate Perez followed closely behind, securing second place.

Red Bull Racing led Ferrari to a 1-2 victory at Ferrari's home track, completing a textbook challenge.

Sainz fought hard to prevent his teammate from overtaking him and taking third place on the podium, making Tifosi's home defeat a glorious one.

Leclerc is fourth.

Unfortunately, Zhou Guanyu's car lacked competitiveness, and despite a poor qualifying result of 16th place, he managed to climb two places in the race, ultimately finishing 14th and failing to score any points.

Although Ferrari did not win the championship, the entire Monza was still shrouded in red smoke, a symbol of Ferrari, and the huge grandstand resembled a boiling volcano.

Luo Xiu watched the finish line on the big screen and Verstappen jumping joyfully onto the podium after the race.

The Xu brothers also gave Zhou Guanyu a sincere round of applause for finishing the race.

As both F1 drivers competing in the same arena, Verstappen's Red Bull car and Zhou Guanyu's Alfa Romeo represent a clear hierarchy.

This is a brutal yet realistic phenomenon of skill stratification in F1 racing.

Because from F4 to F2, they are all essentially standardized racing events.

With a unified chassis and engine, the competition between drivers is purely based on driving skills and minor adjustments.

This is why Luo Xiu's performance shocked everyone.

However, when the slowest F2 meets the fastest F3, it's an absolute one of defeat for the F2.

Even the worst F1 team would be at a disadvantage against the best F2 team.

This is a difference in racing class defined by FIA regulations, with strict physical limitations.

But in the F1 car manufacturing arms race, everything changed.

As long as it is within the budget cap and the basic rules and restrictions given by the FIA.

Each team is free to explore the remaining research and development aspects of the race car.

Because each team operates independently in its research and development framework, the performance barriers between cars are even more pronounced than the differences between classes.

Car enthusiasts enjoy rating the performance of cars from different racing teams.

The Mars Group represents the most cutting-edge and fastest racing cars.

The Earth Group represents racing cars with inferior performance.

The lunar group represents the area between Mars and Earth.

If you compare an uncompetitive Formula 1 car with a dominant Mars rover.

In certain extreme situations, the performance gap between them, combined with the performance difference that top drivers can create, might be even more disheartening than putting an F2 and an F3 together.

After the competition ended and night fell, the entire paddock began to bustle with the dismantling of containers.

After exchanging brief farewell messages with Verstappen and Zhou Guanyu, Xu Zihao led his team to have a short pre-departure meeting with Rosin, the head of the Prema team, and other relevant personnel.

Xu Zihao shook hands with them and accepted the letter of intent for a seat next season, which carried huge expenses and great expectations.

Chen Pengfei, who was standing to the side, finally breathed a long sigh of relief.

This European blind box journey, filled with unknowns and high-stakes gambles, has finally come to a perfect end.

Monday morning.

At Milan International Airport, Luo Xiu and his group boarded the luxury first-class flight that Xu Zihao had booked in advance, and set off to return home.

With a deafening roar from the engines, the plane soared into the sky.

The first-class cabin is extremely spacious and comfortable.

Luo Xiu lay in the spacious airline seat, not taking a nap in the comfortable reclining environment like the others.

He declined the exquisite French desserts offered by the flight attendant and only asked for a can of iced Coke.

The icy liquid went down my throat like a powerful coolant, suppressing the restlessness I felt from the intense workload of the past few days.

His gaze fell upon the blazing sunlight and endless clouds outside the porthole.

The plane began to pierce through the clouds and fly level. The outline of the European continent grew smaller and smaller below the window until it was completely swallowed by the daylight.

The deafening roar of engines, the undercurrents between teams, and the blinding red smoke on the Monza circuit were all temporarily forgotten.

clack clack...

As if making a vow, Luo Xiu suddenly exerted force with his five fingers, squeezing the already empty soda can in his hand until it was crushed.

Luo Xiu felt no attachment to the European trip that Xu Zihang called a miracle, and he scoffed at the so-called celebration banquet and flowers.

Having shed all the vanity brought by lower-level competitions, only two pure and extremely realistic goals remained in Luo Xiu's mind.

First, do everything possible to train and strengthen yourself, to break out of the current pitiful situation where your mental temple is only rated C and you can't even meet the physical requirements of F1.

Second, obtain as many super license points as possible as soon as possible.

He closed his eyes and sank deeply into the aircraft seat.

Even on the plane back home, his mind kept replaying Verstappen's perfect braking and throttle curves that could last for an entire match.

Driven by an extreme obsession and yearning for the limits of speed, Luo Xiu made a vow to himself in his heart.

One year.

At most a year from now, he will return to the pinnacle of this racing world with a physique strong enough to withstand any racing G-force.

He wants to take over the highest throne here, just as Vestapin ruled Monza.