Chapter 29: F1 Quality Is No Good

Chapter 29: Chapter 29: F1 Quality Is No Good

Wu Shi stared intently at the cars on the track. To be honest, if he hadn’t reviewed the historic race beforehand, he wouldn’t have been able to recognize the teams. The liveries were quite different from how they would look a decade or two in the future.

The jumbotron showed the drivers’ starting order.

"Hamilton!" Louise pointed at the screen.

"Are you a fan of his?" Wu Shi turned and asked.

"No, I just heard that even though this is his rookie season, if he wins this race, he’ll lock in the WDC early," Louise said, shaking her head.

"Yeah, we might get to witness a miracle today. We could see history being made as a rookie wins the WDC."

’Even though I already know the outcome, I’m still incredibly excited. In fact, after thinking about it rationally, maybe Hamilton won’t spin out after all.’

’After all, this world isn’t the one from my past life. It’s only normal for things to change or deviate.’

’If everything played out exactly like in my past life, what would be the point of me even being here?’

’At least, I’ve already changed the history of the four NCJ-A group races in the 2007 CKC Championship here in the country. The more races I compete in, the more this world’s records will deviate from my memories.’

Just then, the broadcast on the jumbotron focused on a Black man.

"Hamilton’s father," Wu Shi said.

"Oh?" Wu Zhenlin looked at the Black man.

"I’ve seen a lot of news about him. He’s pretty famous over in the United Kingdom," Louise said.

"Why?"

"Because he supported Hamilton all the way to F1. Dad, maybe you’ll be the next one," Wu Shi joked.

"Hahaha, it’s not ’maybe,’ it’s ’definitely.’ I believe you can get an F1 seat," Wu Zhenlin replied with a laugh, unfamiliar with F1 and oblivious to how difficult it was to secure a seat.

Louise twirled a strand of her hair and blinked. ’Hehe, if Wu Shi gets into F1, I’ll be in the paddock cheering him on!’

The cars completed the formation lap and settled into their grid slots. As they parked, the low-revving engines emitted a deep, menacing growl like a tiger’s, hinting at the immense power contained within.

The five red lights illuminated in sequence, held for a beat, then suddenly extinguished.

The 2007 F1 Hua Country Shanghai Station Grand Prix had officially begun!

The shriek of the engines instantly escalated to a deafening pitch, and a roar that could shatter the clouds echoed throughout the entire circuit.

Spinning tires kicked up a spray that instantly enveloped the starting grid in a dense mist.

FWOOSH! ROOOOAR!

The race cars burst out of the fog, one after another.

Starting on the front row, Hamilton got away brilliantly. He gradually eased his car toward the centerline to defend against the two Rafas behind him. Meanwhile, Alonso, from fourth place, aggressively pulled out to the far left edge of the track.

As they approached Turn 1, Alonso was actually attempting to go around the outside of both Rafas!

"A shame, his corner exit is too slow!"

Wu Shi clenched his fists. Watching a race live at the track was a completely different experience.

"He’s past Massa!"

This was a characteristic of Turn 1 at Shanghai Station; the inside line wasn’t guaranteed to be faster. With the grip of an F1 car, a wider line didn’t cost much speed as long as the driver’s line and car control were superb. It could even be an advantage, helping to avoid the opening-lap traffic jam on the inside.

Alonso used this to his advantage, successfully climbing to third place.

Alonso held the inside line through the subsequent Turn 2, temporarily securing his position.

But at the next corner, Massa, who was right behind, dove decisively down the inside as if his life depended on it.

Alonso had no choice but to yield. He was in the running for the championship and couldn’t afford a DNF!

The fight between the top four cars was spectacular, capturing everyone’s attention.

"Woah!!!"

Sudden gasps erupted from the crowd.

A car somewhere in the pack behind had spun and was now sideways on the track. Luckily, it didn’t trigger a larger incident.

The first lap ended with most cars having settled into their positions. Just as it seemed the battles would lessen, the two Hondas made light contact in a corner. Like a pair dancing a waltz, they slid off the track in perfect sync.

"Isn’t that too dangerous?" Wu Zhenlin frowned slightly.

You can only appreciate the terrifying speed of F1 when you’re watching it live from the stands.

Imagine standing on a high-speed rail platform as a train going 300 km/h roars past—the tremendous noise and turbulent air. Standing unprotected in front of these beasts would make anyone’s heart pound in their chest.

By the end of the second lap, the cars had spread out, and the on-track action calmed. The only sound was the roar of the engines, which assaulted the eardrums in powerful waves of sound.

VROOOOOM!!!

On the Great Straight, the F1 cars flew past, kicking up rooster tails of spray that reached several stories high. Aside from the lead cars, those following behind were completely obscured, like flowers seen through a dense fog.

Only when they slowed for the corners could one get a clear look at them.

After just three or four laps, a mere five minutes, Wu Zhenlin had already lost interest.

’Isn’t this just a bunch of people driving in circles?’

But when he glanced over, he saw Wu Shi watching with relish, occasionally muttering to himself.

"Son, walk me through it."

"Oh, okay."

Wu Shi nodded. Most first-time viewers can’t grasp the strategic cat-and-mouse games that unfold during a race.

"That dark car is driven by Vettel. The white car ahead of him is Kovalainen. They’re currently fighting for tenth place.

"Look! Vettel is right on Kovalainen’s tail now. Coming out of the last corner, Vettel was clearly faster on exit.

"Here comes the Great Straight!"

ROAR!

The two F1 cars roared down the straight. Just as they approached Turn 1, Vettel successfully overtook Kovalainen.

"Is there a difference in their car’s performance?" Wu Zhenlin asked.

"There is, but this overtake was mainly down to Vettel’s quick corner exit. He was able to get on the power and reach top speed sooner, which is why he looked so much faster," Wu Shi explained.

"I see!"

A few laps later, Tir had also passed Kovalainen.

"He’s struggling so much mid-corner."

Wu Shi could see Kovalainen’s Renault F1 twitching left and right. The driver was obviously struggling to keep the car under control, frantically correcting with the steering wheel.

A snippet from Kovalainen’s team radio was then broadcast.

"There’s a problem with the gearbox."

All three of them understood English, which made things much more convenient.

"It looks like Button behind him is about to pass him too."

’Looks like there really is a problem with the car. Otherwise, there’s no way he’d be this slow.’

"Hamilton is so fast!"

Louise glanced at the data on the screen. He had already pulled a gap of nearly six seconds on Kimi.

’That’s terrifyingly fast!’

"Hamilton has a unique understanding of this track," Wu Shi said.

"Why does it look like the cars are driving all over the Great Straight? Weren’t they all taking pretty much the same line a few laps ago?" Wu Zhenlin asked.

"Because it’s stopped raining."

"Stopped raining?"

"Right. They’re all on wet tires. On a drying track, the tires overheat quickly, which massively increases wear. So they have to drive off the racing line and onto the wetter parts of the track to cool the tires down."

"Oh, so that’s how it works. No wonder." Wu Zhenlin nodded. Since he didn’t follow circuit racing, he had no idea it was so complex.

"A car has stopped!" Louise pointed at the screen.

"It’s a mechanical failure," Wu Shi concluded after seeing the replay.

"They’ve only been racing for less than half an hour, right? And there’s already a problem. It’s not even as durable as a family car. The quality of these F1 cars is terrible," Wu Zhenlin said, exasperated.

Wu Shi wasn’t sure how to explain it. Sometimes a race car just suddenly loses all power. Other times, the gearbox gets stuck. It was hard to explain why in just a moment or two.