Chapter 418: Interviews

"Charles Leclerc, congratulations! It is P2 for you at your home race, and tomorrow you have the chance to finally get a win at home. How are you feeling, and what do you feel about your chances tomorrow at the start?" Paul di Resta asked Charles Leclerc the moment he arrived to stand at the designated zone.

"First of all, thank you to everyone who has come to the track to support me," Charles said, and he had to pause for a moment due to the loud cheers that could be heard from everywhere. Those in the grandstands cheered at the top of their lungs, but it was the same for those who were watching everything happening from the windows of their homes or their neighbors’ homes, wanting to give support to their home driver.

Charles just waved at them as he waited for the cheering to die down, and finally, when it did, he continued with his answer. "Yes, it is going to be very important to have a good start, but as is obvious, we first need to check and make sure the car and everything under it is fine before we can think about that," subtly avoiding giving an answer that could later be used against him.

"Until this year, you have already participated in two Monaco Grand Prix, but you have yet to finish any of them, with both of them ending with a DNF. In this year’s qualifying, you ended with a crash. Do you believe that this year is finally your chance to break the curse of not being able to finish in Monaco?"

"Yes, the weekend went perfectly for us other than the gearbox problem in FP1, but that is something we have already dealt with. If we manage to rebuild the car tonight, then there is a chance to break that curse," Charles said with a smile as the interview came to an end. He waved to the fans, who were now once again cheering for him.

As he was walking away, he met Fatih heading in his direction for an interview. He raised his hand for a clasp before hugging him while saying, "Congrats on your pole and good luck tomorrow," congratulating Fatih.

"Thanks," Fatih said in French before reaching out and removing his mask, finally ready for his interview. His face was that of a man in ecstasy, and it was clear to everyone that he was happy.

"Congratulations on your first-ever pole position on your first-ever Formula One weekend! You must be feeling ecstatic," Paul said as some cheers could be heard from the crowd, though not to the level of Charles. With his sensitive ears, he could even hear some boos, though they were very sparse.

"Yes, I’m happy, very happy at that. The team put their trust in supporting me since my junior years and went out of their way to make sure I debuted as fast as possible as their sign of trust, so it feels good to finally repay that.

But more than that, I’m happy that I have managed to achieve my dream, a dream that my mother supported as early as when I was two, when she found me watching the 2005 Monaco Grand Prix.

I remember it very clearly when she asked me if I loved cars very much while I was running around celebrating Räikkönen’s win, and I said I loved racing and wanted to become a driver.

With that answer, where many would have just thought it was a child’s short-term interest and that I would grow out of it, along with my interest remaining the same, she bought me a used kart as a birthday present for my fifth birthday, having done all the research she could to ensure I could do it as safely as possible.

She enrolled me in my first academy when my interest remained even after time passed, used her precious weekends from work to send me to my first race, gave up her job and friends to move with me to Europe when it was deemed that there was no good competition in the country, and during this entire time, she hasn’t even for a single second discouraged me from pursuing my dream but has always encouraged me and made sure everything was done with that as the goal.

I would have liked for her to be here to share the celebration with me, but since she is heavily pregnant, that would have been too selfish of me. But I know that she is watching this now and cheering for me as she did in every race that she had attended, which for her was most of them, so I would like to thank her for everything she did for me.

It was with her in my mind when I pushed for every millimeter to make that lap a reality, and I would like to dedicate it to her and my grandmother, who was like a second mother to me, as she raised me when my mother had to return to Germany for her work when her maternity leave ended. Both of them are precious, and I would like to honor them with something that is a result of their dedication.

I would also like to thank Burak, my stepfather, who was among the first people to trust in my abilities after seeing me drive in my first-ever session at the karting academy he worked in, becoming my one and only coach.

I would also like to thank TOSFED, who put their money where their mouth was to back me up and support my move to Europe so that I could broaden my horizons, and I’m happy that I have managed to achieve both of our dreams..." Fatih went on for four whole minutes, giving his emotional answer as he mentioned, one after another, everyone who had a part in helping him achieve his goal of reaching Formula 1, while rubbing his eyes to stop himself from crying, to the point that Paul di Resta couldn’t even intervene to stop him.

Although he thanked everyone, unfortunately, the largest contributor could not be thanked publicly, since he couldn’t just mention the system or he would be treated like an eccentric or a lunatic. But he did do it in his mind, thanking both the system and his real coach, Apollo.

"That felt like something you had bottled up in you for a very long time," Paul could only say after having to listen to the long, emotional appreciation speech.

"When everyone you meet believes in you, and you end up living up to both their expectations and your dreams, it is only right to thank them at that time, and it felt appropriate," Fatih said with a chuckle as he used his mask to rub off some of the tears around his eyes.

"I’m sure they are all happy that you remember them. But coming back to tomorrow’s race, you will be starting on medium tires, having gone through to Q3 with those tires, and considering the soft tires have an advantage at the start due to their superior traction, do you see yourself retaining the pole position at the start?" Paul asked, finally bringing the topic back to tomorrow’s race.

"I can’t say for sure, as things can go wrong and they can also go right, so we will have to wait until tomorrow. Just like Vettel said, I have balls, but none of them are crystal, so we will have to wait and see," Fatih said before chuckling, having used that idiom twice now, fully enjoying the opportunity to use it.

"With your P1 lap time, you have broken and set quite a few records. What do you feel about that, and do you think someone will be able to break the records you set today?"

"Records are meant to be broken, just like I did, so I can’t say with confidence that no one will break them. It might take time, but someone will definitely have a go at them. But until then, all I have to do is enjoy them and try to break more of them," Fatih said with a smile that never disappeared from his face.

........

While Fatih was having his emotional interview in front of the world, back home, his mother was crying, filled with emotions as she digested what her son was saying. She then had to pause for a moment and look down to find out what was going down her legs. "Mom, Mom!" she called for her mother as her water had finally broken.

"I know, I know. What did we do to get such a grateful grandson?" Güldane said as she rubbed her tears as well, feeling emotional from Fatih’s sincere gratitude to both her and her daughter for everything they did for him.

"No, not that, Mom, my wa..." Rümeysa tried to explain to her that she was not calling her because of what was going on the screen, but something else.

"I know, but what do you meAAAN OOOOOOOOOOOOOO, OH MY GOD, OH MY GOD! HIS BROTHER AND SISTER WANT TO MEET HIM AS FAST AS POSSIBLE! CALL THE DOCTORS!" she shouted when she turned to her daughter mid-answer, only to see that her water had broken, and immediately called for the doctors.

With money not being a problem, she had opted for a home birth and already had a team of doctors and nurses on standby, ready for the moment her water broke. A room was stocked with everything she might need during birth, including blood and other things to ensure the birth happened without any problems.

"Do you feel any pain or anything?" Güldane asked, but Rümeysa didn’t answer as her eyes remained on the TV, watching her son speak in the middle of achieving and living his dream, completely unaware that two trophies were on their way to the world.