Chapter 93 - 23: 1st RACE

Chapter 93: Chapter 23: 1st RACE

By the time Friday’s races completely concluded, it was already past seven o’clock.

Stepping out of the circuit, the blowing wind felt a bit cold.

"How does it feel? Securing three pole positions right off the bat," Verstappen teased.

"Not bad. I’m already used to it."

"Hahaha, tell us how you really feel." Verstappen sighed with emotion. "With this car, my absolute limit here is only one minute and fifty-one point four seconds."

That was his lap time during the first qualifying session. He later improved his driving line, but his lap times ironically got slower. Of course, this was partly due to the poor track conditions during the second session.

"You’re already very close to the limit," Wu Shi nodded.

"Hey, you’re kidding, right? Can a whole second gap be called ’very close’?" Verstappen shook his head.

Wu Shi clicked his tongue and said, "In an F3 car, I naturally carry a one-second advantage. Just like in go-karts, where I have a one-and-a-half-second advantage."

"That’s true. I really don’t know how you drive." Verstappen scratched his head. Jos hadn’t come to this race, leaving him with no one to analyze the data with.

Back at the hotel, Wu Shi didn’t rest. Instead, he mentally reviewed the scenarios from today’s qualifying sessions.

For a race car driver, memorizing track points was a repetitive task because different track environments and tire conditions would always cause slight variations. While others needed the help of engineers and data analysts to review their performance, he could complete this step entirely on his own. The moment he closed his eyes, every single detail of the Silverstone Circuit’s eighteen corners appeared in his mind.

His driving line from the first qualifying session couldn’t be used in the main race. It caused tremendous damage to the tires, a fact clearly evidenced by the shredded rubber. Therefore, he couldn’t drive like that on race day.

This meant every braking point had to be slightly modified. The data accumulated during the practice sessions would now provide necessary feedback; he constantly needed to remind himself of the exact locations of his braking points.

Generally speaking, drivers chose reference objects as markers for their braking points, much like ordinary people did when learning to drive. This might sound surprisingly untechnical, but the difficulty of doing it at five kilometers per hour versus one hundred and ninety kilometers per hour was worlds apart.

Wu Shi’s control over his braking points wasn’t much different from most drivers. First, he used reference objects as early warnings to remind himself to brake. Second, he found special markers on the track near the specific braking point to execute precise braking, though the downside of this method was that it felt too mechanical. As a result, he usually mixed in his own experience and intuition. This was much faster and more accurate than consciously paying attention to braking. Scientifically speaking, this was muscle memory.

When communicating with him earlier, Verstappen had also mentioned these three control methods. Right now, however, Wu Shi possessed a more unique fourth control method compared to other drivers. Because of this, his performance review could only be conducted silently within his own mind.

"So, for the F3 races, what I should really pay the most attention to is not getting caught up in accidents caused by the cars behind me," he thought before going to sleep.

F3 races were far more barbaric than F1. Given the sheer difference in experience, young drivers could easily get impulsive and end up going on a rampage or bowling a strike through the field. Running in first place reduced this risk, but there was always the fear of the second or third-place drivers torpedoing into the corners.

In his dreams, Wu Shi once again saw himself wearing a red racing suit, standing on the podium, holding the Abu Dhabi Station trophy, and listening to his team shout:

"We are champions!"

The shouting lasted right up until the exact moment he crashed into the barriers.

GASP!

He jolted awake and checked the time. It was only six o’clock. He didn’t linger in bed. After heading downstairs for a quick workout and some breakfast, he left early for the track to prepare.

The event staff had arrived even earlier, and a few crew members were already there, chatting casually in their chairs with cups of coffee in hand.

"Hey, Wu, you’re here really early."

"See that? We polished your car until it shines! Bring home the victory with it today!"

Wu Shi looked over at the jacked-up race car, which had yet to be fitted with tires. It was indeed a beautiful sight. "Of course. Let me kick off this year’s journey with a Pole to Win!"

He chatted with the crew members for half an hour. As the sun climbed higher in the sky, the preparations began in full swing.

Out on the track, the staff were conducting their final inspections. The mechanics performed standard checks on all the car’s data according to the manual. The team principal also gathered everyone into the conference room for a meeting to discuss strategy.

At this stage, F3 races didn’t involve refueling or tire changes. Strategy mostly came down to choosing between new and used tires, adjusting engine power settings, and predicting the weather.

Today, London was covered in thick clouds, with only a few slivers of blue sky peeking through the gaps. However, according to the weather forecast, it wouldn’t rain. In fact, the clouds were expected to dissipate later in the race.

"New tires for the first race, six-lap used tires for the second, and nine-lap used tires for the third." Wu Shi didn’t have many thoughts about his own strategy.

"Alright, Max. For you, it’ll be new for the first, the oldest for the second, and the older ones for the third," the team principal said.

"No objections." Verstappen nodded. He was starting fourth in the first race, his highest starting position across the three races, so he could afford to take a gamble. Naturally, he would use new tires.

Next, after preparing several backup strategies for various unexpected situations, the meeting concluded. Wu Shi put on his racing suit and climbed into his car.

By now, sexy grid girls dressed in yellow had already taken their places in front of each starting grid on the track, holding up the grid numbers and the corresponding drivers’ names.

Wu Shi turned to look at the broadcast screen just in time to see the camera pan over one of the girls. The tight yellow suit perfectly outlined her figure. He quickly averted his gaze. People from Europe and America just loved doing this sort of thing. He was nearly sixteen, and experiencing something like this right before a race was simply too distracting.

He hurriedly looked down at his seatbelt. Thank God it wasn’t crushing his balls, otherwise, once the race car got moving, it would be pure agony!

At 10:05 AM, the pit lane opened. All the vehicles drove out in an orderly fashion, completed a reconnaissance lap, and parked on their respective starting grids.

The commentators took this opportunity to introduce each driver. The camera operators panned their angles accordingly, and when the lens landed on Wu Shi, he waved at the camera.

"Wu Shi! This is a driver who just joined the F3 circuit this year. Hailing from Hua Country, he was born on December 3, 1998. He isn’t even sixteen years old yet, but he has already achieved phenomenal results in both Europe and world-level go-kart championships!" the commentator rushed to say upon seeing the shot.

At 10:08 AM, a warning signal sounded. The pit lane would close in two minutes. Any vehicles that hadn’t yet exited for their reconnaissance laps had to leave immediately.

At 10:10 AM, the pit lane closed, and a second warning signal rang out.

At 10:15 AM, another warning sounded. Everyone except the drivers, event officials, and team technicians began to clear the starting grid. The girls in yellow and the camera crews swiftly left the track, leaving only a few technicians standing beside the vehicles.

"Good luck. Stay steady and maintain your lead," Alan said.

Wu Shi reached out and gave his hand a firm shake. He wasn’t nervous, but the quiet anticipation still made his heart race.

At 10:19 AM, the staff member standing on the elevated platform clicked a stopwatch and issued the evacuation order.

VROOM VROOM VROOM!!!

Seeing that the engines had started normally, the crew members began to orderly exit the starting area.

At 10:20 AM, the race official waved the green flag. The formation lap began.

Wu Shi didn’t perform any practice starts, nor did he excessively hold up the field. Familiar with the rules by heart, he refused to engage in such highly controversial maneuvers. He didn’t know what the event committee’s attitude towards him was; if they slapped him with an inexplicable penalty later, he’d have no one to cry to.

Not long after, all the vehicles parked on the starting grid. Five seconds before the start of the race, the official raised the notice board.

The red lights illuminated, and then suddenly, they went out. The race had officially begun!

Wu Shi reacted quickly off the line with almost zero delay. Bromquist, who was right behind him, also had a fantastic start, his yellow race car tailing him closely!

It was a safe start with no accidents. The twenty-six race cars surged forward like a dragon. At first, they were almost clumped together into a single mass, but the moment they passed through Turn 1, gaps instantly formed between the vehicles.

"Wu had an excellent start! Far faster than Bromquist! But Bromquist isn’t slow either; he almost instantly pulled a 0.3-second lead on O’connor!"

"Oh! They’re entering Turn 1! Is Bromquist going to launch an attack? No, he can’t do it! Wu merely paused for a split second before diving into the apex, instantly widening the gap between them to 0.7 seconds!"

"Look at Wu’s leading momentum! Could it be that he’s already secured an early victory before they’ve even finished a single lap?"