Formula 1: The GOAT

Chapter 266: Race Weekend | Sunday | Actions & Decisions

“Why should we do that?” Elena asked, looking at the head of PR who had suggested something she found ridiculous.

“Because it is in no way a disadvantage for us if this spreads as is. We already have evidence to prove the speculation wrong, and it is already out there. Those who are on his side can use it as a defense whenever these discussions happen, creating a back-and-forth. And that back-and-forth is exactly what we are targeting if our aim is to have other teams interested in poaching him from Red Bull,” Steven, the head of PR, explained. As one of the people Rümeysa had hired for Fatih’s media company when it was growing rapidly, she knew how capable he was. So, when the time came to form the family office, she immediately extended him an offer with a very good salary, which he accepted, coming to work for her a second time.

“Doesn’t that risk creating the image of him being arrogant despite having everything handed to him? I’m pretty sure people don’t like talented people who are cocky,” Elena countered, playing the devil’s advocate. The PR department needed to make decisions that would result in the image of Fatih they wanted the world to have.

“If he keeps performing at that level, having everything handed to him is not a problem. It would only be one if he doesn’t perform despite those advantages. What people hate is needless arrogance, not perceived arrogance from factually correct statements. If he keeps performing as he is, and his perceived arrogance is only related to his competition and drive, then that will not hinder him but reinforce his popularity.

Too much modesty at that level of performance will most of the time be seen as performative and will also limit the range of things Fatih can do if we want to maintain his image. And you know very well how teenagers act when they are told not to do something; they get the urge to do it even more.

Look at Lewis Hamilton, for example. Due to the image he has cultivated, he is very limited in what he can say and how he can say it. The same doesn’t apply to Max, who from the start said what came to his mind. People don’t react much to how he says things, just what he says. That is the freedom we should afford Fatih and let his actual words do the talking. There are going to be people hating him one way or another, but if the hate itself is started by unjustified reasoning, then it is better because it can be reversed in the future. The same can’t be said if we let them look and find an actually justifiable one.”

“But what if this leads to his reputation being destroyed? After all, there is very little we can control about how something is perceived the moment it is left for the public to proliferate on freely.”

“If that happens, he is still young, so we have time to rehabilitate his image. The only thing he might lose are possible commercials, which he is not doing any of at the moment. As for his prospects, so long as there is good enough talent and proof of it, many teams will turn a blind eye so long as it is not something outrageous, like him being a racist or a criminal, and he is neither. Also, we are not going to do nothing entirely. We will be using some of our built-in tools to try and steer it in the general direction we expect.”

Elena took her time thinking about it while rhythmically tapping the table. After about a minute, she finally spoke. “Okay, let’s do it that way. I will do the explaining to the boss and his mother, while you inform Red Bull about our decision.”

The plan was low-risk, high-return for Fatih, with the only thing needed from their side being patience to endure short-term suffering for a very big possible long-term gain. It also required him to perform and win the championship, but that was not something anyone in the room was worried about. They knew him very well, and that was not a concern unless force majeure happened, and if it did, that too could be used to deal with the situation.

…

“HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” A hearty laugh could be heard from Helmut Marko’s room, even from the outside, as the sound of a TV accompanied it.

“He really is a monster in his own way,” he said to himself as he looked at Fatih on the podium, heartily singing the Turkish national anthem, about to receive his two trophies for the third time that day.

Helmut had expected Fatih to not finish last, but considering all of the dirty tricks he had used to increase the pressure, he expected him to falter at the start and slowly build himself up. That would have given him some leverage. But Fatih didn’t seem to be feeling any pressure at all from the start of the weekend. To remove even the slightest doubt, he went and did that controversial interview as if everything was already settled, before going on to dominate once again and take home the maximum points possible for an entire weekend, catapulting himself into the top ten in a single round.

“We need to change our approach,” he added, knowing there was a chance that, although it had not been verbalized, Fatih was not looking very positively at their silence. For someone who had been very vocal, even picking fights with him in the past, this was very weird. From this performance alone, it was clear that a few other teams would now have him on their radars.

It was enough to make it clear that his performance in karting was not going to remain in karting. Although many of them would not make a move immediately, they were going to keep an eye on him. If things remained as they were, relationship-wise, there was a chance he might jump ship, which was not beneficial to Helmut at all. The only solution was a different approach, one that strengthened the relationship between Fatih and Red Bull for now, while still trying to find other ways to gain power and equalize it between the two sides in the long run.