Formula 1: The GOAT

“It’s not like it is the first ti….. Oh, it is the first time I’ve finished in this position,” Fatih said on the call as he caught himself, realising it was actually the first time he had ever finished last in any race that he had driven to the checkered flag.

“HAHAHAHAHAH,” Seraphina laughed on the other end of the phone. She found the level of performance consistency Fatih had throughout his career, to have resulted in him never finishing last in any race he completed, quite amusing.

“So how are you feeling about your first last-place finish?” she finally asked when she managed to recollect herself, but also come to terms with how talented he was, considering it had taken ten years since he started racing to finally finish last.

“Frustrating and not good at all,” Fatih said, clearly not hiding what he was feeling from her at all.

“I mean, it would make sense if I DNF’d, but to finish last makes me feel like I left something on the table,” he added, painting a better image of what was going on in his mind.

“There is always a weekend that will not go your way. It just took you this long for your weekend to go wrong in this specific way, but you did your best to recover; the gap was just too big to cover within the time,” she said, trying to comfort him in her own way. However, she found it difficult to do so because the performance expectations she had for herself and the ones Fatih had were completely different.

For Fatih, finishing anywhere outside of P1 was disappointing, and the only acceptable positions were on the podium. Anywhere outside of that without a mechanical problem or some extenuating circumstance was unimaginable. However, for her, a top-ten finish was a very good result, a top-five was something she celebrated, with a race win or a podium being a very happy finish for her, as it happened very rarely, which was completely the opposite for Fatih.

“HAHAHA,” Fatih chuckled once he realised what she was trying to do before he said, “Well, it is not the end of the world, and I still have two races to make amendments for the points lost today.”

The second race was the best one to make up for some of the lost points because, in addition to the maximum of eight points he could earn, he could also earn additional points for overtakes so long as he finished in points-earning positions, which should bring him back to second in the championship, with Jewiss still a few points ahead.

“I know you can do it very well tomorrow, and I will be watching you, so go and perform well,” she said, trying to cheer him on in her own way.

And it worked, as Fatih said with full confidence, “Don’t worry, I will definitely win the race.”

…….

The next day, a few laps into RACE TWO:

“…A RED FLAG HAS BEEN PUT IN PLACE AS THE MEDICAL CAR LEAVES THE PITLANE, RUSHING TOWARDS THE START-FINISH STRAIGHT TO CHECK ON THE DRIVER! THE CRASH WAS VERY BIG, AND THERE IS DEBRIS EVERYWHERE ON THE TRACK! I HOPE THE DRIVER IS FINE, BUT THAT WAS A VERY HEAVY CRASH!” Justin commentated loudly as the session was brought to a stop, the feed showing pieces all over the start-finish straight, with the car having only two tires still connected to it, the other two not visible anywhere close to the crash site.

The start of RACE TWO:

“It’s lights on and lights out, and away we go! A good start for Jack Doohan as he moves to cover Manuel Sulaimán as they dive into turn one, the corner that forced a red flag in Race One, but they do it safely as Sulaimán keeps it civil and takes a step back, ensuring a safe exit. Josh Skelton is closely chasing behind them.

The race is being led by Jack Doohan, followed by SulaimaaAAAAAAAAAAAN, AND HE LOSES HIS POSITION TO JOSH SKELTON, AS HIS SPEED ON THE STRAIGHT WAS COMPROMISED BY HAVING TO TAKE A STEP BACK TO NOT CRASH WITH HAUGER! IT HAS COME TO BITE HIM, AS HE IS NOW CHASING FOR HIS POSITION BACK, BUT HE IS NOT ALONE AS HE IS NOW ALSO DEFENDING AGAINST PAAVO TONTERI!

HE CAN NOW SIGH A SIGH OF RELIEF AS HE HAS MANAGED TO DEFEND THAT INTO THE MAGGOTS CORNER COMPLEX, BUT THAT WON’T LAST FOR LONG! HE ENTERS THE WELLINGTON STRAIGHT, AND TONTERI IS NOW TUCKED BEHIND HIS SLIPSTREAM, BENEFITING FROM THE HOLE BORED FOR HIM BY SULAIMAN TO CLOSE THE GAP!

HE MOVES OUT OF THE SLIPSTREAM TO MOUNT AN ATTACK! WILL IT WOOOOOOOOORK?! SULAIMAN PUSHES TONTERI INTO THE GRASS, AND HE LOSES CONTROL, SLIDING BACK ONTO THE TRACK AND COLLECTING SULEIMAN! THEY CRASH TOGETHER AS THEY NOW BOTH SLIDE TO THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF THE TRACK! A SAFETY CAR HAS BEEN DEPLOYED! WOOOOW, WHAT A START!”

The feed remained on the drivers who had crashed as the other cars passed the accident area under safety car speeds. Once the feed caught Fatih, it focused on him, and it was at that moment that the commentators could finally look at which position Fatih was in.

“P10! That is how high Fatih is, having gained three positions in the half-lap of racing we had! He is definitely not pulling any punches, as he now only has nine positions to go before he is back in the lead, which is only one position more than he would have started if he had won Race One. So the chances of winning are still there for him, but for now, let’s look at the crash replay.”

The crash was immediately replayed in slow motion, showing Sulaimán moving to cover Tonteri, forcing Tonteri to move to avoid crashing. This resulted in the right-side tires entering the grass, and he began sliding. As he tried to counter-steer, the slide only exacerbated, sending him back onto the track. With his higher speed, he ended up collecting Sulaimán, sending the two of them to the other side of the track.

A crash similar to the Hamilton-Rosberg crash at the Spanish GP a few years ago.