Car Racing without Money-Chapter 153 - 101: Claiming Renault’s First Pole Position
Odetto explained calmly to Mizutani Sho. He had worked at the Super Aguri Team for two years and knew that many Japanese engineers subconsciously believed that track records set by famous drivers were almost unbreakable.
They have this perception because Asian drivers are often weaker, and indeed, lap times set by historic drivers like Senna and Schumacher belong to a realm that is out of reach.
But in Europe, no track record is unbreakable!
After warning Mizutani Sho, Odetto pressed the communication button on his headset.
"Bei, your fastest lap has been refreshed by two drivers, and Carlin Team’s Magnussen is also on his flying lap."
"If you don’t want to be left far behind, then run even faster!"
Even faster?
When Odetto issued such a team order at a critical moment, Sawano Hiroyuki and Mizutani Sho looked at each other in surprise.
Going any faster might lead to a tire blowout and crash off the track!
"Received."
Chen Xiangbei had no doubts about Odetto’s team order, or rather, he had anticipated this all along.
He knew very well that he had locked the tires on the previous lap, and the lap time was not perfect—Magnussen would definitely surpass him.
If Magnussen couldn’t even beat the flawed flying lap, then he wouldn’t deserve the phrase "high start, confused running," but rather "low start, not running"!
Chen Xiangbei just hadn’t expected that Magnussen hadn’t even surpassed him before two other drivers refreshed the lap times. These two are, without surprise, the future FE world champions.
Although FE is not comparable to F1, it’s ultimately stronger than a mere F2 driver, so it’s no surprise they can achieve the fastest lap.
Releasing the voice communication button on the steering wheel, Chen Xiangbei focused all his attention on the track, seemingly slowing down the entire spatial speed in his eyes as the well-practiced racing lines emerged in his mind.
This time, Chen Xiangbei didn’t go through those familiar racing lines like muscle memory but instead followed Odetto’s request to be more aggressive, squeezing every bit of space and curb on the track.
The single lap of a qualifying session, in the end, comes down to which driver has better details and which driver drives to the utmost limit.
Even just a lead of a few kilometers per hour will become the pole position at the end!
Entering the T18 corner, Chen Xiangbei came onto the long straight of the starting line. The circuit broadcaster had already focused the camera on his number 13 Renault car, and many people were curious whether this Chinese newcomer could achieve the fastest lap time and lead the standings.
At the moment of crossing the line, the large screen instantly displayed the lap time.
minute 57 seconds 613!
Chen Xiangbei improved by 0.25 seconds compared to his previous flying lap.
"Did I see that right? Driver Bei is at the top of the lap times again?"
"FUCK, how did this Chinese Kid manage to improve by such an exaggerated 0.25 seconds?"
"I watched his flying lap closely, on the previous lap Driver Bei had a locking error, this lap he drove perfectly, so a significant improvement was not unexpected."
"Can this Chinese newcomer really take pole position?"
A spectator raised the question on everyone’s mind; Chen Xiangbei’s lap time has reached the level of pole positions in the history of Renault European Cup unless someone runs a miraculous lap to surpass it.
Vergne and Costa were on their second flying lap and would have to return to the pit without an opportunity. No other drivers currently showed the potential to challenge, except for Magnussen who still had a chance to surpass.
"James, Carlin Team’s Magnussen has a very fast flying lap too. Do you think he can surpass Bei?"
Mike, seeing the situation, actively asked his partner James.
"Emotionally, I think it’s possible. Rationally, it’s very difficult."
James gave an ambiguous answer.
Chen Xiangbei’s fastest lap time is only 0.15 seconds slower than Schumacher’s pole record. If the weather and track conditions were better, he might have broken the record and made history.
If Magnussen were to run even faster, it equates to breaking the pole record—a nearly impossible feat.
But as a European commentator, James similarly hopes to see a European pole and eventual winner in this race.
At the same time, judging from Magnussen’s karting record, he possesses the potential of a super genius driver who might just create a miracle.
However, James’ expectations were quickly shattered, as right after he responded, Magnussen completed his flying lap.
minute 57 seconds 677!
With a slight gap of 0.06 seconds, he couldn’t surpass Chen Xiangbei’s previous flying lap and had to settle for second place.
"No way, even Magnussen couldn’t beat the Chinese newcomer?"
"Does this mean Driver Bei is really going to take the pole position of the first round?"
"There are still three minutes left in the qualifying session, maybe another fastest lap will appear."
"Impossible, no other driver has the capability to refresh the fastest lap."
The audience buzzed with discussions. They had initially thought this race would be like previous European Renault Cups, where the champion became a prey chased by known drivers from big teams.
But unexpectedly, a wild card appeared, an unknown Chinese driver overwhelmed the others!
"Team, what’s my lap time, what’s my ranking?"
At the moment Magnussen crossed the line, he asked the team engineer.
The genius driver’s intuition told him that Chen Xiangbei’s flying lap speed was fast and might become a threat to him.
"1 minute 57 seconds 677, ranked second."
"Is the fastest lap by a Chinese driver?"
"Yes."
Hearing the team engineer’s answer, Magnussen’s mouth dropped wide open, momentarily at a loss for words.
Sure enough, his intuition wasn’t wrong.
"Can I push for another lap?"
"No, there’s not enough fuel, bring the car into the pits."
Just like Chen Xiangbei, Carlin Team only prepared enough fuel for Magnussen to run two flying laps.
"Received."
Magnussen replied in a low tone. He had already regarded the Renault European Cup first round pole position as within his grasp, but he couldn’t run faster than a Chinese newcomer.
Not only did Magnussen fail to run faster, precisely speaking, nobody else did.
When the countdown to the qualifying session on the large screen hit zero, the lap time of 1 minute 57 seconds 613 still proudly sat at the top.
The pole position of the Renault European Cup at Silverstone Circuit was born, and he was the Chinese driver, Chen Xiangbei!
