Car Racing without Money-Chapter 542 - 211: Low-Key, Forbearing Killer
The Albert Park Circuit, due to its "semi-street" reconstruction, places more emphasis on cornering speed in medium-high speed corners, often adopting a medium-high downforce setup, usually slightly higher than the Bahrain Sakhir Circuit.
However, considering the understeering characteristics of the TF110 car, and to avoid excessive downforce putting great pressure on the rear wheels, Chen Xiangbei, together with the strategy group, decided that the car setup would be slightly lower than usual.
It’s akin to changing from a medium-high downforce setup to a medium downforce setup.
This time, the initial setup direction before the practice session was set according to the experience from the Bahrain Grand Prix.
The result was completely unexpected as the car’s characteristics reversed entirely, with the rear sliding and tail spinning!
Facing Chen Xiangbei’s feedback and onboard footage, the strategy group members in the pits wore expressions of surprise.
Even if an unconventional downforce setup was used, theoretically it shouldn’t cause oversteering. Was it Chen Xiangbei’s lack of adaptation that caused a handling error, or did the new parts surprisingly affect airflow guidance? 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶
No one knew the answer.
Odetto could only ask Chen Xiangbei to drive cautiously while having Mizutani Sho analyze the data.
At the same time, test engineer Mazzola was closely monitoring the various car sensor data on the screen.
According to simulation tests in the wind tunnel lab, front flaps or stalled wings couldn’t have such a significant impact on the car, at most they could improve the previous understeering issues.
Could it be that the combination of the two resulted in an effect greater than their sum?
The delay in the construction of the wind tunnel naturally led to insufficient testing time. Mazzola came to the track from the lab to collect real-world data for comparison with wind tunnel simulations.
However, he didn’t expect the gap to be this wide.
On the track, Chen Xiangbei heard Odetto’s reply to drive cautiously. He instantly understood that the team couldn’t identify the cause.
Actually, such situations are quite normal within the F1 Paddock. Not every car upgrade results in positive effects; often there are scenarios of "negative upgrades," which are particularly common in smaller teams.
Although the HRT Team has developed rapidly, harnessing the power of former Honda, Renault, and Toyota, the overall development strength and resources are still relatively weak, let alone competing with established teams like Ferrari and McLaren.
Given this scenario, to a certain extent, Chen Xiangbei was mentally prepared.
He didn’t complain or question, instead, he tried his best to adjust his driving habits from the previous race’s understeering to adapt to the current oversteering!
Watching Chen Xiangbei continue to race on the track, and with no further communication from him in the team TR,
Briatore used a teasing tone, saying to Odetto beside him, "I like the Chinese newcomer’s attribute of being quiet when it’s time to be quiet."
Flower Bu previously worked with a driver named Alonso. Although Alonso didn’t have major problems in other respects, his temper and complaints matched his abilities.
During races, whenever he was slightly displeased, he would either complain about this or that.
This included the famous "gp2 engine" incident.
Such complaints and criticisms often created significant pressure on the team management. A single sentence could potentially offend a partner.
It also made it difficult for Alonso to fit in. After Renault’s peak period, he circulated among various teams, always lacking a sense of belonging.
Someone once said that Alonso’s skill level ensured he would win two world championships.
But Alonso’s personality also determined he would ultimately only secure two world championships!
Having interacted with Alonso for many years, Briatore now feels a unique sense when dealing with the "silent" Chen Xiangbei.
The feeling of having fewer complaints in the ears is really nice!
"Xiangbei’s racing style is more like a killer."
"Low-key and patient, waiting for the moment to strike a fatal blow!"
This time, Odetto didn’t disagree with Briatore, expressing appreciation in his words.
The reason why he values Chen Xiangbei is not only because of his abilities and talent seen in lower-tier formula races, but also because he highly regards the Chinese Kid’s character.
No matter what setbacks he encounters, Chen Xiangbei’s first reaction is never to pass the buck!
Winning the championship while driving a Mars Rover within the F1 Paddock is ultimately a rare occurrence.
In the early days, the vast majority of cases involved intense competition.
For instance, from the ’08 to ’10 seasons, the position at the top of the points table frequently changed. Often, the championship title was only decided in the final showdown, sometimes down to the last lap of the race!
When there is no absolute Mars Rover, what is tested is the driver’s psychological quality. At least, Chen Xiangbei has the potential of a top driver.
One lap, two laps, three laps...
Chen Xiangbei continues to gradually adapt to the new characteristics of the car, which is not an easy task for him.
After all, he’s running a completely unfamiliar car, and now he also has to adjust to the totally "unfamiliar" car, giving him a feeling of starting from scratch and extremely testing Chen Xiangbei’s adaptability.
"Mr. Prost, it seems the Chinese driver Xiangbei is not adapting well to the new circuit."
Australian circuit commentator Red brought up a topic to special guest Prost beside him.
The Albert Park Circuit is 5.3 kilometers long, with the fastest lap set by Schumacher in 2004, achieving a time of 1 minute 24.125 seconds.
The current track conditions are reasonable, with a chance of rain and a light breeze, but the impact on the car is not particularly big, and the temperature is well-suited for drivers to achieve their fastest lap times.
