Car Racing without Money-Chapter 556 - 217: A Racing Driver Must Have Grit
The race commentator Red was completely convinced now. A rookie entering Q3 for two consecutive Grands Prix, combined with the use of a completely different new upgrade package, couldn’t be explained or disguised by just vehicle performance advantages.
Chen Xiangbei has already demonstrated his top-notch speed talent!
The speed in qualifying determines a driver’s upper limit; the consistency in the race performance determines a driver’s lower limit.
Back then, Raikkonen was able to make a triple jump into F1 because he broke countless track records in lower-level single-seaters, similar to the way future Verstappen dominated in junior formulae.
To be fair, Chen Xiangbei also "dominated" in the lower series, but he was limited by the number of races, lacking a certain level of persuasiveness.
The current results are the most powerful rebuttal!
"MY GOD, Xiangbei is really amazing, I can’t believe he’s a Chinese driver."
"A Chinese rookie having this kind of strength and speed completely overturns my previous understanding."
"Chen Xiangbei and Raikkonen will become the strongest leapfrog twin stars in the paddock!"
Stirred by Renault’s astonished words, fans from all over the world screamed out.
Madness has never been a problem in the paddock, only mediocrity is.
When your capability becomes strong enough, you’ll find fans everywhere around the globe.
Of course, the voices of doubt have not ceased, as many spectators still think that rumors of no wind tunnel tests, negative upgrades, etc., are just smoke screens released by the HRT Team.
The past grudges between Trulli and Briatore are well known; if there really were negatively upgraded aerodynamic kits, wouldn’t they be used on Trulli immediately?
Trulli using the old kits removed from Chen Xiangbei already proves that the new upgrade kit absolutely has a significant enhancement.
Relying on the new upgrade kit, yet still not outperforming Trulli with old kits—how does the commentator Red manage to praise the Chinese guy without shame? Could it be that Hua Bu paid for this publicity?
"Shut up, let Xiangbei overtake Trulli first if you dare!"
"Raikkonen is a world champion, what championship does Chen Xiangbei have?"
"Advancing to Q3 and comparing yourself to Raikkonen, if Raikkonen returns to the paddock, Xiangbei won’t even see his taillights!"
All sorts of clamor arose, perhaps at the start of the season, no one expected that a Chinese kid could stir such a big wave in the paddock, vaguely showing momentum comparable to Schumacher’s comeback enthusiasm.
The two HRT Racing Cars returned to the pit, and team members gathered around to high-five Chen Xiangbei and Trulli in celebration.
Compared to Chen Xiangbei’s broad smile, Trulli’s smile seemed a bit forced.
He really couldn’t figure out whether the upgrade kit truly changed the car’s characteristics as Chen Xiangbei claimed, or if the Chinese kid exaggerated, or if he indeed had top-tier car feel and adaptability to control the car within just one race.
If it was the former, Chen Xiangbei’s first-person in-car footage clearly showed many correction actions in the corners, which didn’t match the previously emphasized corner grip characteristics, proving there indeed was tail-swing.
If it was the latter, then he truly had to become the newcomer’s defeated opponent.
This was hard to accept for Trulli’s self-esteem, especially since he once double-defeated Alonso, who was a fellow rookie!
The interval between qualifying sessions was very short; basically, drivers just had time to grab a drink or use the restroom before having to sit in the cockpit ready for action.
During this brief downtime, Odetto emphasized some key points to Chen Xiangbei.
"Xiangbei, the track temperature has exceeded thirty degrees, you need to pay attention to brake and tire cooling, and reduce extreme operations like heavy braking through corners."
Due to the feature of reduced downforce in the car, this means that Chen Xiangbei’s TF110 was showing improved straight-line top speed but reduced cornering speed.
To achieve an improvement in overall lap times, Chen Xiangbei needs to push the advantage of top speed on the long straights to the maximum, in addition to challenging cornering limits.
This meant that before entering the corner, he must heavily brake to decelerate; otherwise, the cornering speed will be too fast, causing him to run wide.
Heavy braking suits stealing the racing line and aggressive overtakes but puts immense pressure on brakes and tires.
Even in the relatively moderate spring to summer temperatures, Chen Xiangbei’s brake discs visibly glowed red from tempering. If the temperature were higher and cooling were less effective, visible flames might emerge. 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮
Indeed, Verstappen once executed an extreme heavy-braking tire-warming maneuver, causing the front tire temperatures to skyrocket, so extreme that merely a lap back to the starting grid for the race start, the front-left tire exhibited burning red flames.
When flames appear, it’s no longer just heat conduction; it’s directly burning the tires!
"Do I have to change my driving style again?"
Chen Xiangbei frowned; he felt as if he were driving a future Red Bull Racing car.
If you say its absolute performance is weak, Verstappen could still get pole position.
If you say this car’s performance is strong, it’s also incredibly challenging to drive, demanding remarkably high driver hard skills.
Ordinary mid-field drivers would face a fate of finishing last in a Red Bull Racing car.
Even a driver as strong as Verstappen goes through phases of godly races and disastrous races.
"Otherwise, should I change the car?"
Odetto shrugged; he had seen too many quirky cars throughout his years in the paddock.
Speaking of which, Chen Xiangbei was relatively lucky as the current performance of the HRT Racing Car ensured that they were at least in the mid-upper group.
You must know most rookies start their journey from backmarker teams, even future champions like Leclerc, Russell, with triple-jump successes, were no exception.
