How Did I Become an F1 Driver?-Chapter 490 - 217: Flowers and Applause

"Qin Miao, congratulations on another race victory. This competition was tough, wasn’t it?"

If the question was posed to Qin Miao in the past, he would likely say it was just okay, and all he needed was to give his best effort.

However, after being reprimanded several times by the press officer Eliza, Qin Miao learned to be more tactful.

"Indeed, this race was tough. Overtaking was challenging, braking was hard to master, especially in the final stretch where catching up to Verstappen required 100% effort to be able to exceed..."

In short, when facing journalists’ questions, the goal was to answer as humbly as possible and express how challenging it was to complete these maneuvers.

The obvious benefit of this approach is that if Qin Miao doesn’t perform well in the next race, no one will criticize him, and it will help build rapport with the public to some extent.

"Your battle with Verstappen today was very exciting, but we noticed towards the end you slowed down to let Verstappen pass. What happened at that time?"

After pondering for a moment, Qin Miao replied, "I encountered tire wear problems at that time. After the stop, I used medium tires. The team informed me that if I continued to engage in a battle with Verstappen, I might also experience a tire blowout, so I had to slow down to protect my tires."

"This is the second race victory of your career. Do you believe you’ll claim more race victories this season? How many exactly?" 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

Qin Miao shook his head, "Honestly, I don’t know.

However, naturally the more the better, and I will strive to compete for race victories."

After speaking, Qin Miao’s interview concluded.

Turning around, he spotted the Chief Technical Officer of Mercedes, James Allison, dressed in a white shirt with the Mercedes logo.

Seeing him approach, Qin Miao knew that he would be accompanying him to the award ceremony today.

After exchanging greetings, Qin Miao led him upstairs to prepare for the awards.

...

On the podium, Vettel was the first to emerge, followed by Perez and James Allison, and finally a large animated photo and name of Qin Miao along with the national flag appeared on the screen at the back of the podium.

Amidst the cheers from the audience below, Qin Miao, wearing a Pirelli championship hat, smiled and walked out from backstage.

Fei, upon witnessing this scene, remarked, "Qin Miao, a nineteen-year-old youth, it’s hard to imagine that he’s already in this position."

Bing also mused, "Initially, when I learned there was another domestic driver in F2 besides Zhou Guanyu, I thought anyway Qin Miao was young, just eighteen years old, he could continue learning with Zhou Guanyu in F2 for a few years and hone his skills before advancing to F1.

But who would have thought, Qin Miao was not just any ordinary driver; within a year, he leaped from F2 to F1, and after reaching F1, he didn’t experience any adaptation issues; he stunned everyone in his very first race.

A golden dragon won’t remain in the pond; once facing the winds and clouds, it transforms into a dragon!"

As they spoke, Qin Miao also stood at his position amidst the hosts’ introduction.

Then, Qin Miao took off his hat and stood quietly, awaiting the familiar melody to play.

Since racing abroad, Qin Miao’s favorite segment is when the national anthem is played.

Because during this segment, no matter your thoughts or political stance, as long as I, Qin Miao, win, you must stand below and take off your hat honestly and listen to our country’s national anthem until the end.

Soon, the melody of the national anthem began, and as usual, Qin Miao sang along:

"Arise, ye who refuse to be slaves..."

After the national anthem ended, the local officials from Azerbaijan came forward for the award presentation.

As the official handed the trophy to Qin Miao, the Mercedes staff below started to cheer, "Oh oh oh."

Knowing their meaning well, Qin Miao held the cylindrical trophy resembling the Guangzhou Tower with both hands, lowered it, and then raised it high abruptly.

And Reyes and the others below all laughed and cheered out loud.