How Did I Become an F1 Driver?-Chapter 592 - 253: Too Much Is as Bad as Too Little (6K, Bonus Update 8/16)_2

At this moment, Qin Miao switched from his phone to the Switch.

This isn't considered a communication device, right?

As for the vibe within and outside the paddock because he's playing Switch during the race?

Qin Miao had no idea, and even if he knew, he wouldn't care about the vibe, because as long as Qin Miao performs well enough in one race, winning a couple of grand prix titles, these blemishes will automatically be ignored by people.

Moreover, this is just a little goofing off during work and not a matter of principle, not even worthy of being called a blemish.

And Qin Miao is confident in his own strength. Although Spa this week is a bit tough, there's still half a season's worth of races ahead.

Ten minutes later, the FIA notified all teams that, according to the weather department, the rain was starting to lessen, and teams could choose tires to get on the track and prepare for lap times.

Upon receiving the notification, Qin Miao handed his Switch to Barber and quickly donned his gear before returning to his car.

According to the Mercedes weather department, it would be raining throughout the qualifying session, so all drivers would have to use rain tires during the race.

However, the number of rain tires for a qualifying weekend is limited. Qin Miao had already used up one and a half sets of intermediate tires and one set of full wets during practice, leaving him with three sets of intermediates and two sets of full wets.

The key issue is that tomorrow's race might also have rain, so Qin Miao only has two sets of intermediates and one set of full wets left for the qualifying stage.

So in Q1, Qin Miao plans to use full wets when he gets on the track. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

Using full wets on one hand is to test the speed of the full wets; if the speed is decent, relying on the performance advantage of the Mercedes car, he can use full wets to run the entire Q1 stage and save tires.

But if the speed is not fast enough, the full wets can help clear some water off the track, preparing for a pit stop to switch to intermediates.

But since Mercedes has the backing of a big team, neither Mercedes, Red Bull, nor Ferrari moved from the pit at the start of Q1.

The main objective was to watch the speed of the drivers who came out of the pit first.

After other drivers completed a lap, Mercedes released both drivers.

Qin Miao and his teammate Hamilton were both using full wets.

After the warm-up lap began, Qin Miao could clearly feel there was too much water on the track, and the racing line wasn't drying. Even the full wets couldn't efficiently clear the water.

Just as Qin Miao started his flying lap, Latifi, using intermediates, skidded into the grass buffer zone in the second sector.

If the team had sent Qin Miao out five seconds earlier, his lap time would have been ruined.

After completing the first flying lap, Qin Miao clocked in at 2:11.1, temporarily ranking third, even slower than Russell, who didn't use intermediates.

At the start of today's race, Russell used intermediates, and at the same time, his teammate Latifi was also on intermediates.

However, after Russell finished his first flying lap on intermediates, he was first, while Latifi didn't even finish his first flying lap and ran into the buffer zone.

Since rain tires last longer than dry tires, after the first flying lap, you can still run a second or third flying lap.

And during the second flying lap, Russell, using intermediates, directly improved his time to 2:02 in his second flying lap.

This was nine full seconds faster than Qin Miao, who used full wets in his second run.

The terrifying improvement was understandable, as all drivers were on full wets at that time on the track.

The car's underbody has strong adhesive power, sucking up water off the track, aided by the tire's drainage capabilities.

As long as it doesn't rain, after every driver runs a lap on the track, the grip would improve by at least 20%.

Therefore, Russell's times on intermediates were phenomenal.

Understanding this, after Qin Miao completed his second flying lap and ranked sixth, he heard the team radio: "BOX, BOX, we're switching to intermediates."

Upon hearing the team directive, Qin Miao knew it would be tough for him in the race stage.

In Q2 or the race, at least one session would require using old intermediates.

But as Qin Miao emerged from the pit lane, he received more bad news: the rain would increase again in three minutes.

To get another flying lap opportunity before the rain, Qin Miao treated his warm-up lap as a flying lap straight after coming out.

Ultimately, it rained when Qin Miao reached the second sector of his flying lap.

The good news was that since twenty cars were on the track, the racing line was wet but not waterlogged, so the intermediates still posted respectable speeds.

At the three-minute mark, Qin Miao completed his first effective flying lap on intermediates, finishing at 1:59.02.

Temporarily in fourth place.

And after completing this flying lap, Qin Miao began to recharge, preparing to run the last flying lap after charging for a round.

With 20 seconds remaining in the session, Qin Miao crossed the finish line, starting his last flying lap in Q1.