Chapter 75 - 7: 3 Pole Positions

Chapter 75: Chapter 7: 3 Pole Positions

While the rest of the team felt tense, Montezemolo instead spoke up, asking the engineer, "How do you think he performed in these two sectors?"

The engineer took off his headphones. With the telemetry data right in front of him, he could only admit, "The second sector was quite good. He demonstrated unbelievable control."

"Good, keep watching." Montezemolo gestured for the engineer to put his headphones back on.

VROOOOM!

In the third sector, slow cars appeared once again. However, the other engineers were observant. Seeing that Montezemolo had come specifically to watch a certain driver, they knew they had to do their jobs properly as team engineers, regardless of the underlying reasons. Therefore, they immediately chimed in over the team radio, instructing their drivers on cool-down laps to yield. As for the drivers still on their flying laps, there was no need for a specific reminder. After all, no matter how fast Wu Shi was, it was impossible for him to exceed the physical limits of the car and catch up to those who had started their flying laps earlier.

SWOOSH!

Entering the third sector, Wu Shi didn’t brake at all. He blasted through the straightaway, which was dotted with several kinks, at a blistering speed. The car’s engine roared in bursts, as if trying to tear through its chambers and unleash even more horsepower.

WHOOSH!

The wind howled wildly.

"God is on my side!"

With a tailwind, the car traveled down the straightaway much more smoothly, which also allowed the tires a brief, comfortable rest. Approaching the final few corners, the car was in excellent condition.

Wu Shi scanned the track ahead. Combining his view with the telemetry data provided over the team radio, he deduced exactly where he would encounter the slow cars and how he should pass them. A new racing line quickly formed in his mind, and he flawlessly put it into practice.

VROOM! CLACK CLACK!

The car downshifted as it entered the corner, bypassing two slow cars. Once past them, the engine suddenly roared, and the gears shifted up rapidly with a series of sharp clacks.

"He’s no slower than his first lap." Jos took a deep breath. The remaining sections were all straightforward.

On the circuit, filled with roaring engines, race cars sped by one after another. Many drivers opted to pull directly into the pit lane to change tires, preparing to fight for the pole position of the second race. But just as some had finished their tire changes, a new time was set, popping into second place on the timing screens.

Everyone checked the driver’s name. Just like the driver in first place, it was Wu Shi! His second lap was only three-tenths slower than his first, and he still maintained a three-tenths lead over the rest of the field.

All the drivers who saw this time fell silent. What was the point of fighting for pole position now? They might as well fight to start second!

"YES!"

"WOOHOO!"

The moment Jos and Sid saw the time appear, they both pumped their fists in excitement.

"Antonio Focca’s fastest lap is 0.254 seconds behind his. That means he not only secured pole position for the first and second races, but he did so with an absolute advantage," concluded a senior executive accompanying Montezemolo.

"How old is he this year?" Montezemolo asked Martina.

"Sixteen," Martina answered truthfully.

"Oh, young and promising." Montezemolo stared at the data on the screen for a long time before suddenly asking, "How are his preparations for the F3 season going?"

"Hello, Mr. Montezemolo. I am Wu Shi’s manager," Sid stepped forward and said. "He will be participating in the F3 championship this year, and we have already reached an agreement with the Van Amersfoort Racing Team."

"Why isn’t he in the Rafa Young Driver Academy?" Montezemolo turned to look at Martina.

"We discussed this previously. If we followed the academy’s requirements, he would probably still be racing go-karts right now." Martina threw her hands up; it was an unavoidable outcome.

Montezemolo stood quietly, pondering for a long time before saying, "If he can achieve excellent results in F3 this year, I wouldn’t mind giving him a seat in F2 next year to let him showcase his talent."

After saying this, he didn’t stay any longer. His schedule was tight today, and he couldn’t afford any delays. Martina followed him as he left.

Once the group had departed, Jos and Sid exchanged a glance.

"An F2 seat! That’s quite something! It seems Wu Shi’s performance has sparked Mr. Montezemolo’s appreciation for talent," Sid said.

To be promised an F2 seat based on future F3 results—before even driving an F3 car—was quite an unexpected gain.

"Then he’d better work hard." Jos crossed his arms over his chest. He wasn’t envious. Having witnessed this genius’s growth, he knew that if this kid made it into F1, he would undoubtedly achieve brilliant results. But even so, talking about F1 now was premature. Discussing it in two years would be much more realistic.

The drivers were completely oblivious to the Rafa chairman’s brief visit. Once the twenty-minute qualifying session ended, everyone returned to the pit lane.

"Unbelievable. How did you pull off a time like that?" After seeing everyone’s times, Stroll was deeply astonished. Even though he had witnessed Wu Shi’s terrifying dominance during his go-karting days, how could it remain exactly the same in formula racing?

"I just drove, and it happened." Wu Shi laughed it off, then immediately hurried over to his engineer and said, "Please pull up the telemetry for the third lap."

The engineer didn’t speak, silently pulling up the data.

Wu Shi scanned through it, matching the information with the memories in his brain to constantly correct his understanding. When the differences in lap times in certain sections were mere hundredths or thousandths of a second, it was impossible for a human to judge by feel alone. After all, the limit of human neural reaction speed was just over a tenth of a second.

He needed to know if his choices under different conditions and timings were correct, so he had to constantly compare and analyze. This was especially true today, given the frequent unexpected incidents and the limited number of laps he could run.

"I think we should tell him the news later." Jos didn’t want Sid to interrupt Wu Shi’s review process.

"I was planning to tell him tonight anyway. It’s a pity we don’t have our own engineering team; otherwise, he wouldn’t have to conduct the post-session review all by himself," Sid said.

"He’s not exactly alone." Jos pointed at Verstappen, who was walking over.

Verstappen’s two valid times weren’t considered outstanding, only placing him third and fourth. Therefore, he walked over to Wu Shi with a pout, already well-accustomed to his exaggerated data.

"I feel like this track is too wide, which actually makes it harder to drive," Verstappen said.

"Think about it the other way around. It will be easier to overtake during the main race," Wu Shi offered a different perspective.

"That’s true." Verstappen nodded in agreement.

After a brief intermission, the second qualifying session began.

The set of new tires Wu Shi had saved came into play. He didn’t need to push to his absolute limit to secure the fastest lap in this qualifying session. As a result, this set of tires could easily give him a decisive advantage right from the race start.

"Securing three pole positions right off the bat. Tsk, tsk. Don’t go sweeping all the victories at the Sebring Raceway," Verstappen marveled.

"I don’t think your pole positions will completely translate into victories. This is your first time participating in an open-wheel formula race, isn’t it?" Nicholas Latifi and Tatiana Calderon walked over together.

Wu Shi initially wanted to retort directly, but seeing that the speaker was Latifi, he thought for a moment before saying, "Yes. I suppose anything can happen. I’ll just do my best."