Why race if you don’t have money?

Chapter 57: On the Edge of Losing Control

Shio Miyamoto is 36 years old this year. In the Japanese industry, which attaches great importance to seniority, he is not actually a big shot.

It was for this reason that he was sent to China Huasai Sports to serve as a technical support staff member for Honda Racing Company.

But twelve years ago, Shio Miyamoto met a driver who was arguably the most talented driver in Japanese history at the Honda Suzuka Racing Academy. His name was Takuma Sato.

If you only look at his F1 record, you would think that Takuma Sato is very average. Even if you take into account the bonus of the podium, it is difficult for him to be considered a mid-level driver.

The biggest impression his career left on the audience was probably his frequent bad luck with engine failures, and the scene where he rear-ended the then seven-time champion Schumacher, who angrily slapped his helmet, earning him the nickname "King of Engine Failures".

But if you look at it from another perspective, Takuma Sato had never been exposed to Formula One training since he was a child. It was not until he was 19 years old that he bought a kart with the money he earned from part-time work and went to Honda Suzuka Racing Academy for training.

And in just two years, he won the Japanese F3 annual championship, and then went to Europe to participate in the F3 event and won the championship again!

This level of talent is definitely historical, but it is only hindered by age.

In fact, after Takuma Sato retired from F1, he switched to the American Indy500 event and won the title of world champion in 17.

You should know that Alonso, a two-time F1 champion and recognized as the world's top driver, once raced in IndyCar for a period of time, but failed to achieve excellent results. This also indirectly proves Takuma Sato's talent.

Back then, Miyamoto Shio witnessed Sato Takuma, as a rookie, testing the kart he bought on the track. The shock he felt was as strong as when he saw Chen Xiangbei today.

No! To be precise, not as strong as Chen Xiangbei.

It was from that day on that Miyamoto Shio realized that there really were geniuses in this world. The finish line of racing that many karting drivers had worked hard for several years was only the starting point for talented drivers!
Chen Xiangbei was still speeding on the track. If he had been deliberately controlling himself and hiding his strength before, as the speed got faster and faster, he gradually couldn't restrain the excitement of driving a Formula One car.

After all, this was the first time he drove a real racing car after his rebirth.

Soon arriving at the second bend, Chen Xiangbei still did not slow down much, relying on the extreme line to exit the bend.

However, this time the driving trajectory on the computer showed that Chen Xiangbei showed signs of slipping in the center of the corner. It was not that there was a problem with his control, but more that the low temperature of the track caused the tires to be insufficiently warm and unable to grip the ground.

The third turn, the fourth turn...

Chen Xiangbei was like a veteran who had been driving on this track for several years. He spun the car around corners extremely smoothly, making everyone present unable to believe their eyes.

"Lao Liang, has Xiangbei really never practiced karting?"

At this time, Zhang Zhicong couldn't help but ask another question. They are all professionals in the racing industry and can easily see the value of this operation.

Don’t say that he has never practiced karting. Even the Formula One youth training drivers who once worked at the Huasai Base may not be able to turn as fast as Chen Xiangbei.

Being ahead of ordinary people is called gifted talent. Now even ordinary youth training drivers are left far behind by Chen Xiangbei. Zhang Zhicong really doubts this kid's racing foundation.

"Anyway, this kid said he never practiced."

Liang Chi then added: "Given his family's situation, he probably can't afford to practice even if he wants to." Why has China only produced one F1 driver, Zhou Guanyu, in so many years? The reason is that racing requires not only talent, but more importantly, money!
Not to mention the cost of Formula One, let’s just start with competitive karts. A small-sized full-slick tire costs an average of 500 yuan, and replacing four at a time costs yuan.

Under normal circumstances, even if used sparingly, the life of a full-slick tire will not exceed two hours. If it takes longer, it will wear out and lose its grip.

In addition, under violent driving conditions, the oil and parts of a kart will also be greatly depleted. It is not uncommon to replace the engine and gearbox every ten days or half a month. Add to that the venue fees and the coach's training fees, and it will cost at least 100,000 yuan a month.

If you want to get better training results, like Zhou Guanyu in later generations, the average annual cost of building your own track is more than three million.

Liang Chi was quite familiar with Chen Xiangbei's family situation. His single mother ran a small trading company and was lucky to earn tens of thousands of yuan a month, which was not enough to support the training costs of professional karting.

In fact, Liang Chi does not need to emphasize these things. As a racing manager, Zhang Zhicong is also very clear about them.

But the problem is that I have never practiced it. How did I get such driving skills?

Just when Zhang Zhicong was thinking about it, an unexpected situation occurred on the track.

The suspension roll of a Formula One car is extremely small, and the driver's physical fitness is almost entirely dependent on his ability to navigate high-speed corners against G-forces that are almost two or three times his body weight. This is definitely a harsh challenge for Chen Xiangbei at this moment.

The faster the car goes and the steeper the curve, the more overwhelming the G-force will be.

In addition, the steering wheel gear ratio of a Formula One car is different from that of a civilian car. It has a 1:1 steering ratio without any dead space, which means that no matter what kind of lateral G-force Chen Xiangbei is subjected to, he must ensure that his arms and body remain motionless.

Originally, Chen Xiangbei could still barely fight on, but as the car moved forward, he came to an S-shaped combination bend. If he wanted to take the turn at high speed, he had to achieve extremely precise and perfect line.

However, due to insufficient tire temperature and problems with the CFR2000 mechanical downforce, the tires slipped again during the line routing process.

At this time, Chen Xiangbei's car speed was still maintained at a high speed of 170km/h. Any slight error would cause the car's trajectory to deviate significantly until it lost control and crashed into the tire wall at the edge of the track.

Seeing this scene, Liang Chi's heart immediately jumped into his throat. You have to know that the entry-level Formula One car does not have the integrated cockpit strength of F1, nor does it have a full set of HANS protection system (head and neck support system).

Even with the gravel buffer zone and tire wall, and Chen Xiangbei wearing a helmet and racing suit, he still couldn't guarantee 100% safety in a high-speed collision, especially an uncontrolled side collision.

There doesn't even have to be any casualties. For a new driver, the accident itself may cause him psychological trauma, and in serious cases it may even ruin his career.

It’s like the Silverstone Circuit accident that happened to F22 driver Zhou Guanyu in 1. Although he was not seriously injured, it obviously interrupted his upward trend in performance. His form declined in several consecutive races, which dealt a major blow to his career.

However, Chen Xiangbei reacted quickly. He took countermeasures the moment the car slipped and immediately reversed the steering wheel to correct it.

At the same time, in order to regain grip, he also downshifted and added gas, hoping to gain the opportunity to adjust the body posture through the difference in traction between the front and rear wheels.

Chen Xiangbei's entire set of operations were completed in just a few tenths of a second. The calm and composed mentality he displayed in the emergency situation can be said to have crushed all the Formula One drivers trained by Huasai.

Thanks to this extreme rescue operation that required every second, the nose of the CFR2000 brushed against the advertising fence and made a thrilling turn, leaving a white mark on it.

This is the essence of professional racing. There is never an absolutely safe speed. As a driver, you must get used to walking on the edge of loss of control!
(End of this chapter)