F1: Absolute Car Feel

Chapter 348 Car Crash
On lap 3, Wu Shi set the fastest lap time of 1 minute 30.289 seconds, further widening the gap between him and Verstappen.

Hamilton couldn't catch up with Verstappen either, and the three remained locked in a stalemate on the track.

Leclerc, in fourth place, was playing his own game and was 3 seconds behind Hamilton, while Alonso, in fifth place, was 5 seconds behind him.

On the contrary, Alonso had a very difficult time maintaining his position in the Alpine car. In order to defend against Norris, he had to make some cuts on the straights to reduce the effectiveness of the DRS behind him and the interception routes.

"It seems that Verstappen is still able to keep up with Wu Shi, but I wonder if he will try to overtake him again," the soldier said.

“But Verstappen’s attempt to overtake will inevitably face huge risks, which brings us back to the question we discussed before the race: whether or not to risk starting from the back of the grid to try and overtake,” Fei Ge said.

"Yes, and Wu Shi must also know the current situation, so whether he will play an extremely tough defense should also be a concern for Verstappen," Bing Ge added.

Clearly, the initial intention behind the sprint qualifying race seems good – the entire course is only 100 kilometers long, allowing drivers to sprint and attack to their heart's content.

However, if an accident occurs during the sprint qualifying session, the entire race the following day will be ruined, which makes the drivers hesitant to act.

Nourishing~
At this point, McLaren's TR told Norris, "We have already reported his (Alonso's) situation on the track to the stewards."

"Haha, Alonso is definitely wrong to do this. Right now, he's the one holding everyone else back from getting up to speed," the soldier laughed.

At this point, Alonso was 7 seconds behind Leclerc, Norris was stuck behind him and unable to move, while Perez was also stuck behind Norris with no way to get past him.

It has to be said that the guy with the wide-body hairstyle does have some merit.

However, the fact that Ao Ge is able to defend so well is also largely due to the red tires under his car.

Alonso also received a warning from the team and dared not act recklessly on the straights anymore.

So shortly after entering lap 5, Norris successfully overtook Alonso in the second DRS zone.

However, Perez behind him encountered a problem, losing control at a speed of 220 Kph and sliding into the run-off area.

Fortunately, he avoided the railing, but his ranking dropped to nineteenth.

The director kindly gave us a view of the Red Bull pit room, and Horner looked away from the screen on the control wall, seemingly lost in thought.

On lap 7, Wu Shi increased the time difference between himself and Verstappen to 1.8 seconds.

But on lap 8, Verstappen narrowed the gap to 1.6 seconds.

On lap 9, the gap widened to 2 seconds.

While the two were engaged in a long back-and-forth battle, Alonso was overtaken by Ricciardo from behind.

The red tire seems to be starting to wear off; not only is Alonso showing signs of fatigue, but Hamilton behind him is also unable to contribute.

"Max, the difference is 1.1."

Suddenly, Jonathan spoke again in Wu Shi's TR.

Wu Shi didn't expect Verstappen to make a comeback, and decisively set the fastest lap time of 1 minute 30.013 seconds on the 10th lap!

On lap 11, he improved his fastest lap time to 1 minute 30.011 seconds.

Verstappen was not to be outdone, increasing his time to 1 minute 30.003 seconds on lap 12, determined to outpace Wu Shi.

But with the race nearing its end, the two seemed to be fighting more out of spite.

By lap 13, Hamilton was already 8 seconds behind and was beginning to face Leclerc's attack.

The rate of deterioration of the red tires was as expected, because even Wu Shi and Verstappen's yellow tires had already developed a lot of bubbles at this point.

Pushing hard causes such enormous wear and tear on the tires.

On lap 16, Wu Shi led Verstappen by 2 seconds, Hamilton by 8.1 seconds, and Leclerc by 9.36 seconds.

Following them are Norris, Riccardo, Alonso, Vettel, and Russell.

Perez was recalled because he had just run into the run-off area, damaging his car, and he didn't seem to be able to compete for a better position.

So let's protect the race car and start from the pit lane tomorrow.

On lap 17, the final lap of the qualifying sprint, Wu Shi crossed the finish line first, successfully taking the 3 points for first place and becoming the first sprint qualifying champion in F1 history!
Verstappen and Hamilton scored 2 and 1 points respectively.

Most of the drivers behind them improved their rankings because of Perez's retirement.

But the biggest beneficiary was Alonso, who improved six places to finish seventh, a much better result than his qualifying performance.

As it turns out, there are indeed plenty of opportunities in the sprint qualifying rounds.

However, when the three drivers were interviewed, they all seemed reluctant to accept this race format.

Wu Shi said, "This is a revolutionary model. I think it can serve as a preview of the main race, but it cannot be used to determine the start of the main race."

"That doesn't make sense, otherwise qualifying would no longer be about chasing the highest speeds, and that wouldn't seem very interesting."

Verstappen was clearly opposed, even though he had the opportunity to improve his ranking:

“I enjoyed Friday more than Saturday. In my opinion, we should have gotten pole position in Classic Qualifying. It feels strange to get an award after only a third of the race.”

The old man was also dissatisfied with the sprint qualifying race, but his main complaint was about the current situation:

“Mini-races render strategy worthless. It’s hard for us to overtake, and we need to pit to gain position. These races are meaningless.”

The FIA ​​isn't going to keep quiet about this, so they've decided to hold a small meeting on Saturday night to let the drivers share their thoughts on sprint qualifying.

Many drivers feel that only the top three finishers earning points is not attractive.

Some share Verstappen's view that the starting order in the main race should be determined by qualifying, rather than by sprint qualifying.

Anyway, everyone has shared their ideas, and the FIA ​​is indeed considering this format.

They have decided to continue holding sprint qualifying sessions at more stages.

Because of joining this competition, the schedule will be very full, with qualifying rounds on Friday, sprint qualifying rounds on Saturday, and the main race on Sunday, making it exciting to watch every day.

This will encourage spectators to buy package tickets, and it's also an attempt by F1 to make itself more interesting.

After the meeting, Wu Shi returned to his hotel to rest.

On Sunday morning, all the teams started preparing for the race early.

The weather today was not much different from the previous days, with a scorching 30°C. The drivers were already feeling hot even before they sat in the oven-like monocoques.

The teams are also finalizing the details of the race.

Because of the poor long-distance performance of the soft tires in yesterday's sprint qualifying session, no driver plans to use them for the start of the race.

Moreover, at Silverstone, soft tires are only used for qualifying; in the race, you need to use a combination of medium and hard tires to finish the race.

Therefore, Pirelli offers the two hardest tire compounds, and teams need to consider whether to make a first or second stop here.

Mercedes was quite daring, or rather, the total time for the second stop was longer than the first stop. Therefore, both Wu Shi and Hamilton started on medium tires and then switched to hard tires to complete the race.

To address this, the engineers adjusted some parameters that could still be adjusted to help reduce tire wear on the race car.

With everything ready, it was almost time for the competition to begin.

After the reconnaissance lap, the drivers came to the front of the track and completed tasks such as playing the national anthem.

After the performance on the track ended, Wu Shi returned to his race car.

Jonathan would always come to the track and stand next to Mercedes number 59, saying to Wu Shi:
"This is an opportunity to gain an advantage; we may not have such an opportunity in the later tracks."

Wu Shi nodded. Although Mercedes gained speed by reducing the drag of the rear wing, this advantage only exists on straightaways and slow corner exits. In other aspects, Red Bull is still ahead.

The consensus within Mercedes is that Red Bull currently leads in long-distance running, making the first few laps of the race particularly important.

Jonathan continued to explain the startup settings to Wu Shi.

After Wu Shi got into the cockpit, he leaned over and checked everything again, saying:
"Don't accidentally press the tire warmer button. I also suggested that you change the steering wheel design like Lewis did."

“Yeah, I don’t really need to. After all, I don’t like to put my left hand on the steering wheel when starting the car like Lewis does.”

Wu Shi waved his left hand and then put on the gloves.

"Well, in short, these are all things to pay attention to. Good luck."

Jonathan patted Wu Shi on the shoulder and, together with the rest of the team, retreated to the sides of the track.

Shortly after, two green indicator lights came on, and Wu Shi released the clutch, leading the car formation to warm up the tires.

The track temperature was quite good today, so the tires quickly reached operating temperature.

As always when he arrived at the starting position, Wu Shi kept an eye on Verstappen and Hamilton behind him.

If the two people are behind the car, he will slow down and let them catch up before going to the starting grid.

Heh!

After 59 seconds, the Mercedes stopped precisely in the starting grid, with its front wheels just touching the front of the yellow line.

Verstappen, to his right rear, also stopped in the starting grid.

He didn't know what Verstappen was thinking at that moment, because no one could know the mindset of another driver in the face of the enormous temptation of WDC.

Verstappen turned the car slightly to the left; he has always been very aggressive.

After two consecutive wins, he has significantly narrowed the gap with Wu Shi.

He only needs one more victory to overtake others in the standings!

But the impending victory was met with setbacks in the qualifying and sprint qualifying rounds, making it feel less smooth than it had been in Austria.

For him, this station was of paramount importance; he had prepared for it for a long time and thought about it a lot.

Yesterday's qualifying sprint provided a preview of the start, and he already had a strategy in mind.

The thought of possibly defeating Wu Shi made his heart race and he felt slightly dizzy. Even though the dizziness quickly disappeared, it was enough to show how nervous he was.

Hamilton was just as nervous as Verstappen.

He didn't gain any advantage yesterday even with red tires because his start was terrible!

Therefore, he is determined to seize this opportunity today.

After all, given Wu Shi's demonstration, he had reason to believe that as long as he took the lead, he would be able to bring back the victory!
From being a contender for the championship at the beginning of the season to now being left behind by two young drivers, he also bears the pressure from within.

Originally, it was just that he couldn't beat Wu Shi – everyone acknowledges that Wu Shi is one of the most talented and powerful F1 drivers, so it didn't seem like a big deal that he couldn't beat him.

Although Verstappen also has the reputation of being a child prodigy, Hamilton does not believe that he will become a supporting character in front of him.

His prolonged slump, coupled with his genuine desire to leave F1, made this home Grand Prix, which might be his last, extremely important to him. He took a deep breath, his expression remaining impassive, gradually suppressing the turmoil within him.

Like the three drivers ahead of them, all the drivers stopped at the starting grid with a tense reaction.

The only difference is how much control the drivers have.

Perhaps the only one who had an easier time was Perez, who started from the pit lane.

Wu Shi was taking deep breaths to adjust his state.

Behind him, F1 cars turned 18 and came to the starting straight, the engine roar of the drivers' final throttle pedal strokes echoing through the track.

As the Aston Martin safety car moved to the back of the convoy, the red lights began to illuminate.

Because the lights went out so quickly yesterday, all the drivers immediately focused their attention.

Soon, the sound of engines revving up filled the entire track.

At this moment, all five red lights have been turned on!
This time, however, the red light did not turn off, and the short wait felt like an eternity.

During the wait, some drivers' minds began to wander.

Swish!
Suddenly, all five red lights went out at the same time, and the 2021 British Grand Prix began!
Wu Shi's car started at the same time as Verstappen's. This doesn't mean that the two started very fast, but rather that they were both slow!
Buzz! !
The engine roared, and the air rippled like a heat wave.

"Wu Shi and Max Verstappen are both too slow! Lewis Hamilton had a great start, but he was blocked by Wu Shi and was bound to rush towards the center line!"

"But Verstappen has pressed in! He has no room to maneuver!"

David spoke quickly, but from a level-head perspective, it wasn't very clear to see the positions of the drivers' vehicles.

He only saw Wu Shi start moving, subconsciously shift to the right, and then immediately return to the center line.

Clearly, Wu Shi judged at this point that Verstappen posed no threat to him, but Hamilton behind him was likely to suppress him from the middle!

The commentator arrived at the drivers' side at Turn 1 after only two sentences.

The three entered the bend one after the other with very small gaps.

To get through the corner faster, Wu Shi took a wider turn, squeezing Hamilton, who was trying to overtake from the left, onto the shoulder.

After judging that there would be no impact, Hamilton stepped on the accelerator earlier as he exited the corner.

Swish!
The Mercedes No. 44 sped past, straddling the shoulder of the road, kicking up dust and grass clippings from the lawn!
Swish!Swish!
Amidst billowing dust, one F1 car after another bursts forth, but the cameras are still most focused on the first three cars!

At this point, Wu Shi successfully defended his first place by taking advantage of the obstacles at several bends.

Verstappen also made up for his disadvantage at the start by taking advantage of the Red Bull car's cornering advantage, and then used the slipstream to successfully regain his second place in the second corner!
Hamilton was hampered by Wu Shi's earlier pressure and starting position. Although he had an advantage at the start, he was delayed by the two drivers working together to harass him!
He quickly realized that to get past Wu Shi, he had to deal with Verstappen first!

The best way to deal with Verstappen is to follow Wu Shi, because Wu Shi will never give up his position to Verstappen.

By following Wu Shi, he could get a better route!

His strategy worked. In the slow corner No. 3, Wu Shi chose an exceptionally aggressive line, almost driving Verstappen completely out of the circle.

Verstappen's fierce determination kicked in; fearless, he sped up to overtake Wu Shi, riding on the shoulder of the road and pressing down on the meadow!
The battle between the two made full use of the entire track space; no one could push them to their limits!
At Turn 4, the opposite of Turn 3, Verstappen changed from the outside to the inside, similarly pushing Wu Shi hard to the outside.

Until they reached the No. 5 high-speed bend, Wu Shi continued to press down on the shoulder and rush towards the straight ahead.

The vehicle shook violently on the shoulder, billowing dust behind it.

Rustling sound!
The two cars sped onto the main straight road.

Verstappen immediately realized that Mercedes was incredibly fast without exploiting the slipstream, and the advantage he had gained in the corners was gradually slipping away.
Meanwhile, Hamilton, who was behind him, noticed that the two cars in front of him were laid out on the track, completely blocking his view, so he patiently waited for an opportunity!

He has already reviewed the events of yesterday's first lap many times, so he definitely has a chance today!
In the footage, three race cars are rapidly approaching Turn 6, and the intense battle at extreme speeds is dazzling to watch.

Before the bend, Wu Shi made another move, attempting to squeeze into Verstappen's line.

Because the car was completely ahead, he did it with ease.

Verstappen did not resist, took a sip of the slipstream and followed Wu Shi into Turn 6.

Seeing Verstappen like this, everyone thought he was going to give up the attack.

However, as he emerged from Turn 7 and sped towards the straight after Turn 8, Verstappen utilized his slipstream to its fullest potential.

So, with Wu Shi occupying the inside, he actually moved to the outside again, trying to eat Wu Shi out at Turn 9!

Wu Shi knew, of course, that his entry speed into the corner would be much slower than Verstappen's, but that didn't matter. Once he got out of Turn 9, his acceleration would completely leave Verstappen behind!

Both players have already planned their offensive and defensive maneuvers at Turn 9; it will come down to who has the better skills!

As soon as Verstappen turned away, Hamilton immediately took his place and came to stand behind Wu Shi.

He learned his lesson and didn't try to attack from the outside, because that wouldn't work!

So the three cars that were diagonally aligned yesterday are now speeding towards Turn 9 in a triangular formation.

Heh!

With slight braking, all three were trying to maintain as high a speed as possible in the corner!

Wu Shi entered the corner from the inside, while Verstappen pressed in from the outside, trying to overpower Wu Shi with his faster cornering speed!

He almost achieved his goal and arrived at Wu Shi's side in an instant.

Faced with the tough Verstappen, Wu Shi had no choice but to slow down and give way for the time being, otherwise he would have launched the Verstappen torpedo directly!
But at that moment, he felt the airflow behind him suddenly become turbulent.

In the next instant, the rear wheel of car number 59 was lifted up, and as it lost traction, it swung to the left due to lateral force and crashed directly into Verstappen!
Boom!

Bang!
"OH MY GOD!!! Wu Shi and Max collided! They flew out of the Cops Bend!"

The moment the two cars collided, Mercedes No. 59 rolled into the air due to the angle of the impact!

At the same time, the No. 33 Red Bull lost traction after being hit on the right front, and the whole car slid off the track at high speed like an ice hockey puck, creating a wall of smoke in the run-off area, and crashed into the tire wall outside Turn 9 in the blink of an eye.

Bang! Thud!

The deafening noise and flying debris obscured the view of the spectators in the stands.

People in the stands at Turn 9 stood up and gasped. When the dust cleared, they saw two F1 cars that had crashed into the guardrail and were almost completely destroyed.

No one knew what had just happened; all they knew was that it was a serious car accident!

Their initial exclamations turned into deathly silence, as if all the noise from the racing engines had been completely shut out.

Many people remained frozen in shock, and when they came to their senses, they immediately rushed towards the protective iron fence.

But they were just spectators and couldn't freely enter the track; they could only peer through the wire fence, hoping to find out about the drivers' situation.

"Oh my god! What's going on?! Is Wu Shi alright?!" The soldier was terrified.

The next moment, the organizers displayed the red flag.

Shortly afterward, the sirens of an ambulance could be heard outside the racetrack.

"OH! NO! NONONO."

"Wu Shi tumbled three times in the air before crashing to the ground and sliding towards the guardrail. Verstappen crashed directly into the guardrail at a speed of over 200 kilometers per hour!"

"God bless! God bless! I hope they are okay, I hope they are all normal."

David's voice trembled slightly.

The accident that just happened was so shocking that it even made people worry that the two young drivers might lose their lives.

"Hey, hey! How's he? Wu Shi and Max, how are they?!"

Leclerc, who witnessed the three-car accident, anxiously inquired in the TR.

Since the Bianchi accident, Leclerc and Wu Shi's relationship had become anything but ordinary. He almost instantly thought of the possible tragedy, and his whole being became both irritable and incredibly vulnerable.

"Are you OK? Are you OK?"

Jonathan's voice rang out in the TR, but no one responded.

Soon, the safety car arrived at the runway for Turn 9.

The race stewards immediately got out of their car and ran toward the two F1 cars involved in the accident.

Matthew, who was nearby, had already climbed over the wall and started checking on the drivers.

Verstappen's headrest was removed, and he was slowly helped out.

Meanwhile, Wu Shi's group of Matthews were waving wildly at the race organizers.

Because Wu Shi's race car crashed into the guardrail upside down, it was impossible to pull him out at that moment.

Beep beep beep.
The ambulance arrived at the fork in the road at Turn 9, and the paramedics rushed over with a stretcher.

The camera then focused on Verstappen, who was being supported by several Matthews and stood in place, seemingly unsteady on his feet, with no movement in his hands.

The spectators by the wall initially cheered when they saw Verstappen come out, but fell silent when they saw this.

Of course, what everyone was more worried about at this moment was the driver in car number 59.

"The helicopter is here."

The event organizers have acted very quickly.

Soon after, Matthew and the medical staff worked together to finally move the race car a little, and then slowly pulled Wu Shi out of it.

The telephoto lens immediately focused on Wu Shi, but he didn't make any move.

The entire venue was deathly silent.

Soon, Wu Shi was taken away by helicopter, and Verstappen also left in an ambulance.

All the race cars returned to the pit lane and lined up.

Hamilton, who had dropped to 11th place, had just stepped off the car.

His car's front wing was completely broken off. After getting out of the car, he ignored the race car and ran towards the Mercedes warehouse to find out what had happened.

But Bono shook his head at him.

Hamilton took off his helmet, suddenly squatted down, and covered his face with his hands.

It's unclear how long he thought about it, but he slowly stood up. Instead of returning to his car, he went directly to the back area.

(End of this chapter)