F1: The Making of a Racing God

Chapter 101 The unique feature of playing on home turf is that you can always encounter surprises (6K6)

After the interview, Shu Long returned to the backstage area of ​​the P-room. As soon as he entered, he was embraced by his parents.

"Great job! Do you know how much your dad cried when he saw your performance upstairs?"

"Oh, is it really that bad? Is my car that bad?"

With his eyes still red, Shu Xiong immediately became angry and flicked Zhang Xin's forehead.

"Don't spread rumors about me, you silly woman! I was on the terrace letting the wind blow sand into my eyes!"

There were quite a few cameras pointed at this spot nearby, and Shu Long felt a little embarrassed, so he gently pushed and tugged away from his mother's arms.

"Where's my grandpa? Did he go back to the hotel because it was too noisy?"

"No, your grandpa is probably washing his face in the bathroom, right? And you're talking about me? The old man was crying even harder than I was just now!"

Shu Xiong, who just stubbornly denied urinating in cat urine, said this.
However, he soon paid the price for it, and as soon as he finished speaking, he was hit hard on the butt with a shoe.

"You little brat, I think you're up to no good! Who's in charge here now? Huh?!"

"Didn't I say it was me? You've been washing your hands of things for so long. Fine, fine, fine, fine!"

Seeing that the robust old man Shu was about to take off his shoes and hit someone on the spot, the big Shu Xiong immediately backed down.

Actually, neither of these two men has as much say in the company as Zhang Xin. Everyone knows who is really in charge, but family scandals shouldn't be aired in public. Even if they get beaten, they have to go back inside first.

Normally, when a driver's relatives come to watch the race, the team will always reserve a seat for them in the VIP viewing area of ​​the pit garage.

However, this whole family didn't want to add any unnecessary psychological burden to Shulong at home, so from Friday's practice match until the end of today's qualifying match, they never voluntarily appeared in the pit room during the match.
Okay, actually, Shu Xiong secretly went to the P-room at Red Bull's place for a while.

After all, he is Shu Long's father. The engineers had met him many times when Shu Long was still a Red Bull reserve driver. They were not only willing to receive him, but also very hospitable.

Horner, in particular, took advantage of the time when Marco occasionally went to the Toro Rosso pit site to supervise the construction, and he even made a special trip to get on Shu Xiong's good side.

Horner is indeed on the Oklahoma City side. Although his current stance seems to be closer to the Thai Bulls, it is ultimately just a temporary measure.

Horner is ambitious; he is not content to be just a team principal. His goal is to become a shareholder and owner of the team, just like Mercedes' Toto.

So to be precise, Horner doesn't actually take sides.

Marco is powerful, so he's in cahoots with Taurean, but at the same time, he doesn't want Taurean to extend too much influence. So it's not hard to understand why he would make some arrangements for his own hand in advance.

Anyway, this isn't the first time we've poached people from Old Man Ma. Regardless of whether it works out in the end, it's essential to leave a good impression on Shulong.

The British, no one knows better than them how to put on a good show.

As for the bear-shaped bundle?
Originally, he wanted to gather some information about the competitors for his son, but unfortunately, the technicians here had a completely different communication efficiency and used professional terminology compared to the go-karting days, leaving Shu Xiong completely confused. Apart from feeling very embarrassed, he gained almost nothing.

Although this middle-aged father had worked hard to improve his English after getting involved in European karting competitions in Shulong, it was still a bit difficult for him to have such a large amount of information exchanged face-to-face.

Especially that Horner guy, don't you have anything better to do as a team leader? Doesn't the team need management? Why are you always staring at this side?

Before even completing a full practice session, the bear fled in disarray, leaving Horner completely bewildered.

Has this established a connection?
The family gathered backstage and talked for a while, mainly the mother and son communicating. Shu Xiong had a lot to say but didn't know how to express it, while Grandpa Shu was not used to having so many cameras watching the family's life.

"Alright, alright, your team must have a lot of things to do, right? We won't bother you any longer. Just keep up your usual racing rhythm for the next few days."

Shu Long turned his head and looked around, but didn't see the little one. He didn't ask any questions and decided to go back to the rest area to take a shower and have something to eat.

It's confirmed that we'll be starting on red tires tomorrow. Among the drivers ahead, only Gasly has the same tire choice as him; the remaining five are all on yellow tires. The team will definitely have to rack their brains to come up with a good strategy tonight.

The situation in the race is constantly changing. Tire wear and long-distance pace can change at any time depending on the position of the car. They not only need to determine the most important core tactics, but also make several contingency plans to deal with changes on the track.

This is a huge torment for both drivers and teams. They not only have to calculate it well, but also memorize it clearly. Otherwise, it would be funny if the driver thought he was saying something different from what the team understood during the TR (Training Test).

Whenever this happens, Shu Long is always grateful for his photographic memory, as this is the part that many drivers hate the most during race week.

Leclerc once complained about this during a dinner party, saying that things were chaotic back in Sauber because even the engineers themselves seemed to have no idea which strategy was the most appropriate.

Things got even worse when I got to Ferrari. The engineers there seemed to have a particular fondness for fancy tricks, often coming up with a whole bunch of backup plans that gave me a headache before every race.

Then, when it came to the main competition, I was completely confused again.

After all, Ferrari has the foundation and strength to back it up. They can usually execute things perfectly within the plan. But if anything goes slightly off the mark, it's as if the engineers' brains all crash. The entire crew is practically inhuman.

The tactical meeting lasted from 6:30 pm to past 9 pm. Last time, Shulong was just taking a break, but this time it was finally Alben's turn to enjoy the benefits.

Because he didn't participate in qualifying, the maintenance work continued until after qualifying, and a lot of extra parts outside the rules were replaced. Tomorrow, Albon won't even start from the back of the grid; he'll have to start from the pit lane.

This starting format is essentially a ten-second penalty, so Albon's goal for tomorrow's race is very clear: to squeeze into the points zone as much as possible while ensuring he finishes the race.

This makes Albon's strategy relatively simple: minimize the number of stoppages and finish the game with a single stoppage using either red-white or yellow-white.

Although Toro Rosso doesn't dare to aim for the podium in every race, no team would easily give up points. So Albon quickly decided on the strategy that would theoretically take the least amount of time in the race: he would start with a new set of red tires and finish the race with a single stop on white tires.

This strategy is not as simple as it seems; it is essentially a gamble on Albon's own ability to maintain the pregnancy. However, Albon is equally determined to implement this strategy.

While there may be powerful backers, at Red Bull, everything is based on results and performance.

Having already messed up in three training sessions, Albon felt he had to at least put on a convincing performance in the main tournament. Otherwise, Marco, who kept showing up at Toro Rosso's side, wouldn't be so easy to deal with.

Besides the usual strategy discussions, team leader Tost also sought Shulong's opinion on one issue.

"The race organizers are planning to have you parked on the main straight after the race, and they might even prepare a standee for you. We'll ask you if you'd like that."

"Huh?! No way! Tell them to stop messing with me!"

Shu Long shook his head like a rattle drum. Once he actually gets to the podium, he'll naturally have his own parking space. But doing something so unprecedented before that would be incredibly embarrassing!
It wasn't until 10:30 p.m. that Shu Long finally lay down comfortably in his bed after taking a hot bath at the hotel. His phone was already flooded with messages from all directions.

First up are Teng Weifeng and Yu Mujie.

I'm not sure if any of my former classmates and friends have come to Shulong.

It's possible. After all, Shu Long is so famous now, and his former classmates almost always teased him with the nickname "Car God," so it's hard not to recognize him.

Even someone as thick-skinned and close as Teng Weifeng didn't dare to contact Shu Long on his own initiative at one point. Others who weren't as familiar with him probably had even more concerns.

Besides Teng Weifeng, the only people who actually got in touch with him were Yu Mujie, who came with him, and his current girlfriend, Shen Qian, who was Shu Long's vice class monitor in elementary school.

The relationship between these two is truly stable, mainly because their family backgrounds are quite similar. They both grew up in the same villa area, and their parents know each other very well.

Another one is Chen Tingya, whose life has been a bit more difficult. Since entering high school, she has never spoken to her childhood sweetheart, She Haitao, who lived across the street from her.

On Friday, the group even brought their paddock tickets to P room to meet Shu Long. At that time, Shu Long always felt that there must be some kind of story between Chen Tingya and Teng Weifeng.

These two were classmates in junior high school, then in adjacent classes in high school, and later found out that they both got into Fudan University.

With so many entanglements and connections, plus the renewed contact caused by the matter of Shulong, it's likely that some unusual feelings will arise.

The five of them created a group chat. Now that they've reconnected, this rare relationship and connection is worth cherishing.

They chatted and joked like before, even their tone was almost the same as in their memories. While dealing with his old classmates, Shu Long finally found a moment to flip to the pitiful little red dot that had been pressed down at the bottom.

Perhaps afraid of disturbing the team's work, the young girl only sent a weak message around six o'clock: "Are you done with your work?" When she saw that Shu Long seemed to be too busy to reply, she consciously stopped bothering him.

"All done with work? Did you have fun in Weichang these past two days?"

"Of course it's fun! I've met several celebrities, but I didn't dare to go up and ask them for a photo."

And everyone in these car teams is so incredibly friendly! Sometimes I'm just casually strolling past their garage entrances, and someone will come out and invite me in to join them!

"That's normal. Most of the people who can get paddock tickets are clients who need special attention. So why don't you come here? If you want, I can even lend you my steering wheel to play with."

At this point, Shu Long was also puzzled. This girl was fearless at first and insisted on getting close to him, but once the competition started, she started avoiding him.

If it weren't for the fact that his teammate Alben is also a complete bachelor, Shulong feels he might still feel a little disappointed.

Of course, I am somewhat disappointed now.

However, when it came to the steering wheel, Gan Mengning seemed to have finally found the opportunity to start a conversation, and began to unleash the bombshells she had been saving up for the past two days.

“I actually got to touch the steering wheel! When I was visiting the Haas garage, the driver named Grosjean saw me craning my neck to look, so he took the steering wheel off and handed it to me, and even explained the functions of the buttons on the steering wheel to me.”

"Really? Haas is that generous? Did he break it? This thing costs over fifty thousand dollars!"

"Luckily, I didn't dare to take it at the time, I just touched it lightly, for fear of breaking it!"

"It's alright, it's alright. The fleet usually has several spares of these. You just need to pay them back."

Actually, it's quite common for racing teams to show their steering wheels to VIPs. This is mainly because these steering wheels are custom-made for each driver's habits, so copying them is pointless. They're usually exposed to the car's cameras anyway, and there aren't many secrets hidden on them.

Of course, if the team is actually damaged, they might not care that much, but they should still pay for the damages.

Especially these original steering wheels used by F1 drivers, the teams would probably love to sell them at several times the premium, as it would be a way to make some extra money.

Gan Mengning couldn't afford to pay this out of her own pocket. If she really had to pay, she'd probably have to call Gan Guangchen over on the spot to swipe his card.
"Why do people in China call Grosjean 'Big Flag Grosjean' and 'Grosjean Doesn't Let Go' online? I think he's a really nice guy." "He's different on and off the field. Maybe he sees you as a kid? Roman is a father now, so he's probably more patient with kids, haha~"

"Get lost, you're the kid!"

The 155cm tall Gan Mengning immediately lost her temper and then spoke to Shu Long in a mature, sophisticated voice.

"I'm currently editing the vlogs from the past two days. Would you like to take a look beforehand?"

"Huh? Can you be normal for once? I'm getting goosebumps all over! Don't make me weigh less than what I should have tomorrow after the competition!"

"Are you going to watch it or not?"

"Hmm, to be honest, I'm not really keen on watching it yet. I'll wait until you release the finished product before I watch it. I think it would be really interesting to see the audience's perspective through the comments."

These words really struck a chord with Gan Mengning. The reason she had been so immersed in the role of an ordinary car enthusiast these past two days was precisely to enjoy the unique thrill created by this contrast.

The two chatted casually for a while, and Shu Long told the girl about his plan to meet up with his old classmates after the competition, asking her if she wanted to come along.

Are there any girls?

"Yes, half of them are women."

"I'm going! Also, you should go to sleep soon, don't let it affect your performance tomorrow. Goodnight!"

As if preparing to set an example, Gan Mengning hurriedly hung up the video call as soon as she finished saying goodnight.

The next day, Shu Long woke up very early, and the first thing he did was to draw back the curtains to see what the weather was like that day.

As expected, it was another overcast day like the previous two days, except that the clouds were noticeably thicker today.

The weather forecast on my phone indicated that there might be showers, which was the same situation we discussed in the team meeting yesterday. However, the chance of rain is only 45%, which is not very high. Strategically, we should still plan to race on dry ground throughout the entire race.

There will be a track event at 12 o'clock, and Zhou Guanyu will also be performing a few demo laps on the track today, driving a Renault E20 race car.

Shu Long thought he was all set, but around 10 o'clock, someone from the convoy asked him to participate in a short, interactive photoshoot.

"Who is it? The competition is about to start!"

"You didn't know? They said it was arranged beforehand, it's some kind of filming activity by a TV program."

Oh, I remember now.

It's about the documentary we discussed last week. However, the DTS production team didn't seem to make any extra requests while they were in Shulong, so I don't know what kind of cooperation they need for this documentary.

Then, completely bewildered, Shu Long was led by the staff to a ping-pong table in the VIP activity area, where several very recognizable big shots were already standing.

A fat guy who can't play ball, accompanied by a giant python and a Tibetan mastiff, as well as the long-retired "Big Demon King" of the women's team.

Many traditional sports in China are gradually transitioning towards commercialization.

This is actually a good thing. In today's fast-paced self-media era, a sport that lacks sustained exposure will eventually decline.

The key point is that this can actually improve athletes' treatment and ensure a sport's continued attractiveness to talent.

As a result, in recent years, we have seen many national athletes maintain a high frequency of appearances in various popular variety shows and major social events.

Of course, how to balance fame and honor is not just a matter for table tennis, but also a matter that all athletes, including Shu Long, who are tied to commercialization need to weigh.

After a polite exchange of pleasantries, the recording team got down to the main topic of today's short program.

The reason was that they somehow found out that Shu Long was a big fan of table tennis before he officially got into racing.

This Chinese Grand Prix serves as a perfect opportunity to bring together top athletes from both fields as a starting point for the program, while also expanding the depth of the documentary into the broader sports field.

This was a win-win situation. Perhaps the higher-ups also said a few good words for them. The heavyweight figures who usually command high appearance fees were practically just making a cameo appearance today.

The initial content was rather bland, mainly consisting of the two parties exchanging ideas on their respective career experiences, the difficulties they encountered, and how they overcame them—typical inspirational topics.

Basically, it was Shulong and Da Mang and Tibetan Mastiff who were chatting, while Da Mowang, as an older woman of the auntie generation, was mainly responsible for providing a kind smile on the side.

I thought that was about it, but then the host, of all people, suddenly threw out a really crucial question.

"Among these veteran athletes present, Shu Long, who is your favorite or most admired person?"

"Oh, do I really have to choose one?"

"Of course, the question uses the word 'most'."

"Then I think... the python!"

"May I ask why?"

"Because of Xiuxin! I just feel happier watching him play!"

The director in charge of planning the program's content had a sudden realization upon hearing this, feeling as if he had grasped the overall tone of the documentary about the people of Shulong. He quickly jotted it down in his notebook.

In terms of honors, all of the people present, except for the python, are Grand Slam winners.

Considering the age of the Tibetan Mastiffs and the eras in which they were active, generally speaking, if someone has a personality that is relatively strong and values ​​honor, then they are more likely to choose a Tibetan Mastiff that is also more physically superior.

Based on the director's analysis of Shu Long's past racing experiences, from go-karting to Formula racing, he originally thought that Shu Long was the type with an extremely strong desire to win and who valued results and honors more.

But judging from the indications revealed by this answer, Shu Long seems to be the type who enjoys the sport more than the final result.

Of course, as athletes in competitive sports, no one would want to lose but not want to win; this is more of a personality trait.

Meanwhile, after Shu Long made his choice, the host began to move on to the next activity, which was—

"Okay, now if I gave you a chance, would you like to have a match with your favorite table tennis player?"

"Huh? Me? Who should I hit?"

Xiuxin, who had just been praised by Shulong, was beaming with pride, her smugness radiating a natural comedic flair.

"Relax a bit, do you still play table tennis?"

"Yes, I do, but I didn't bring any photos."

Unfortunately, this excuse did not hold water. The production team immediately handed over a racket cover that looked quite familiar to Shu Long. When he opened it, it turned out to be the same racket he used when he was a child at the Youth Palace.

The rubber on the bottom of the racket should have aged a long time ago; the two rubbers on the racket now look like they were recently applied.

Alright, we've come this far, so let's give it a couple of swings then?

In fact, not only in his childhood, but even today, Shu Long has been a deep enthusiast of table tennis.

Besides playing games, occasionally playing a few rounds with the physical training assistants in the team is also his best way to relieve stress.

As they fought, even the giant python was startled.

I initially thought it was just some kind of crossover collaboration, and that I'd just let them have a few shots as a token gesture, but wow, the feeling of the ball hitting my racket was just wrong.

"You've trained?!"

"Yeah, weren't we just talking about it? We learned it in first or second grade."

The two started slapping each other repeatedly, and by then anyone could tell something was wrong.

"No, a python? Is that so difficult?"

"A mastiff? You want to try it? It's really something else!"

Shulong's technical skills may seem to be only those of an average hobbyist, but with his basic physical stats and [Friction Control], the balls he hits are simply uncanny.

To be honest, Shu Long's style is somewhat similar to Zhang Da Mo Wang's.

The original plan for the event was just for Shu Long and his favorite player to have a few rounds of sparring, but in the end, apart from the fat guy who didn't know anything about the game, the others couldn't resist the urge to try it out.

If the host hadn't been worried that Shu Long would waste too much energy here and affect the afternoon's competition, these guys might have played until the evening.

Both the python and the Tibetan mastiff have been suffering from injuries and illnesses in recent years, and they can only look at Shulong with envy.

"Sure, sure, you have the unmistakable talent of a top athlete. You'd better take good care of yourself. By the way, when can we try racing too? What if we have some undiscovered geniuses among us?"

"If you're interested, I can ask the team. I remember there should be similar events where you can experience older cars, and it might be free for you."

"Just kidding, just kidding. Anyway, good luck in the afternoon's match!"

For Shulong's stamina, this amount of loss is negligible.

On the contrary, after communicating with several of his most admired top athletes, when he sat in the cockpit of the race car in the afternoon, he felt like he had inexhaustible energy even before drinking Red Bull.

　A 6k6 chapter, can't it be equivalent to an extra chapter? Really not?

　　
　
(End of this chapter)