Car Racing without Money-Chapter 575 - 225: Challenging a True Title Contender (Part 2)

Chapter 575: Chapter 225: Challenging a True Title Contender (Part 2)

To be honest, he thought Trulli wouldn’t comply, at least not so readily.

After all, the timing of Hua Bu’s order felt a bit "too much to bear."

But through the rearview mirror, Chen Xiangbei saw that Trulli had no intention of pursuing further. On the contrary, he slowed down and held the defensive line, fully blocking Rosberg who was trying to catch up from behind.

Has Trulli accepted reality?

Being able to handle defeat gracefully might seem simple, but few people can actually do it.

After several months together, Trulli’s temper was fiery and straightforward, not an easy teammate to get along with.

But he had an advantage, which was having no mind for political maneuvers.

If he was willing to accept the role of a number two driver, he might become a "good teammate."

The rapidly changing events on the track didn’t give Chen Xiangbei much time for reflection; continuous overtakes and battles have widened the gap between him and the car in front, Masa. Now he needs to do his best to catch up.

In theory, the drivers in the leading group are also engaging in intense battles.

But the driver in front of Masa is named Michael Schumacher!

Schumacher is going full throttle this race, not giving Masa any chance to overtake at all.

Adding to that is the great reputation of the King of Cars and the toughness shown in years of offensive and defensive battles, Masa didn’t dare take the risk of crashing to force an overtake, while the performance of the Ferrari car couldn’t overpower the Mercedes W01.

There’s no other way—Masa could only follow behind, hoping for an intense spark between Schumacher and Alonso, the "Red and Blue CP", that might allow him to pick up some scraps.

With twenty-one cars whizzing around lap after lap, the race soon reached the ninth lap.

The HRT Team’s pre-race strategy for Chen Xiangbei was a one-stop tactic, meaning that the current set of soft red tires had to last at least twenty laps before considering changing to medium yellow or hard white tires for the rest of the race.

However, plans often can’t keep up with changes. Excessive wear due to locked tires and continuous overtakes triggering battles make it difficult to last over twenty laps. On the ninth lap, Chen Xiangbei’s red tires had exceeded their grip peak, with a very thin tire wall in the locked region, posing a huge risk of a flat tire.

"North, the tires might not hold up, prepare to pit early."

Looking at the data from the car sensors, Odetto reminded him through team radio.

"What’s the gap between me and Masa right now?"

Chen Xiangbei asked.

"2.3 seconds."

Upon hearing the number reported by Odetto, Chen Xiangbei fell into thought.

His tires had exceeded their grip peak, and the car in front, Masa, had also started on soft red tires, theoretically they should be at a similar level of wear.

But that’s just theoretically.

Masa didn’t engage in intense offensive and defensive battles, he just tentatively attacked Schumacher and then chose to give up, spending the rest of the time preserving his tires.

Besides different driving styles, the degree of tire wear also depends on the car’s characteristics.

Some cars wear out tires significantly, while others can run tens of laps and still seem new!

The period where this gap is most obvious should be considered as Haas and Red Bull Racing in the 23rd season posthumously.

At that time, Verstappen with Red Bull was basically running in front "sightseeing", his lap speed was already incredibly fast, and combined with a Mars Rover RB19 that didn’t eat tires, it created an unbeatable scene.

On the contrary, Haas Team was the negative example, where both drivers Magnussen and Hockenberg had very good lap abilities, and they could occasionally set excellent times in qualifying.

But the tire consumption was incredibly exaggerated, during races they would simply disappear, becoming the bottom team in the paddock.

Currently in the 10th season, only one race has been run, and it’s still unclear about Ferrari’s tire consumption.

However, Chen Xiangbei was aware that with the newly upgraded kit on his TF110, the tire consumption rate had significantly decreased.

As long as the locked area doesn’t burst, it should be able to run a few more laps without issue.

"Odetto, I want to try to catch up with Masa."

[Catch up with Masa?]

Upon hearing Chen Xiangbei come up with this idea, the members of the team strategy group were stunned.

This kid must be joking, surely he hasn’t become arrogant after beating Trulli, and thinks the Brazilian driver Masa is just as easy?

"Xiangbei-kun, even if you catch up, with a 2.3 second gap, there isn’t a possibility for overtaking, don’t take unnecessary risks."

Sawano Hiroyuki immediately spoke up to stop him.

Taking risks is a challenge for racers, but it needs to be worth the while and have some meaning.

For example, attacking Trulli may earn the position of one first driver if a cornering speed of 300km/h is achieved at the T7 high-speed complex.

But Chen Xiangbei’s attempt to challenge Masa was impossible to accomplish and stubbornness would only lead to greater tire burst losses.

Faced with Sawano Hiroyuki’s dissuasion, Chen Xiangbei didn’t respond, still weighing the pros and cons in his mind.

Subsequently, Mizutani Sho also spoke up: "North, Ferrari’s lap speed is quite similar to yours, and along with the tire advantage, you don’t have much hope of overtaking."

This time Mizutani Sho was quite blunt, even delivering a conclusion directly.

Actually, he was being "tactful" with his words, not mentioning the gap in strength beyond tire advantage between the two.

It should be known that Masa had the top tier long-distance and single lap skills in the paddock, relying on which he and Kimi Raikkonen helped Ferrari Team win back the constructors’ championship title after a two-year absence.

In addition to being world champion for half a minute in 08!

Even if Masa had shortcomings in rain racing and some wheel-to-wheel combat, this gap was relative only to historic champion drivers like Schumacher, Alonso, and Hamilton, not something a newcomer or mid-tier driver could achieve.

This idea of Chen Xiangbei was a symptom of youthful exuberance.

Mizutani Sho didn’t speak, but Chen Xiangbei could understand what he meant.

But compared to the strategy group members, Chen Xiangbei had a historical perspective.

That is, in the 10th season, there was more than Schumacher experiencing a cliff fall in form, Masa was also among them!

In the 09 Hungary race, the suspension spring of Barrichello’s car’s rear suspension damper came loose, hitting Masa’s head at 240km/h, penetrating his visor and causing damage to his left forehead and skull, a life-threatening injury.

From then on, Masa’s competitive state plummeted like Schumacher’s after being injured.

The 10th season just started, and since Masa didn’t show any significant issues in the season opener, the world hadn’t realized the impact his head injury had on him, let alone how quickly Masa would fall.

Over the entire season, Masa was utterly outscored by Alonso, having completely fallen from being a title contender in 08 to a backup role.

No matter how history changes, Masa’s injury remained unchanged.

Chen Xiangbei firmly believed this Brazilian driver no longer had the peak strength and competitive state, and he himself thought there was hope beyond Mizutani Sho’s words!

"Mizutani, I still want to give it a try."

Without explaining the reasons, and unable to explain the reasons, Chen Xiangbei reaffirmed his stance through team radio. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Faced with Chen Xiangbei’s persistence, several members of the outdoor command desk strategy group exchanged glances, and with the chief test engineer Mazzola speaking up, "The new upgraded kit for the tires in this race results in low wear, and there’s still a push margin."

"But..."

Mazzola didn’t finish the sentence, but everyone present understood what he meant.

The hidden danger remained in the locked area, where the tire wall was too thin!

"North, if you can’t lead Masa by one second in the next lap, then pit."

Odetto set a target, which was to lead Masa by one second per lap.

If this couldn’t be achieved, then overtaking would be meaningless; unable to even catch up!

"COPY."

Without a moment’s hesitation, Chen Xiangbei responded.

Then he pressed the accelerator, and the TF110 engine roared, advancing at full speed towards the Ferrari in front.

Meanwhile, Chen Xiangbei felt an inexplicable excitement and passion within.

Although he had defeated Kubica and Rosberg before, frankly the title of "title-contending driver" for Kubica was more based on expectations due to his past performances, with a sympathy bonus for the fallen talent.

As for Rosberg, he was indeed a world champion, but his peak was in the 16th season.

At this time, Rosberg didn’t remotely meet championship standards.

Masa, on the other hand, was different. In the 08th season, he contended for the title until the final race, and even held the world champion title for half a minute.

This would be Chen Xiangbei’s most significant challenge to a true title-contending driver to date!