The paddock exploded—
Rumor: Mercedes-Benz had officially decided to actively pursue Kai.
Rumor: Toto Wolff and Kai had already held a secret meeting, and the talks had gone exceptionally well.
Rumor: Lewis Hamilton was absolutely furious with Wolff for going behind his back. Wolff hadn't consulted him at all regarding the second seat. Furthermore, Hamilton genuinely disliked Kai, and he was deeply disappointed in the team's actions.
Rumor: Wolff wasn't actually planning to replace Valtteri Bottas. He was planning to replace Hamilton. He intended to groom Kai as the brand-new, undisputed leader of Mercedes-Benz.
Wave after wave of rumors crashed over the paddock, sending everyone into a collective frenzy.
The mere fact that Mercedes had contacted Kai was already the biggest news of the year. But the idea that Kai was being positioned to dethrone Hamilton? That sent a blood-soaked shockwave rippling through the entire sport.
Yet, the rumor mill didn't slow down; it only accelerated, becoming increasingly deranged.
One minute, sources claimed Mercedes actually had zero interest in Kai and had already guaranteed the seat to F2 Champion George Russell. The next minute, they claimed Bottas and Russell were locked in a fierce battle for the second seat, and the rumors about Kai replacing Hamilton were just deliberate misinformation designed to destabilize Ferrari. The minute after that, "insiders" swore that Kai's meteoric rise had terrified Mercedes, forcing them to recognize the threat of the new generation, and they were currently agonizing over choosing between Esteban Ocon and Russell for the second seat.
It was a boiling, deafening cacophony.
The heavyweight clash between Mercedes and Ferrari hadn't ceased with the waving of the checkered flag in Abu Dhabi. The sparks were continuing to fly violently throughout the off-season.
And when McLaren and Red Bull both officially entered the group chat, the drama finally reached its absolute climax.
The two teams found themselves in remarkably similar situations. Both had already locked down one seat with a highly-rated young driver (Lando Norris at McLaren, Max Verstappen at Red Bull). The entire world was watching to see who they would choose for their second seats. Then, Zak Brown and Christian Horner simultaneously set their sights squarely on the young Kai.
Some argued that Williams' disastrous 2018 season proved definitively that pairing two young, inexperienced drivers together was a fatal mistake. Were McLaren and Red Bull seriously about to blindly walk into that exact same trap?
Others countered that Kai was fundamentally different. Yes, he was young, but he was also the youngest Drivers' World Champion in the history of Formula 1. He couldn't be measured by standard metrics. McLaren and Red Bull had vastly different overarching strategies, but there was no doubt both teams were making the correct play by targeting him. The only real question left was—
Which team should Kai choose to trust?
The noise was deafening. The entire paddock was boiling over.
Rumors, leaks, and whispers flew everywhere. Let alone the fans, the motorsport journalists were practically foaming at the mouth, acting like they'd been injected with pure adrenaline.
It was thrilling! It was absolutely exhilarating!
For now, the rumors were just rumors. The teams were all treading incredibly carefully. Before the dust settled, no one wanted to ruin their own chances by running their mouth to the press.
Nevertheless, the indirect, proxy warfare continued to escalate quietly.
During an interview with the German press, Toto Wolff was asked a pointed question:
"If there is direct, internal competition between your drivers in the 2019 season, how will Mercedes-Benz handle it?"
He didn't explicitly name anyone, but the subtext was blindingly obvious. The German media was already actively hyping up a potential "Hamilton vs. Kai" super-fight. Following his legendary clashes with Fernando Alonso and Nico Rosberg, Hamilton's career was potentially on the verge of a third, era-defining civil war. It had the potential to rival the mythological Prost vs. Senna rivalry. The media was losing its collective mind.
The moment the question was asked, you could physically feel the audience tense up. The excitement and anticipation were impossible to suppress, practically bursting at the seams.
Faced with a situation he had entirely manufactured himself, Wolff appeared flawlessly composed, flashing a supremely confident smile.
"Fairness. Respect. Let the data do the talking."
It was a classic, polished PR non-answer. It meant absolutely nothing. Yet, the journalists in the room instantly exploded—
Did that mean Mercedes-Benz was completely abolishing the Number One and Number Two driver hierarchy? If Kai joined, was Wolff truly prepared to open the door to unrestricted internal warfare? Was he really not terrified of a Rosberg 2.0 scenario repeating itself and tearing the team apart?
While the German media lost their minds in continental Europe, the British press felt the heat from across the English Channel and decided they needed to match their rivals' energy. Sky Sports immediately phoned Christian Horner for an interview.
Horner, ever the chatterbox, rambled on at length.
"...I believe in my drivers. Red Bull has always operated this way. We simply stand in the background and play a supporting role. Ultimately, the drivers are the ones who have to go out on the track and get the job done. Therefore, I have absolute faith that our drivers will deliver the perfect answer with their actions on the asphalt."
Blah, blah, blah. A mountain of empty rhetoric containing very little actionable intelligence. A true master of verbal Tai Chi.
But anyone with half a brain could hear the underlying message. The ruthlessly competitive Red Bull Racing was fully prepared and actively looking forward to seeing Verstappen and Kai fight it out honorably, wheel-to-wheel, on the track.
Not only would Red Bull refuse to issue team orders to stop them, but they would actively encourage both drivers to fight with everything they had. If Kai joined, the blood would absolutely flow at Red Bull next season.
Whether it was Wolff or Horner, even though neither explicitly confirmed anything, their differing responses perfectly highlighted their contrasting management styles. The only absolute certainty was this: they were both dead serious, and they had both fully braced themselves for the incoming hurricane.
The paddock detonated. The chaotic, surging debates were impossible to stop.
Originally, Kai was still under contract with Ferrari. There shouldn't have been any suspense regarding him driving for the Prancing Horse next season. But after authoring a miracle and winning the championship, his market value had skyrocketed far beyond anyone's wildest projections. Every single team was drooling over him, exactly like they had with Verstappen the previous year.
If Ferrari couldn't offer Kai the respect and the contract he deserved, it was only natural for a brilliant bird to choose a better tree to nest in. No one could stop deep-pocketed rivals from trying to poach him.
So, should Kai join Mercedes-Benz? Or should he choose Red Bull?
On one side, a clash of World Champions. On the other, a head-to-head duel between the two greatest generational talents of the era. Just imagining either scenario was enough to make fans rub their hands together in glee!
More importantly, what kind of astronomical figures would be in Kai's new contract? If Mercedes and Red Bull were genuinely trying to pry him away from Ferrari, they would have to pay a steep, bloody price. What kind of massive chain reaction would that trigger across the entire paddock's driver market?
Wait... what about Ferrari?
Amidst this earth-shattering noise and chaos, the entire paddock had been flipped upside down several times over. Yet, sitting dead center in the eye of the storm, Ferrari remained remarkably, eerily quiet.
No response. No clarification. No counter-maneuvers.
It was an unnatural, terrifying silence.
Initially, the widespread assumption was that Ferrari had realized the severity of the crisis. With a massive fire raging in their own backyard, their first instinct wasn't to disperse the gawking crowd, but to extinguish the flames internally. Once the fire was out, the gossiping bystanders and the lurking, opportunistic rivals would naturally scatter, allowing Ferrari to regain control of the narrative.
Therefore, Ferrari's silence likely meant they acutely felt the danger and were currently locked in intense, closed-door contract extension negotiations with Kai. You could almost feel the suffocating, pre-storm tension radiating from the heavily fortified gates of the Maranello base.
The media assumed this was the natural course of action, so they didn't push Ferrari too hard initially. They just kept fanning the flames from the outside, eagerly waiting for Ferrari to make a move.
However, the paddock is a remarkably small place. Even highly classified secrets like aerodynamic car designs couldn't be kept one hundred percent secure. Rumors and whispers were simply a fact of life. The ever-present 'little birds' always found a way to hear something.
Rumor: John Elkann was incredibly heartbroken and deeply disappointed—
Not angry. Not anxious. But disappointed.
Because Ferrari had already presented a flawless, perfect contract offer. Not only had they broken protocol by offering an early extension, but they were prepared to hand a mere sophomore driver a contract that would absolutely shock the paddock. Yet, Kai was unsatisfied.
And not just unsatisfied. Using rival teams to artificially inflate his price was one thing; but it seemed Kai was genuinely preparing to defect to Ferrari's sworn mortal enemy, Mercedes-Benz.
Regarding this, Elkann was profoundly heartbroken.
When this specific narrative began to circulate, the media and the Tifosi immediately tilted their heads in suspicion. Their internal alarms started ringing. Wait a second. Something about this doesn't smell right.
Whispers. Rumors. Gossip.
You didn't need hard, tangible evidence. Relying solely on shadows and wind, you could inflict massive damage, flip the narrative, upend the balance of power, and assassinate a character without leaving a single trace.
Elkann understood this dark art perfectly.
Therefore, he was brewing a storm. He was carefully laying out his pieces on the board, quietly manipulating the situation from behind the scenes. He was fully aware of all the covert operations being run by Mercedes and Red Bull, and Kai's strategy of waiting for the highest bidder hadn't escaped his notice either.
He had his own calculations.
Signing Kai was absolutely still the plan. Elkann fully grasped Kai's immense value. Whether it was his undeniable, generational talent on the track or his rapidly exploding global prestige off the track, Elkann had no reason to let such a massive asset slip away. Kai was undeniably a critical component of Ferrari's future blueprint.
However, right now... Kai was incredibly dangerous.
He was riding high, flushed with victory, and practically untouchable. His surging, unstoppable momentum was actively destroying the internal balance of power.
Firstly, there was Kai himself. That negotiation in his office had set off massive alarm bells for Elkann. He realized just how sharp Kai's edges truly were. He was aggressively proactive and possessed an unstoppable force of will. Elkann knew, with absolute certainty, that he could not control him.
If Elkann allowed this to continue unchecked, Kai would eventually place himself above the team, and consequently, above Elkann himself. Just like Fernando Alonso had done. Using McLaren's current situation with Alonso as a cautionary tale, Elkann absolutely refused to be reduced to the role of a subservient, groveling yes-man like Zak Brown.
Secondly, there was the Tifosi. The deafening, stadium-shaking chants of "Captain!" during the Abu Dhabi podium ceremony had severely stung Elkann's pride. He had only recently taken control of Ferrari, and he was still desperately struggling to escape the suffocating shadow of Sergio Marchionne. Now, he had to contend with the rapidly expanding shadow of Kai as well. If this continued, he would possess absolutely zero authority. He would be nothing but a figurehead.
When that happened, forget about controlling Ferrari—his position as the head of the entire Fiat Chrysler group could be catastrophically undermined. The circling sharks within the conglomerate's board would show no hesitation or mercy. They would instantly drag him down from the throne.
Therefore, signing Kai was a mandatory objective. That was an undeniable fact; he absolutely could not lose Kai and hand his enemies the ultimate weapon to use against him. But how he signed him, under what conditions he signed him, and most importantly, how he systematically extinguished Kai's overwhelming prestige and momentum before the contract was signed... that was an entirely different matter. He needed to play the long game, carefully navigating an incredibly delicate, invisible line to pull off a masterstroke.
If he succeeded, his position at Ferrari would be unshakeable. He would completely reverse his current predicament, and his path forward would be smooth, unobstructed sailing.
The opportunity was right in front of him—
Ferrari could not be seen as "abandoning" Kai. But if Kai was perceived as "betraying" Ferrari... well, that was an entirely different narrative.
It didn't matter that Kai currently had the power to summon the wind and the rain. It didn't matter that he was universally revered as the "Captain" in Maranello. If Kai betrayed Ferrari at this highly sensitive juncture—much like Luis Figo leaving Barcelona for Real Madrid—he would instantly, overnight, become the most despised, hated figure among the hardcore Tifosi.
Water can carry a boat, but it can also capsize it.
By executing this maneuver, Elkann could violently sever the profound emotional bond between the Tifosi and Kai. He could then use that massive backlash to pressure Nicholas Todt, seizing total control of the subsequent contract negotiations. Then, in a stroke of ultimate brilliance, Elkann would swoop in, successfully renew Kai's contract, quell the massive uproar, and emerge as the undeniable savior of Ferrari. He would then rightfully and firmly take total control of the team.
It was perfect!
Kai was simply too impatient. While winning the World Championship in his rookie season was a miraculous, unprecedented feat that undeniably granted him immense negotiating power, the fundamental truth remained: Kai had only been in the paddock for a single year. His roots were incredibly shallow. Whether it was his connection with the fanbase or his network within the paddock, his foundation wasn't solid yet. For Kai to attempt a massive, balance-destroying power play right now was incredibly dangerous. One wrong move, and he would burn himself alive, single-handedly destroying the phenomenal situation he had built.
Nicholas Todt... was undeniably capable. But Elkann firmly believed he was playing chess on a much higher level.
Elkann had calculated every angle. No one dared to casually enrage the fiercely loyal Tifosi.
Therefore, amidst the surging waves of rumors and chaos, Elkann maintained absolute silence. He actively engaged with Nicholas behind the scenes, projecting the sincere posture of a team desperately trying to renew a contract. But in reality, the actual terms of the contract never progressed. He kept them deliberately stalled, using endless bureaucratic red tape to bog Nicholas down. Elkann was patiently biding his time, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
And then, he leaked the rumor.
Not anger. Not anxiety. But heartbreak. The profound disappointment and loneliness of a team that had offered its sincere, bleeding heart, only to be ruthlessly betrayed. Even though he was the supreme executive wielding the power of life and death over Ferrari, he was still deeply, personally wounded by Kai's "betrayal."
From there, everything would naturally fall into place. He just needed to wait for the Tifosi's inferno of rage to ignite.
The betrayed, deeply hurt, and cast-aside Tifosi would absolutely not swallow their anger. They would never tolerate Kai's perceived arrogance, disrespect, and blatant disregard for the team that built him.
Elkann simply needed to stand in the shadows, gently fan the flames, and give the situation a slight push. The exact scenario he had been agonizingly waiting for would finally materialize.
However—
The situation violently derailed.
"Fuck you, John Elkann!"
"Get the hell out of Maranello, Elkann!"
"Useless! Hypocrite! You are single-handedly destroying Ferrari's future with your own two hands!"
"Liar! Elkann, I don't believe a single word of your absolute garbage!"
"Elkann out!"
The inferno of rage detonated exactly as expected. The Tifosi once again displayed their terrifying, unbelievable power. The sprawling, roaring wave of fury opened its massive, blood-soaked maw. But it didn't aim for Kai.
It swallowed John Elkann alive.
The Tifosi had seen right through Elkann's cheap parlor trick.
Any Tifoso who had personally witnessed the resurrection of the red sea at Monza would never, ever question Kai's loyalty and determination—
Conquering insurmountable odds to win at Monza... fighting until he had bled himself dry in Singapore... standing in silence before the world's media after winning the World Championship in Abu Dhabi...
Kai hadn't won the absolute trust of the Tifosi simply by winning races on the asphalt. He had earned it through his unyielding, ferocious fighting spirit in the face of despair, and his unwavering, stoic determination to carry the heavy burden of Ferrari's legacy on his shoulders.
Those moments, those specific, defining instances, had finally awakened the long-dormant, passionate red spirit of Ferrari. How could the Tifosi possibly forget that? How could their faith be so easily shaken by a cheap rumor?
Whether it was Mercedes-Benz, Red Bull, or McLaren, the only reason they saw an opening to poach Kai wasn't because Kai's loyalty was wavering. It was entirely because of Ferrari's gross incompetence and inaction.
Having lost Sergio Marchionne, Ferrari had immediately retreated back into their cowardly tortoise shell. They clung desperately to their 'tradition,' their 'glory,' and their 'history,' looking down on everyone from their high horse and exposing their arrogant, twisted faces to the world. Kai had fought tooth and nail to drag them out of the darkness and touch a sliver of dawn, and Elkann's immediate reaction was to cower and retreat.
If Elkann wasn't so indecisive and arrogant... If Elkann didn't refuse to accept the reality staring him in the face... If Elkann wasn't terrified that Kai's presence threatened his own pathetic grip on power... Ferrari should have marched up to Kai with a blank check weeks ago, met every single one of his demands, and dropped to their knees to pray he was willing to sign it and continue leading them through the dark.
And now Elkann actually had the sheer audacity to stand there and pretend to be the innocent victim?!
It was a total, humiliating disgrace!
Absolutely no one bought the act.
"This isn't a circus! Stop your pathetic, embarrassing performance!"
The Tifosi gave him no quarter, ruthlessly ripping the hypocritical mask right off Elkann's face.
And they didn't stop there. The Tifosi rose up in righteous indignation, launching massive protests demanding that Ferrari immediately offer Kai a top-tier contract commensurate with his actual value. Stop the whining, stop the cheap haggling, and end this embarrassing farce immediately—
If Kai truly ended up leaving Ferrari, they firmly believed the fault would lie one hundred percent with Ferrari and John Elkann. They refused to direct their anger at the wrong target.
They wouldn't even blame Wolff or Horner. The disaster didn't originate from their rivals; it originated from Elkann. Only Elkann. Elkann would have to bear absolute, total responsibility for the impending catastrophe.
The Tifosi gave Elkann a front-row seat to a masterclass in pure, unadulterated fanaticism.
Clearly, Elkann hadn't anticipated this outcome. He was completely stunned.
Wait, was this right? How had this happened?
...
"Give me my Captain! Elkann out!"
"Protect the best Captain in the world!"
"John Elkann, rip off your lying mask and stop this atrocious performance!"
"Don't treat the Tifosi like idiots."
"We are not your puppets. For the Captain, we will fight to the bitter end."
It was a massive, deafening, earth-shattering roar. The outrage flooded every corner of social media, an overwhelming, magnificent display of sheer force that swept across the internet with the power to swallow mountains and rivers.
The traffic metrics went nuclear.
Within a few short hours, the hashtag #GuardTheCaptain (#守卫队长) surpassed thirty million mentions on social media platforms, spreading with the unstoppable, devastating force of a hurricane.
Elkann was both terrified and furious—
The situation was infinitely more severe than he had imagined. Everything was playing out exactly as he had feared: Kai's momentum and prestige had entirely eclipsed his own, permanently binding Kai's image to the very identity of Ferrari itself.
No, no, no, NO! This was not normal!
Ferrari was supposed to be his Ferrari. John Elkann's Ferrari. Not Kai's Ferrari. When a single driver became larger than the team, or even larger than the brand itself, it signaled the beginning of a catastrophe. As the President, Elkann absolutely could not allow this to happen, let alone actively encourage it.
If Elkann had already cemented his absolute authority—like Sergio Marchionne had—he could have relaxed completely. He could have allowed Kai's image to remain bound to Ferrari, recognizing it as a massive marketing asset. He could have safely stood in the background, controlling the board and weaponizing Kai's prestige to generate immense value for the conglomerate.
But the fatal problem was that Elkann had not secured his position. If Kai ascended to that level of godhood now, it wouldn't just be the Tifosi questioning Elkann's leadership. The board of directors and the senior management team would question him as well. The deeply fractured, warring factions within the Fiat group might slip his leash entirely, dragging the entire organization step-by-step into the abyss.
Damn it!
A toxic cocktail of regret, shame, and blinding fury washed over him. Elkann finally grasped the true depth of the crisis.
Back when Marchionne had passed away, Elkann had made contact with Kai immediately following the memorial service. At that specific moment, he had approached Kai presenting himself as Marchionne's true successor, seeking to build trust and collaboration. If he had firmly and visibly aligned himself behind Kai then, seamlessly stepping into Marchionne's shoes, he could have leveraged Kai's surging momentum to absorb the remnants of Marchionne's loyalist factions and smoothly taken total control of Ferrari.
Unfortunately, he missed the window.
And so, a golden opportunity had mutated into a catastrophic crisis. The real world doesn't offer 'do-overs' or a magical pill for regret.
So, what should he do now?
Before Kai's power solidified enough to pose a genuine, existential threat to his position, should he just take a machete to the tangled mess? Should he ruthlessly and decisively sever the bond, permanently eliminating the threat by shoving Kai straight into the arms of Mercedes-Benz or Red Bull? And then, moving with lightning speed, install a new, compliant 'leader' to act as his personal puppet?
But executing a move that drastic wasn't easy. That level of ruthlessness and decisive action required more than just courage and nerve; it required profound strategic foresight to accurately map the long-term consequences.
Elkann... hesitated.
And in that brief moment of hesitation, the situation deteriorated further.
It didn't stop at social media. The rolling, ferocious heat wave smashed through the digital barriers, crashing into reality with the force of a bursting dam, triggering massive shockwaves in the physical world.
It all started in Maranello. Huge crowds of Tifosi swarmed the gates of the Ferrari base, holding up massive signs reading "Guard the Captain," staging peaceful sit-ins and protests.
In the blink of an eye, the movement spread like wildfire. Protests erupted outside official Ferrari merchandise stores and dealerships in various cities. If a city didn't have a Ferrari dealership, the fans gathered outside Fiat showrooms, regional Ferrari corporate offices, or simply occupied the central town squares. They were determined to force the corporate executives to acknowledge their existence.
Turin. Milan. Rome. Venice. Naples. And on, and on, and on. Across major cities and tiny village piazzas throughout Italy, the Tifosi showed up in physical force. They definitively proved to Ferrari—and to the entire world—the sheer scale and absolute fanaticism of their movement. They proved, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Ferrari was Italy's second religion.
Then, Paris. Berlin. London.
Once it started spreading internationally, there was no stopping it.
And it wasn't just the Tifosi. Casual observers and people who just loved a good spectacle joined the fray. It morphed into a form of global performance art. The younger generation flooded into the movement en masse. Half of them weren't even actively supporting Kai or protesting Elkann; they simply felt the intense heat of the spotlight generated by the massive traffic and threw themselves into the frenzy to be part of the moment.
Shanghai. New York. Los Angeles. São Paulo. Mexico City. Melbourne. Vancouver. Taipei. Singapore. The list was endless. It was blooming everywhere.
Every single corner of the globe was feeling the impact of the shockwave.
And it wasn't just the Tifosi; fans of Mercedes, Red Bull, Renault, Williams, and McLaren all started jumping into the chaotic mosh pit.
After all, they didn't care how big the fire got. They eagerly poured gasoline on the flames, aggressively encouraging Kai: "Leave Ferrari immediately!" "A team that doesn't trust you isn't worth staying with!" "If they don't know how to cherish the only rookie World Champion in the history of the sport, there's absolutely no reason to stick around."
Blah, blah, blah.
One by one, they all started offering Kai unsolicited strategic advice. Then, feigning complete objectivity, they would casually suggest which team was actually Kai's best option.
However, the facade didn't last long. The other fanbases quickly ripped off their masks, exposing the reality: everyone was just desperately trying to recruit Kai to their own team.
And the Mercedes-Benz fans were no exception.
Just a few days prior, those same fanatical Mercedes fans had been relentlessly attacking Kai like rabid dogs. They had spent every waking hour viciously insulting, belittling, and slandering him. Yet now, they executed a flawless, magnificent pivot, transforming instantly into the ultimate sycophants. They eagerly wagged their tails, begging Kai to join the Silver Arrows—
Their mouths said no, but their bodies were incredibly honest.
No wonder they were all using burner accounts and fake profiles. It seemed they still possessed a tiny shred of shame.
Amidst the roasting, the jokes, and the chaotic noise, the Mercedes fans eventually stopped pretending. Since their blatant hypocrisy regarding the Ocon situation had already resulted in a massive, humiliating public slapping, they decided they might as well go all in. If Kai actually joined Mercedes-Benz and partnered with Hamilton... it would literally be a modern-day Prost vs. Senna. Who could possibly say no to that?!
"I get it, you guys are just jealous. Kai is one hundred percent going to choose Mercedes-Benz anyway. Red Bull has zero chance. You're all just losing your minds with envy right now."
"If I were Kai, I'd choose Mercedes-Benz with my eyes closed. Mercedes is the only team in the paddock worthy of his talent. The rest of you are delusional."
"When Mercedes steps onto the battlefield, who can possibly compete? Forget about the rest of you, even Ferrari doesn't stand a chance. Hehe, are your stomachs hurting from all the jealousy yet?"
The cards were on the table. The Mercedes fans stopped pretending. One by one, they ripped off their masks, threw away their dignity, and started aggressively waving the Kai banner, shouting his name at the top of their lungs.
Seeing this spectacle, the Red Bull and McLaren fans laughed so hard they couldn't breathe.
"You guys should probably worry about Lewis. His face is probably green right now sitting at home watching this."
"Does Lewis know you guys are out here acting like desperate simps on the internet?"
"If Kai actually joins Mercedes, I bet Lewis is going to drop his 'elegant gentleman' act real quick. Hahaha, this is hilarious."
Mockery. Sarcasm. Laughter. Curses.
The netizens showed absolutely no mercy in their roasting. Then, finding any available opening, they enthusiastically argued that Red Bull/McLaren/Williams was obviously Kai's superior choice. Even the fans of Force India and Renault couldn't handle being left out, jumping into the fray to collectively mock Mercedes for their shameless pandering.
Clearly, this was rapidly evolving into the ultimate, defining cultural event of the year. It was a massive, collective carnival, and absolutely no one wanted to miss the party.
The boiling adrenaline generated by witnessing history at the season finale hadn't fully subsided yet. Seizing this unexpected opportunity, everyone unleashed their remaining energy. The fire roared to life, spreading aggressively across the digital landscape, and even completely clueless bystanders found themselves engulfed by the overwhelming heatwave.
A global carnival!
However, this was still not the end.
...
The times produce their heroes—
When the timing, the environment, and the human elements perfectly align, a seemingly minor incident can snowball out of control, mutating into a global hurricane in the blink of an eye. The individual who rises to meet that moment, seizing the opportunity to scale the absolute summit, becomes the defining leader of the era, standing at the apex of the torrential current and single-handedly carving out a brand new world.
That was exactly what was happening right now.
Forget about Elkann; not even Kai himself could have predicted this. A standard contract negotiation, riding the massive tailwinds of the recently concluded season, had unexpectedly mutated into the most colossal, mainstream cultural crossover event before the 2019 season had even officially begun.
After all, no matter how you sliced it, wins and losses on an F1 track were still fundamentally about race cars and competitive sports. Their reach outside the motorsport bubble was inherently limited. But contract negotiations involved raw numbers, corporate power, and perceived value. For the general public, the gossip value was entirely different. Even if someone knew absolutely nothing about Formula 1, an annual salary in the tens of millions of dollars delivered an undeniable, universal shock value.
Furthermore, a lack of F1 knowledge didn't matter. NBA salaries, massive transfer fees in the top five European football leagues, supermodel earnings, Hollywood actor paychecks... everyone had their own area of expertise. All you had to do was pull up those numbers and compare them. The gossip generated itself, sparking endless, fiery debates.
Consequently, the runaway train completely lost its brakes. The heat continued to rise, and the shockwave continued to expand.
When John Elkann saw a Fox News broadcast showing a lone researcher at a remote Antarctic research station hoisting a massive Prancing Horse flag alongside a sign reading "Guard the Captain," he finally, truly understood that the situation was catastrophically out of his control.
This was no longer just about supporting Kai. "Supporting Kai" had merely become an excuse—a convenient entry ticket to join a massive, global piece of performance art. It was an excuse for the younger generation to farm engagement, chase traffic, and command attention on social media.
The horse had long since bolted from the stable—
Whether it was Elkann or Kai, they had both been reduced to mere symbols. Neither of them possessed the power to control the narrative or stop the tidal wave crashing down around them.
The entire event had reached an unfathomable, staggering peak. The boiling heatwaves and the deafening noise blanketed every single corner of the globe.
So, what now?
—Stupefied.
Literally, just a temporary state of absolute, blank stupefaction. The brain ceased to function. Even standing dead center in the middle of it all, it was impossible to comprehend exactly how things had escalated to this point.
Elkann... had missed the final window to take a machete to the tangled mess. He had watched helplessly as a single spark ignited a global inferno. If he recklessly flipped the table now and completely severed ties with Kai, the board of directors would almost certainly call an emergency meeting the very next day and strip him of his presidency.
Cooperation. That was the only viable path left on the board.
What made it infinitely worse was that the longer he delayed, the heavier Kai's bargaining chips became. Kai could literally ask for the moon and the stars. If Elkann simply bowed his head and agreed to everything, Kai and the Tifosi would be thrilled, but the board of directors would be absolutely furious with Elkann's weak, spineless display of endless capitulation.
In other words, left was a dead end, and right was a cliff. Elkann was trapped in a brutal, suffocating paradox where every possible move alienated a critical faction—
How the hell had things spiraled to this point?!
Right now, Elkann genuinely wanted to physically flip his desk. He no longer cared about elegance or his carefully cultivated image. Only unfiltered profanity and sheer violence could adequately vent the furious, burning fire in his chest.
However, Elkann ultimately proved why he was the chosen heir to the Fiat empire. In an incredibly short span of time, he forcefully suppressed all his rage and profound humiliation. What truly mattered right now wasn't his personal pride, but resolving the existential crisis staring him in the face.
As long as he successfully navigated this disaster, he could still turn the tide. He could still manipulate this crisis into a golden opportunity for metamorphosis.
Only by surviving the absolute worst storms and proving his mettle under extreme fire could he truly justify his position as the supreme head of the Fiat Group. Otherwise, even with his grandfather's explicit appointment, taking total control of the conglomerate's central power structure would still guarantee a bloody, brutal internal war. This was his ultimate opportunity to establish his absolute authority.
Interests above all else. Everything is driven by capital. When the interests of a driver conflict with the interests of the team, the driver is expendable—even a reigning World Champion like Lewis Hamilton. Similarly, when the overarching interests of the team are threatened, anything can be compromised and anything can be negotiated. Even if it required Elkann to lower his noble, aristocratic head and humbly beg for forgiveness.
Therefore, this was the exact moment for Elkann to display his true executive ruthlessness.
However.
Reality is always cruel. When it rains, it pours. Disasters rarely arrive individually; they pile up, dragging you down into a freefall until you finally smash into rock bottom.
Just when Elkann was convinced the situation was an absolute, irredeemable catastrophe and couldn't possibly deteriorate any further, a brand new entry was added to the paddock's roaring rumor mill—
Rumor: The contract negotiations between Mercedes-Benz and Sebastian Vettel had entered the final, critical stage regarding the financial offer. The two parties had already reached a broad consensus on all other terms and conditions. The salary figure was the final hurdle. The moment both sides nodded, it was a done deal. Next season, Vettel would don the silver race suit to fight side-by-side with Lewis Hamilton.
Elkann: ...
This time, Elkann wasn't the only one. Without exception, the entire paddock completely lost the ability to process information. Everyone stood there, jaws unhinged, staring in blank, utter disbelief.
Wait, what was going on with Ferrari? And what the hell was going on with Mercedes-Benz?!
If you argued that Ferrari was trapped in chaotic turmoil because of Sergio Marchionne's sudden death, that was at least somewhat understandable. But what was the excuse for Mercedes-Benz, a team that had been enjoying smooth sailing and perfect internal harmony? How had their driver selection process suddenly devolved into an absolute circus? Did Toto Wolff get water on the brain? Or had the trauma of losing the Drivers' World Championship driven him clinically insane?
Bottas. Russell. Kai.
Three drivers fighting for a single seat at Mercedes-Benz was already a chaotic, boiling mess. And now they were actively throwing Sebastian Vettel into the meat grinder to stir the pot even further?!
What the actual hell was going on? It honestly seemed like someone was terrified the world wasn't chaotic enough. What exactly was Wolff calculating in the dark? Which rumors were fact, and which were fiction? Truth and lies were inextricably tangled together. Even the oldest, most cynical foxes in the paddock were currently spinning in circles, completely unable to find true north.
Christian Horner: ...Haha. HAHAHAHAHAHA.
For years, Ferrari and Mercedes-Benz had sat perched on their high horses, sneering down at the internal power struggles tearing Red Bull apart. Horner and Marko were locked in a perpetual, exhausting war for dominance. But looking at the current landscape, Ferrari and Mercedes were in exactly the same boat. Their own backyards were completely engulfed in flames.
On one side was Ferrari. Clearly, Vettel was completely fed up with the circus surrounding Kai. Because his status within the team was rapidly being marginalized, he simply didn't want to stick around anymore.
If they weren't extremely careful, Ferrari could be facing the catastrophic reality of losing both their drivers simultaneously. That was infinitely more terrifying than Rosberg's sudden betrayal of Wolff. In the middle of the off-season, amidst the brutal, blood-soaked warfare currently raging across the paddock, Ferrari's hopes, their renaissance, and their championship dreams for the next season would be instantly reduced to a pile of shattered glass.
Before the new season had even begun, Ferrari was on the verge of total, absolute annihilation.
On the other side was Mercedes-Benz. The widespread assumption had always been that Wolff maintained absolute control. Bottas, Kai, Russell—how that situation played out depended entirely on Wolff's whim. But Vettel's sudden, explosive entry into the narrative implied that Mercedes was not a monolithic, unified front. It suggested Wolff was facing serious internal challenges to his authority.
Otherwise, Vettel's name wouldn't be in the mix. First, you wouldn't seriously consider Vettel and Kai simultaneously. Second, you wouldn't consider Vettel and Bottas simultaneously. From a pure, strategic team-building perspective, it made zero sense. In fact, it was entirely contradictory.
Unless—
Either Vettel or Kai was an elaborate smokescreen.
If the Vettel rumor was the smokescreen, it was designed to sow chaos and confusion, intentionally setting fire to Ferrari's backyard. Wolff likely calculated that Elkann would prioritize securing Vettel. When forced to choose between a four-time World Champion and a one-time World Champion, Mercedes historically leaned toward youth and potential, while Ferrari invariably leaned toward experience, prestige, and established legacy. By creating that diversion, Mercedes could use the ensuing chaos to quietly lock down Kai.
Or, perhaps Kai was the actual smokescreen. What if Wolff's entire song and dance was a massive, multi-layered chess game? What if he was secretly securing Vettel in the shadows, aiming to build the ultimate 'Avengers' alliance by pairing two four-time World Champions—Vettel and Hamilton? Next season, they would unite to launch a devastating revenge campaign against Kai. If that were true, it would showcase Wolff's terrifying, transcendent strategic brilliance, allowing him to laugh triumphantly as the rest of the paddock burned.
It was just a tiny seed of a thought, but once planted, it grew wildly out of control.
It was impossible to stop. The paranoia infected every single corner of the paddock. Everyone was jumping at shadows, terrified of their own reflections.