Chapter 30 Hamilton Bend
With 42 laps remaining, Hamilton entered the pit lane.
"What kind of tire does he want to change?!"
Wu Shi was excited, knowing that no one on the field had moved yet, and the racing lines on the track were almost dry, making the rain tires prone to overheating.
The vehicle drove in, but instead of a mechanic changing the tire, they simply inserted a hose into the top of the rear cargo box.
"Holy crap, keep it up!"
Upon seeing this scene, Wu Shi exclaimed that he had never seen anything like it before.
When he participated in F1, refueling had been canceled for quite some time, and this strange scene amused him greatly.
"A typhoon warning has been issued," Wu Zhenlin said, taking out his phone.
"Typhoon Rosa?" Wu Shi asked.
Before coming to Shanghai, I heard that a typhoon was coming and I almost missed my flight.
As the group chatted, a bright red F1 car drove into the pit area; it was Massa.
Based on his previous experience, Wu Shi guessed that they were probably here to cheer each other on.
Under the gloomy sky, no team dared to switch to dry tires.
If Wu Shi were to make the decision, he would definitely try switching to dry tires to improve his lap time. After all, he's already here to refuel, so why not give it a try?
With Hamilton and Massa entering the track to cheer them on, the battle on the track took a new turn.
When the pack is in a chaotic battle at the back, you also need to be prepared to give way if you get lapped.
This struggle didn't last long; the traffic became clear again, and vehicles kept pulling into the station to refuel, but no one changed their tires.
"It's rare to see an F1 car changing lanes left or right while speeding along a straight."
Wu Shi said that this scene can only be seen when driving on semi-dry and semi-wet roads with rain tires. It is much more interesting to the senses than driving with laps on the racing lines.
Especially when a vehicle drives across the water and kicks up a mist, you can best feel the speed and power of the vehicle.
"Will it rain again?" Louise asked.
"The weather forecast says yes." Wu Zhenlin glanced at the forecast.
"It's probably unreliable," Wu Shi shook his head, "Weather forecasts are rarely accurate."
With 33 laps remaining, a Red Bull pitted and changed to dry tires.
"They should have switched to dry tires a long time ago! A few seconds of extra speed per lap would have made up for it long ago," Wu Shi commented.
"But there's still water in the bend," Louise said.
"The racing lines are all dry. The only chance of running over the water in the corners is when overtaking." Wu Shi had barely finished speaking when data appeared on the large display screen. He pointed and said, "The fastest lap has been achieved! It was done on soft, dry tires!"
"Will it get faster and faster later on?"
"certainly."
As track conditions improve, the advantages of dry tires will become increasingly apparent.
While the group was chatting, a BMW pulled into the station to have its tire changed.
Wu Shi looked around, and from the grandstand on the straightaway, he could enjoy watching every F1 car pass by.
Teams like TOYOTA, HONDA, BMW (Sauber), and Spyker gradually withdrew from F1 racing, so seeing them compete together is undoubtedly a historically significant event.
Before the three laps were even over, a light rain began to fall.
Shortly after, a shot appeared on the big screen, seemingly from Hamilton's first-person perspective, showing raindrops falling continuously.
"Oh dear, those cars in front must have lost a fortune!" Louise shook her head.
"Haha, yes." Wu Shi laughed. That's how it is when you fight against fate; unknown variables always bring a lot of fun.
"A lot of vehicles are starting to skid?" Wu Zhenlin looked at the bends on both sides.
Even vehicles that haven't switched to dry tires are more slippery because the rain tires are worn out and can no longer effectively drain water.
"yes"
Just as Wu Shi opened his mouth, a car slid off the track and crashed into the wall with a bang. Fortunately, the speed was not high, and only the rear wing was damaged.
Meanwhile, Kimi has caught up with Hamilton.
"It slipped!"
The little guy's rain tires were almost completely worn out and couldn't hold up at all; he started to slip as soon as he entered a corner.
I thought Kimi was about to surpass him, but unexpectedly, Kimi slipped when he came out of the corner.
"The tires are completely worn out!"
"It's too dangerous," Wu Zhenlin said again.
"Dad, look, there's a Red Bull over there."
"I saw it."
"This is an extreme sport," Wu Shi said.
"Wow!!!"
Suddenly, cheers erupted from the track as Hamilton and Kimi simultaneously turned the final corner.
"Are you going to make your move?"
"No, it's still not enough."
The McLaren and LaFerrari, ranked first and second respectively, were neck and neck all the way, and even when they drove on straightaways, a considerable number of people were watching the scene on the big screen.
"Passed!"
"sharp!"
Wu Shi remarked that the wheel-to-wheel performances of the older generation of drivers were truly captivating.
He felt his blood boiling, his hands itching unbearably, and he wished he could go down and drive it himself.
"Why hasn't he gone back to change the tire yet?"
Louise had excellent visibility; she could see that Hamilton's rear tires were in a terrible state.
"have no idea."
On lap 31, Hamilton finally had to pit for tires.
Wu Shi subconsciously focused his attention.
"Wow! He's skidding! He can't turn! Oh no! He's gone off the track!"
Louise gasped in disbelief, covering her mouth.
"I'm stuck." Wu Shi clenched his fist. Hamilton, who was stuck in the gravel area and unable to move, had to withdraw from the race.
"Hamilton Bend," he murmured. History seemed to have changed, but it had come full circle.
"Hamilton Bend? I think it should be called Hamilton Bend!" a fan shouted from the side.
"What a pity!!" the fans lamented.
On the next lap, Kimi pitted and just then saw the tow truck arrive to lift Hamilton's car away.
It's a pity I didn't have a camera, otherwise I could have taken a picture and made it a "world-famous painting".
The following matches were almost entirely a battle between Massa and Alonso.
Having already witnessed the scene he most wanted to see, Wu Shi found it rather dull, as he preferred to drive it himself rather than watch.
How can people outside the race track truly understand the thrill of that life-or-death speed?
"Is that a BMW? Is it withdrawing from the race too?" Louise shook her head, quite disappointed, as she saw a BMW Sobo drive onto the grass and slowly glide down.
"Mom, why do you tell me not to step on the grass, but that car can still drive right over it?" a childish voice asked.
"Pfft~"
Wu Shi couldn't hold back any longer upon hearing this, and Kubica, sitting in the BMW, wondered if he would slam his steering wheel upon hearing it.
I had a car problem and drove onto the grass to retire from the race. Instead of asking me what was wrong with the BMW's gearbox, you asked me why I stepped on the grass?
"What are you laughing at?" Louise asked curiously.
Wu Shi repeated the child's words, and by the way, he mentioned that in China, there are signs everywhere prohibiting people from stepping on the grass, such as "The grass is swaying gently, please be careful" and "Less footprints, more fragrance."
"That's strange." Louise scratched her head.
"What's wrong?"
"Isn't lawn meant to be walked on?" Louise said.
"no the same."
Wu Shi shook his head. There are too many people in the country. If parks and green spaces are trampled on at will, they will soon be ruined.
Ring ring~
Just then, Wu Zhenlin's cell phone rang.
"Hello?"
"Oh, okay, I'll ask him."
Wu Shi looked at his father, wondering what was going on.
"It was a reporter from Zhi who called. They've qualified for PIT and are asking if you're interested, as they can write an article about it," Wu Zhenlin said.
"Go!" Wu Shi nodded.
"I want to go too!" Louise didn't understand what Uncle Wu was saying, but if Wu Shi was going, she wanted to go with him.