Chapter 55 I'm Never Playing with Abstract Things Again
Joss is a very strict person, no matter who he is dealing with. He doesn't have a very good temper either, and bringing up things from long ago can cause his emotions to fluctuate greatly.
However, when facing Wu Shi, he began to restrain this side of himself.
As a former F1 driver, Joss has an exceptionally strong understanding of karting. Therefore, during last year's race, he kept observing Wu Shi and discovered that Wu Shi's racing style differed from his understanding of karting.
These differences are what make Max, even at his best, always fall short of Wu Shi's level.
After realizing this, his approach to Max's upbringing changed. If Max failed to meet his expectations, he would still treat his biological son harshly and demandingly.
But if Max meets his requirements, he will look for his own problems and the possibilities shown in Wu Shi, rather than simply blaming Max.
"Of course I'm also looking forward to the race against Max. Few people can make me show my full potential on the track," Wu Shi said.
"Haha, wanna go get some pizza tonight?" Joss chuckled, his mindset subtly shifting, revealing a gentler side of him outside of racing.
"No problem." Wu Shi nodded.
Aunt Martina had something to do today and has already rushed back to Maranello, while Sid is still on his way, so he is currently alone in this place.
Louise originally wanted to stay with him, but CRG obviously wouldn't allow a non-team member to stay there.
Two months passed quickly, and it was March. Most of the various competitions this year started around this time, with the WSK Europa Series being the first to begin.
The karting races organized by WSK are of a similar level of prestige to the continental series or championships in Europe, and they attract a great deal of attention.
Originally, Wu Shi's age was too young to participate in the KF3 race – his birthday is December 3rd, and he would not turn twelve until December of this year. The organizers believed that he was too young and that participating in the KF3 race might be risky.
At this point, the CRG team leader and his agent, Sid, immediately stepped in to negotiate, presenting all of his achievements since he started karting in 2007.
From the China CKC tournament and the Italia ACI tournament to the Belgium KF5 series, a long list of championship titles is enough to prove his skill level.
The organizers eventually agreed to let him participate in the KF3 series, but he needs to pass the qualification verification.
This is just making trouble out of nothing. The so-called qualification verification has no regulations or provisions at all; it's purely making things difficult for people.
Fortunately, this so-called qualification verification actually allowed him to successfully pass the round-robin stage in the first match and enter the preliminary and final rounds.
The WSK series uses a similar format to the CKC. First, there will be a qualifying round, with the top 72 riders divided into four to six groups. Then, there will be a round-robin tournament within each group, and finally, 32 to 34 riders will be selected to enter the finals.
In other words, Wu Shi had to enter the preliminary and final rounds in the first competition to qualify for the next round, which was simply pointless and unnecessary.
His only goal in participating in the competition is to win the championship. If he can't even get into the preliminaries or finals, then he should go to the lower divisions to practice before coming back.
The WSK Europa Series consists of five races, three in Italie, one in Spain, and one in Belgium. It feels like the addition of the last two tracks was to prove that this is an intercontinental series rather than a national series.
The first race will begin on March 4 at the La Conca International Karting Circuit in Muro Leccese, Italy.
Wu Shi arrived at the track wearing the CRG team uniform, which was black with silver decorative fabric on the shoulders and elbows.
"Wu Shi, you have so many sponsors on your clothes." Pan Zi looked at his clothes and saw that there were only the three letters CRG on the front of his chest, and the rest of the clothes were just background colors.
"Well, it's mainly some merchants in Italie. You know, Italie has many famous go-kart brands, and some of the products they sell don't overlap with CRG, so they're allowed to print them," Wu Shi explained.
"Oh! That big red bird under the CRG is really nice, which brand is it from?"
"this?"
Wu Shi pointed to the logo on his abdomen and said, "This is an airline from my motherland. They sponsored me, and I can't forget them."
"Wow! That's great! A company in the Netherlands is sponsoring me, but I don't know the specifics yet. My father just told me to focus on driving well in the go-kart."
"Yes, our main focus right now is to run the go-karts well. Let the adults worry about the rest." Wu Shi waved his hand, knowing that sponsorship is an issue that a racer can never avoid.
In their youth, sponsorship is a source of support or financial backing; when they showcase their talent, sponsorship can help them join better teams.
"I will attack you in this race and win the championship!" Pan Zi is a racing fanatic, and his fighting spirit for driving has never waned. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why he can tolerate Qiao Si's harsh training.
"Okay, I'll be waiting for you at the finish line. Don't forget, this is Italy, my home ground!" Wu Shi laughed heartily.
However, his laughter was cut short after only a couple of seconds, because he didn't realize that a microphone had been placed next to him.
"Oh! Wu Shi, I just heard you say that Italy is your home turf?" The reporter seized the opportunity to press the issue.
Wu Shi's smile froze quickly. It was a sensitive question, not so serious as to be considered serious. He hated answering it, but he had to try his best to answer it, otherwise the reporter would embellish the story and make it even harder to explain.
He thought for a moment and said, "I am Chinese, and China is my home ground forever; but in Italie, my karting skills have been honed, and I expect to continue racing here until I reach a higher level. I think Italie is also my home ground compared to drivers from other countries and regions in Europe."
"Oh! Yes, Itali is delighted to have such a talented driver as you. You may not know this, but your fans in the stands have already raised flags for you," the reporter said.
Wu Shi blinked. He really didn't know that. How could a go-kart have fans?
Because he was in the pit lane preparing for the start of the race, he couldn't leave and didn't know what was going on. All he could say was, "Ah, I'm surprised by this, but I'm very grateful to every fan who supports me."
The reporter then praised him a few more times before going to interview the other drivers.
"It seems you're quite popular with the Italians," Max said after the interview.
"They probably consider me one of their own, after all, I made my name here, and my team is all Italian."
Wu Shi did not mention Martina, his Italian stepmother. He had just said that Italy was his home turf, which was partly due to his aunt Martina. His father had already married her, so legally speaking, he was practically half Italian.
Of course, while saying these words, he was actually thinking of Piastrelli, who claimed to be one-sixteenth Chinese. He had always found it quite amusing that this guy claimed to be at home wherever he went.
Hopefully, he won't be criticized by the media for his casual remarks; otherwise, he'll have to release a tearful video saying, "I'll never do abstract art again."