Chapter 81: Signing it wouldn't be a loss.
Wu Shi wasted no time and arrived in Maranello that very night.
Sid had already rented a hotel here. After meeting, he said, "This was a sudden notification, but I have already contacted Martina. According to her, it may be due to some internal strife in Rafa."
So what should we do tomorrow?
"No need to do much, just remember that we only want tangible benefits, not any promises."
Wu Shi did not sleep well that night, his mind filled with many thoughts.
But no matter how much you think about it, what's meant to happen will happen.
The next day, the group met in a conference room at the Lafa headquarters in Maranello. Montezemolo sat alone, with no one else around him.
Wu Shi and Sid came in to greet them.
"Sit down." Montezemolo, who could be calm, was somewhat fierce. He put down the documents in his hand and said, "I asked Martina to come too, but she said she wanted to avoid suspicion, so let's talk here as the three of us."
Wu Shi and Sid nodded, waiting for what was to come.
"I watched your race in Florida and you performed exceptionally well. I imagine many F3 teams must already be in contact with you, right?" Montezemolo asked.
"Of course, Prema Powerteam① has already contacted us, and Mercedes is also interested in having us join Prema."
Negotiations are essentially about each side revealing their cards, taking turns making moves, and finally reaching an agreement.
The Prema team that Sid mentioned has won the FIA Europa Formula 3 Championship team title in 2012 and 2013, making it one of the strongest teams.
Of course, Prema is just a superficial card; it's a team that's not in F1 and doesn't have much negotiating value. So, the focus of Sid's words was Mercedes.
As Prema's engine supplier, Mercedes has considerable influence in recommending candidates for the Prema team.
By bringing this up, Sid was telling Montezemolo that not only Rafa had seen Wu Shi's strength, but Mercedes had as well.
"Yes, that's normal. You should be well aware of Wu Shi's strength. In these matches where the difference should be a few hundredths of a second, he was able to lead by a full second. I think he must have his own unique strengths."
Montezemolo openly acknowledged Wu Shi's potential and stated bluntly: "I have high hopes for him, and I don't want to beat around the bush here. I hope he joins our F1 team."
Sid and Wu Shi were stunned when they heard this.
No, we only used a basic attack, why did you unleash your ultimate skill?
Seeing the two's shock, Montezemolo smiled and said to Wu Shi, "However, my conditions are also very demanding. You must win the F3 Rookie of the Year award this year."
"I"
Wu Shi had just started to speak when Montezemolo interrupted him, saying, "I don't think this will be difficult for you. Although F3 racing is always full of collisions and accidents, I believe you can handle them, right?"
Without waiting for a response, he added, "So what I really want is to get 21 wins this season."
"Hiss!" Wu Shi and Sid gasped at the same time.
The schedule for the 2014 FIA Formula 3 European Championship has already been set, with a total of eleven tracks and thirty-three races.
Winning 21 out of 33 games may seem easy, but it is actually very difficult.
First, there's the issue of car stability. You might have to retire from four or five races in a season, and that doesn't even take into account the probability of being hit by another car.
Secondly, at the F3 level, there are no weak players. Any mistake could easily cost you your position, let alone a win.
But no matter how improbable the request seemed, and no one in history had ever achieved such a feat, Wu Shi was determined to bite the bullet and agree.
Sid stopped him, saying, "You know, this is completely impossible."
"Yes, it is precisely because this request is extraordinary that I was able to sign it." Montezemolo crossed his legs, waiting for a reply, not at all like someone leaving room for negotiation.
Sid, of course, wasn't going to let it go so easily, so he was about to say a few more words when he heard a loud knocking on the door.
"Please come in," Montezemolo said.
A man wearing black-rimmed glasses and with a slightly balding head walked in.
"Domenicali?!" Sid exclaimed in surprise, immediately summoning the team leader.
"Hello," Domenicali greeted, laying out the prepared contract.
Sid quickly scanned the document; there weren't many complicated terms. As long as Wu Shi achieved 21 victories, Lafayette would help Wu Shi secure a 2015 F1 seat.
Of course, this also clearly indicates that the seats are not for the LaFerrari, but rather for its customer's team.
After all, the LaFerrari is currently paired with Kimi Räikkönen and Fernando Alonso, so there is no shortage of top drivers.
"I only need one of these two responses: agree or disagree. If you say anything else, I will assume that you have rejected the contract." Montezemolo raised his wrist and checked the time.
Sid looked at Wu Shi, who was reading the contract. He had actually wanted to agree for a long time, but he was thinking that Sid's arrival might allow them to discuss things a bit. Even for him, winning twenty-one victories was not a sure thing.
As you can see, the series he just went through was full of surprises, causing him to lose two championships. This was mainly because the series was primarily for practice and not a tournament, so it did not count actual points.
Now that Sid is too afraid to speak, it's only natural that he can come.
"I agree." Wu Shi looked up at Montezemolo.
"very good!"
Montezemolo smiled, handed over a pen, and said, "You can sign now, but I hope this cooperation is aboveboard. You should be on that Dutch team now, right?"
"Yes."
Wu Shi understood what Chairman LaFerrari meant: he shouldn't think about switching teams for convenience, since Prema's overall cars are better, which is something the driver can't change; it's determined by capital.
After the two left, Montezemolo asked Domenicali, "Do you think he can fulfill this request?"
"Of course not." Domenicali shook his head without hesitation, saying, "If it were possible, this contract wouldn't have been approved and drafted."
Montezemolo smiled, which was why he didn't try to bargain with Sid; he couldn't bargain.
Just as they stepped out of the Rafah gate, they bumped into Martina, who was returning. Seeing their unhappy faces, she asked, "Didn't you reach an agreement?"
"It's settled." Sid took out the contract and showed it to Martina.
After scanning the area, Martina shook her head and said, "They never intended for this contract to take effect."
"It's not a loss to sign it." Wu Shi had figured it out, so he spoke more casually.
①Prema Powerteam: A team using Mercedes engines; they dominated the FIA Formula 3 European Championship from 2012 to 2018, while the drivers' championship was only won once, in 2017 by Lando Norris of the Carlin team. The above data is from wiki; team points are calculated by adding the points of the two drivers with the highest scores.