Car Racing without Money-Chapter 439 - 175: Drivers Must Adapt to Their Cars (Part 4)

Chapter 439: Chapter 175: Drivers Must Adapt to Their Cars (Part 4)

Chen Xiangbei made no response to this and chose to acquiesce.

In a certain sense, he agreed with part of Briatore’s concept that if a driver cannot even adapt to his own car and achieve the fastest limit speed, all the special care given will belong to the category of the hopeless.

Just like how the Red Bull Racing Team frantically changes drivers; whether or not it’s a "specialized car", if you can’t adapt to the car and keep up with Verstappen, you still need to leave.

No team will specially make a "specialized car" for you.

As everyone was discussing, the lap speeds of the first batch of teams for winter testing at the Catalonia Circuit had already surfaced.

Big teams like Ferrari, Renault, Mercedes, McLaren and others completed equipment installation and debugging first by virtue of their personnel advantage, among which Mercedes’ driver Nico Rosberg was the fastest, with a time of 1 minute 20 seconds 953 milliseconds.

Seeing this number, Chen Xiangbei was a bit stunned.

You have to know that when he tested at the Catalonia Circuit previously, his fastest lap time with the old RA108 was 1 minute 21 seconds 435 milliseconds.

At that time, this lap speed was 0.4 seconds slower compared to Barrichello’s fastest speed with the same model car last year.

And now it’s 0.5 seconds slower right from the start?

During these times, the driver’s lap times are mostly for testing, helping the team’s researchers collect data.

Because this is definitely not the limit of this car.

Chen Xiangbei was somewhat uncertain whether the cars were faster this year, or if the realm of F1 was truly terrifying!

"North, do you have the confidence to surpass this Rosberg?"

Hua Bu looked at the lap speed on the screen, asking with a playful expression.

Facing this question, Chen Xiangbei did not answer immediately.

To be honest, he was not completely confident.

After all, his fastest lap was only 1 minute 21 seconds 435 milliseconds, and wanting to directly improve by over 0.5 seconds in a single lap on a brand new car without an adaptation process is very difficult.

Externally, Chen Xiangbei would definitely not show weakness; he would certainly give an affirmative response, emphasizing not losing face.

Internally, he had to be more pragmatic, not needing to hang grandiose words on his lips at all times.

"We’ve just started winter testing; there’s no need to compete for the fastest lap speed."

The nearby Odetto refuted, feeling Briatore truly didn’t treat the drivers as humans.

He could understand calibrating according to the car’s fastest speed plan, but if you want Chen Xiangbei, a novice, to run the fastest lap, you should at least give him some adaptation time.

Even Odetto, who was usually relatively aggressive and had previously persuaded Chen Xiangbei to abandon conservatism, thought Briatore’s ideas were somewhat excessive.

"Just give it a try."

Hua Bu smiled.

Then he said to Chen Xiangbei, "North, this German guy took your seat at Mercedes; don’t you want to prove you’re faster and stronger than him?"

Chen Xiangbei’s "entanglements and grudges" with Brawn GP were well understood by Briatore during this period.

With Button and Barrichello both leaving, and Schumacher joining, one seat theoretically remained contestable for Chen Xiangbei.

But Nico Rosberg "cut through the love", winning Mercedes’ strong support to get the seat unsurprisingly based on his German origins and being a second-generation racer.

To be honest, Chen Xiangbei didn’t see Rosberg as an "enemy". He had already abandoned the idea of joining Mercedes at that time and was planning to unite domestic capital to invest in an F1 team.

However, Hua Bu was unaware of this and still tried to stir things up to evoke a good show.

In the F1 Paddock, nothing stimulates drivers’ potential more easily than a "grudge match".

If anything does, it would probably be the championship competition.

"Alright, then just give it a try."

This time, Chen Xiangbei did not decline, and with a playful smile on his face, he agreed.

It wasn’t about seeking "revenge" against Rosberg but about establishing his reputation with Briatore.

Chen Xiangbei already felt that the Italian old rogue genuinely treated him like a rookie, starting to employ various PUA tactics.

Hua Bu, unlike leaders like Odetto and Ross Brown, who utilized his iron hand to integrate various forces within the team without a problem, definitely couldn’t be manipulated like that; this old rogue truly could sell drivers and count money.

But Hua Bu equally had an advantage; once he identified a driver, he would support them wholeheartedly, just like Alonso in the past!

With no further words, Chen Xiangbei put on his helmet after his remark and then sat in the cockpit of the TF110.

The lubricants were already preheated; accompanied by the rotation of the starting motor, the Toyota RVX-09 engine roared angrily.

Chen Xiangbei didn’t know if it was his illusion, but he felt it was more powerful than the RA108!

"North, be safe,"

Sawano Hiroyuki reminded, as even Odetto couldn’t change Hua Bu’s strong stance, so he definitely had no say.

"I will."

"Go for it."

"Go for it."

The team members inside the repair station all encouraged Chen Xiangbei.

Even the nearby Trulli stood at the door watching Chen Xiangbei, curious about what speed this newcomer from China could achieve.

With one foot down on the accelerator, the TF110 car drove out of the P room and into the circuit as Chen Xiangbei performed a warm-up lap.

Perhaps it’s the common style of Japanese cars, but even though it was his first time driving the TF110, Chen Xiangbei didn’t feel any particularly awkward spots, almost as if there was an inexplicable sense of familiarity.

At this moment, Schumacher from the nearby Mercedes Team also came out, watching Chen Xiangbei’s car as it departed with a pondering expression.

"How curious are you about North?"

Ross Brown asked bluntly, speaking directly as they were long-time friends.

"Mm, this newcomer is very strong."

Schumacher nodded; he had competed alongside Chen Xiangbei in the ROC National Cup, and the more top-tier the driver, the more they could sense the opponent’s strength.

Despite driving a touring car, Chen Xiangbei’s precision in his line and control of distances was absolutely one of the few top-tier newcomers Schumacher had seen over the years.

To be honest, he felt as if it was like meeting Raikkonen and Alonso for the first time.

"North’s style is very aggressive; I think he’s a lot like you."

"Additionally, with Briatore serving as the manager, he will undoubtedly incite the driver to showcase speed to test whether they are worth investing in."

"This lap will show North’s adaptability."

Briatore, recommended to Chen Xiangbei by Ross Brown during the "red-blue war" period, knew the Italian old rogue’s character all too well.

Testing the driver’s adaptability is just a facade.

What Hua Bu truly wants to know is whether Chen Xiangbei has the value to make him bet and invest.

If not, he’s probably already contemplating how to sell the HRT seat again.

No matter how good simulator training is, it is just theoretical knowledge; only by running a lap on the circuit can reality be seen.

This is why Hua Bu is desperately stirring things up for Chen Xiangbei.

Upon hearing Ross Brown’s words, Schumacher shifted his gaze off the circuit and toward the monitoring equipment in the P room.

Chen Xiangbei had already completed the warm-up lap, dynamically starting straight toward the T1 corner of the Catalonia Circuit.

Having experienced a dozen years of professional career, Schumacher was very familiar with this testing track at Catalonia; just by seeing the cornering speed at the first corner, he could roughly judge the level of the driver.

At this moment, the monitoring screen of the Mercedes Team displayed the cornering speed comparisons of all test drivers, and Chen Xiangbei’s cornering speed instantly surged to the top position.

"Ross, it doesn’t take a lap; this newcomer’s adaptability is very strong!"