My Formula 1 System-Chapter 318: Pre-US Grand Prix

Luca was happy throughout the week. He actually imposed this happiness on himself, despite the DNF in China, because he understood he couldn't let DiMarco's dense actions and words infiltrate his life outside racing.

This yoke of happiness he put on himself was shattered on the first practice day ahead of the US Grand Prix.

Mr. Matthews made sure he appositely divulged the information to Luca in a manner that didn't allow him to feel disappointed or sad immediately but rather commiserative and supportive of the team's plans and progress.

The US Grand Prix would be Luca's first absent Formula 1 race. He would not participate in the Qualifiers, and he wouldn't race in Neonway.

The reason wasn't the one Luca dreaded—concerning a bad performance—but because Jackson Racing's strategists believed he was too much of a target so early into the season.

DiMarco's actions were obviously rooted in the fact that Luca had pressured him into a crash in Monte Carlo, and the veteran Italian sought revenge on him.

Everyone considered the scenario if Luca hadn't won the Monaco Grand Prix. If he hadn't, it was likely that DiMarco wouldn't be vexed. But he was, and the chances of other drivers being enraged by Luca's unfamiliarity yet prosperity in the competition were high.

His growing prominence would attract further hostility from others eager to make names for themselves—like Elias Nyström, whom he had indirectly crashed—or from those who didn't want a challenge to their reputation—just like Davide DiMarco.

It was a difficult decision because Luca's driving style was exactly what Jackson Racing wanted, but they had to sit him out of the US Grand Prix and put Di Renzo in his place.

However, Di Renzo would prefer to rephrase this as a substitution rather than "in his place."

Jackson Racing simply didn't want to risk things. Di Renzo was a good driver, after all, and had solid races.

Luca remembered the Monoposto cards he saw the other day, and he recalled Di Renzo's. It was actually rated quite lower than he expected. The total rating was affected by the first two stats—Experience and Racecraft.

┌──────────────────────┐

│ F1 MONOPOSTO DRIVER CARD │

├─────────────────────┤

│ BUOSO 🇮🇹

│ DI RENZO

│ Jackson Racing Ferrari

├─────────────────────┤

│ Experience: 62

│ Racecraft: 71

│ Awareness: 70

│ Pace: 85

├─────────────────────┤

│ Total Rating: 69 ⇑⇑│

└──────────────────────┘

Last season, Di Renzo had finished in 11th place. However, his performance must have improved significantly, as indicated by the upward arrows beside his total rating, signaling progress.

Luca observed him and Rodnick closely as they drilled and trained, stepping in whenever necessary to integrate elements of competition into their practice.

During the session, he managed to strike up a conversation with some of the younger drivers—those whose driver cards displayed a TR below 50.

One of them was Tom, an eager 18-year-old with a TR of 47, always ready to prove himself. His enthusiasm was evident in the way he approached every lap, eager to make an impression.

The other was Lucas—though everyone called him Petersen to avoid confusion with a new teammate who had a similar name.

At 19, the same age as Luca, he had a TR of 44. His striking yellow hair, deeply dyed, made him stand out, and there was a sense that he was more interested in flaunting his looks than seriously pursuing an F1 career.

Luca wondered how the third round of the season would play out in his absence. His fear of being left out while other drivers progressed had already come to pass. Now, he could only pray the team wouldn't make the decision to field Di Renzo in the fourth round, the Bahrain Grand Prix.

Luca's mind drifted a bit. He wondered if Jackson Racing could ever come to the decision of putting both him and Di Renzo behind the wheel to team up in a race.

This would mean sidelining Rodnick, the team's star.

Was this possible? Luca believed it was. It should be. Not just because of an injury or sickness, but an outright benching for team strategy.

Jackson Racing wasn't a Tiered Pursuit strategy team, so Rodnick was definitely prone to this someway, somehow.

But with his P1 finish in China, Luca wagered that possibility was far from happening anytime soon.

The drivers' standings now looked like this after that baleful Chinese Grand Prix.

Updated from freewёbnoνel.com.

PROVISIONAL DRIVER'S CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (TOP8)

Position | Team | Points

----------------------------------------

1. | Marcellus Rodnick | 37

2. | Antonio Luigi | 33 (+1)

3. | Marko Ignatova | 26

4. | Luca Rennick | 26

5. | Hank Rice | 15

6. | Jimmy Damgaard | 12

7. | Ailbeart Moireach | 11

8. | Denko Rutherford | 10

Rodnick himself had just topped the standings, while Luigi was close behind. Though Luigi hadn't won both races, he was the most consistent finisher with the most favorable positions, which was why he had 34 points.

One race was enough to turn things upside down. Hank Rice, who had DNFed in Monaco, was now in the top five, surpassing Ailbeart Moireach, who had been relegated to 7th place.

Additionally, Jimmy Damgaard, who suffered the same fate as Rice in the last race, now had 12 points to his name—the only points obtained by Bueseno Velocità so far this season.

Luca was glad that he was still in the competition, but that gladness faded when he remembered his points would remain unchanged after the next race while others climbed higher.

10. | Alpine Swiss F1 | 0

Some teams were still struggling for points while Jackson and Squadra were already locked in a different battle altogether.

Luca expected a few changes, but more than anything, he wanted to see if his presence in the F1 competition would still be felt in his absence.

The United States of America was a country Luca had always thought about but never once dreamed of visiting.

Many praised it as a land of opportunity, a place where ambition and innovation flourished like nowhere else.

But Mallow had a different perspective. To him, it was a bloated nation built on arrogance, the first one God would strike down if divine reckoning ever arrived.

Luca was about to see for himself.

US Grand Prix

Location: Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

Date: Apr. 21

Time: 1 PM

Track: Las Vegas Strip Circuit (Neonway)

Track Length: 6.12 km

Total Laps: 50

Track Type: Street circuit

Lap Record: Marco Rossi 1:36.149