[TS] Formula One Streamer - Chapter 170
“Let’s start over from the beginning. We need to change the answer itself.”
Ricciardo and Perez did not blame their limits on external factors. They believed that their struggles were entirely internal, so they merely looked inward.
As a result, the two drivers of Red Bull were able to quickly escape the depths of despair and return to the orbit of passion. External problems were issues of force majeure that they could not change, but internal problems were self-issues they could alter simply with their mindset.
Swoosh!!!
The race cars of Ricciardo and Perez, searching for a new answer, glided across the track on a completely different line than before. To an unimaginable limit that exceeded the operational range of ‘me now.’ They were walking a long and exhilarating path, hitting and breaking through their limits.
In some ways, they resembled countries that would never negotiate with terror. They were not compromising with the present; instead, they were rejecting the present value time and again and pursuing a much greater future value while safeguarding it.
Everything they wished for was there, and the ultimate aim of the path they pursued was there.
– Huh!!
– Hm…!
Cornering at speeds exceeding 4-5G. Because they had set their sensory values to match reality, they were momentarily overcome by gravitational acceleration. The two resisted that immense weight.
Top-tier.
This is what it meant to be top-tier, standing at the pinnacle of the world.
A person who could acknowledge their flaws at any time, be ready to change, and pay any cost; someone more desperate and relentless than anyone else.
The reason they were even more remarkable was that they were incredibly close to perfection yet willing to abandon the tower they had built to take one more step forward.
They ran, raced, and kept running. Focusing solely on their shortcomings, Ricciardo and Perez were cutting through the track with an unmatched concentration.
At some point, the record of Mr. Yooihyun that had hovered in the corner of their helmets had long disappeared.
So how many times had they run with this new mindset, this top-tier mindset?
– Ah… something that was so difficult is now like this…
– …If there are no problems, that’s a problem. There’s always an issue.
The lap times that rose above their resilience.
Name / Time / Practice Mode
① Maniel Ricciardo 0:58:083
② Sergio Perez 0:58:090
Both had exceeded Mr. Yooihyun’s record of 0:58:091 before they knew it.
They had merely changed their attitude toward driving, and before ten laps had passed, they were effortlessly surpassing a wall that they thought they could never overcome.
This seemed like a miracle with no correlation, but in fact, it was something entirely natural. In qualifying or simple practice, where car performance took precedence over driver capabilities, Red Bull could not lose to Ferrari.
The disparity in the performance of their race cars was visibly evident; generally, they couldn’t lose.
So, to put it bluntly, Ricciardo and Perez lost that battle because they had been complacent. In reality, they had merely shifted their mindset; within a few laps, both had surpassed Yooihyun’s record.
Rather, the word miracle should correctly refer to the fact that Yooihyun had won that qualifying.
She created a miracle. By creating variables and maximizing her capabilities, the result she produced would leave no one to contest her greatness.
– Let’s keep racing!
– Of course. Until we can’t go any further.
The two, excited by their noticeably improved records, did not stop racing. They raced and raced, reducing their lap times, and finally achieved 0:57:795, closely following McLaren’s Lando Norris, who had secured the 5th grid position with 0:57:433.
It was a good performance, meeting their expectations. It was a time when a steep growth trajectory was not even enough to contain their smiles.
However, as they distanced themselves from Yooihyun, their expressions became increasingly grim.
Unable to hold back his irritating emotions that were out of place, Perez spoke first.
– Hey… why do I feel so uneasy? Is it just me?
– I don’t feel great either…
– …It’s definitely because of Yooihyun.
They hadn’t outright defeated Yooihyun in an official race, but they had created this disparity in a short time. No, they could widen the gap even further from now.
So they were confident that they could win in the main event, yet they couldn’t shake off the unsettling feeling.
And they knew very well where that feeling was coming from.
In a tone that indicated a bit of hurt pride, Perez lowered his voice.
– Do you really think you can beat Yooihyun in the same car?
– Same car?
– Yeah. The same car.
– Hm… How about you?
– I asked first.
– You’re such a cheater…
The two were passing the buck like a ticking time bomb.
The reason for their reluctance to answer was clear.
– Honestly, I can’t guarantee it.
They couldn’t envision a definite victory in the same car.
Ricciardo considered racing Yooihyun in the same performance race car under completely equal conditions and recalled the performances Yooihyun had shown so far.
From the finals of the 1-on-1 tournament held in For One, to the qualifying at the Bahrain Grand Prix just a few hours ago. He had to acknowledge that Yooihyun possessed a talent that came once in a hundred years, or perhaps once in a thousand years.
In truth, that alone was fortunate. Had she only had talent, they might have had a chance, but at the age of 19, she was already amassing an experience that one typically could not hold at that age. The most important fact here was not that she appeared to possess these traits, but that she indeed did.
From his teammate Perez, who had devoted his life as a driver, to teammates from other teams, all spoke in unison.
“Yooihyun is a perfect driver.”
That statement was too extravagant and unsuitable for a rookie driver. Moreover, it was not something casually said by F1 drivers who had reached the pinnacle of the racing world.
Yet, for them to say that meant she truly was perfect.
A talent that seemed unlikely to ever be seen again in life. An overwhelming amount of experience that allowed her to cleverly navigate races with big data beyond that of veterans.
Who could claim she was not perfect?
What was lacking for her was merely the trophy, and now that she had stepped into F1, that was no longer a lacking element.
With time, countless trophies shining like gold would surely pile up at her feet.
Ricciardo thought that perhaps what she lacked was not the trophy but time, and he said.
– I can’t visualize it. Even when I try to draw it, it’s so blurry. I hesitate from the first corner. It feels like there’s no answer…
No matter how much he tried to visualize, he couldn’t.
Whether starting in front of her or from behind, he couldn’t mount a perfect defense nor launch a perfect attack.
The same was true for cornering. Whether to dive inside or go outside. No matter what choice he made, in his imagination, Yooihyun would somehow find an opening and neutralize all his strategies.
Of course, Yooihyun did not possess the absolute, god-like abilities he imagined.
An irregular driver, not a deity, but a driver comparable to a god. As those thoughts began to dominate his senses, it was impossible for an answer to appear.
He could only be in awe and sing praises.
However, that was an arrogant thought in another sense.
As Perez listened to Ricciardo’s foolish words, he retorted.
– That’s not how it is. If there were really such a person, they would always be at the top in any situation. Yooihyun is not a god. Get a grip, Ricciardo.
– …
Perez was right.
If Yooihyun were such a being, she would have secured first place even under those unfavorable conditions.
However, Yooihyun finished in a pitiful 6th place, not worthy of being called a god. Of course, that itself was considerable achievement, but it also served as proof that there was neither need nor grounds to deify Yooihyun.
As silence continued, a flash of inspiration struck Perez.
– What are you pondering? Just try it once.
– Try it? How?
– This is For One. The only F1 where you start in the same race car and under the same conditions.
– Ah…
– Create a room and invite her. Let’s go head-to-head properly.
A straightforward and reasonable solution. There’s no better way than to clash directly.
In that sense, Perez’s suggestion was the most efficient method to instantly cure the bewildered Ricciardo.
– But… can you add me as a friend? Can you invite me?
– …I don’t have her either.
– …
– …
– …
– …Well then!
Ricciardo and Perez hurriedly searched for Yooihyun’s tag and frantically sent a friend request.
This was the process that led them to send a friend request to Yooihyun.
[“KING” has accepted your friend request.]
[“KING” has accepted your friend request.]
Messages arrived simultaneously.
– Hey, let’s go. To heal you.
– Am I a patient? I’ll create the room.
Excited, Ricciardo and Perez, who was smiling warmly at his antics.
Until then, Perez believed he could heal his frustration.
So, he believed.