[TS] Formula One Streamer - Chapter 184
The engineers inside the pit were moving busily, just like the drivers on the circuit.
“Does this mean we’ll have to change the tires faster than expected?”
“No. The starting movement was a bit intense. We need to observe more.”
“Are there any problems with the parts?”
“The brake discs are heating up faster than expected… The temperature is too high. The brakes will keep fading.”
“That’s something we’ll have to leave to the drivers. Both are skilled drivers, so they’ll manage on their own.”
“Right. Let’s trust them.”
They were analyzing and compiling various information displayed on the screen, coordinating issues like when to take a pit stop and what tires to choose.
The large amount of incoming information meant there were many considerations and calculations to make, creating a situation where there was no time to rest.
At the center of this, standing in the control center, Ferrari’s director Mattia Binotto felt a sense of shame as the weight of his position prevented him from focusing on the race.
No, it should perhaps be said that he could not focus because of his position as a director. The overwhelming thought running through his mind was none other than the ‘survival of F1 Ferrari.’
“Director, Yui-hyun is surprisingly keeping Norris at bay. It’s possible because Bottas is helping him out… Anyway, the start looks good.”
Even with the news that Yui-hyun had risen to 5th place, essentially achieving the realistic best ranking possible for Yui-hyun and Ferrari.
“Yeah. That’s good news…”
Binotto’s voice was utterly dry.
“Yes, I’ll let you know as soon as there’s more news.”
“Thanks.”
The engineer delivering the news looked at Binotto’s fish-like eyes and left with a puzzled expression.
As he watched the departing engineer, Binotto let out a long sigh.
‘How on earth am I supposed to say this…’
The chairman’s directive to split F1 Ferrari between the first and second drivers.
While it was called “splitting,” the system pouring all benefits and privileges to the first driver was sure to place F1 Ferrari at a crossroads of division.
The meeting that took place from last night until dawn.
In the room where only the elite of F1 Ferrari remained, feelings had burst forth impulsively, but he had not yet found the resolve to share it with the other staff, leaving him still silent about the matter.
It was an added burden to ask everyone present to keep it under wraps.
Recalling the smiling faces of the staff energetically moving around and the expression of the engineer who had just left, it was clear that they had not yet heard the news.
That meant the gag order had been quite effective.
Gazing blankly at them, Binotto shook his head vigorously, reassuring himself.
‘Get it together. Right now, even these feelings are a luxury. Focus on the race.’
To put it bluntly, it wasn’t just that the race was upcoming; the race was already underway. It was obvious that there was no time to let his thoughts wander elsewhere.
Binotto raised his head toward the two drivers, who were still doing their best.
Shukaaak!!!
Yui-hyun and Leclerc, who were racing on different courses, seemed to be fully committed to the race at first glance.
Desperate struggles to free themselves from external influences. The race of the two drivers in pursuit of transcending their world had reached its peak from the very start.
Binotto watched in silence.
He observed Leclerc shaking off the persistent chasing race car behind him and moving forward with difficulty.
He watched Yui-hyun desperately breaking free from the dangerous tow that could snap at any second.
“…”
It was desperate.
They were both desperate and lonely.
Knowing fully well that they could not shrug off their situations solely by their own strength, yet Yui-hyun and Leclerc resisted, even though they knew it was a futile struggle.
Even though it’s a race everyone fights together, in the end, they are alone on the track.
The only ones to rely on are themselves and the silent machine.
‘I…’
Binotto’s eyes shook more than ever.
His belief that he had fulfilled his role as a director began to waver. That belief, built up over many years, was shaking violently.
Had he done his best as a director? That question wouldn’t leave his mind.
Guilt and regret were attacking him like a swift and powerful darkness that follows a lightning strike.
However, the more so, Binotto refused to turn away. He kept his eyes wide open, not taking them off the screen.
That was the best a clumsy director could do.
[Yui-hyun is on the edge. He’s giving Norris too many openings.]
After a few laps, Yui-hyun began to waver. To be precise, it was not Yui-hyun who was wavering but V-1.
Binotto felt a heavy sense of responsibility as he silently analyzed the situation.
[It’s still amazing. I’ve heard that V-1 is not yet in a position to compete with the top teams.]
[Yes, indeed, after qualifying, there was a performance sheet released showing Ferrari’s race car was in 6th overall.]
[Hearing that makes it evident how exceptional Yui-hyun is.]
Watching Yui-hyun’s driving raised the question of how such movements were even possible. Not just the remarkable and impossible motions that elicited gasps, but the very fact that he could think such thoughts in that situation was impressive.
The way he viewed the race set him apart from other drivers.
The commentators continued to express their admiration for Yui-hyun.
[As I speak, Ferrari’s Leclerc is also rising to 9th place.]
[The Ferrari duo is now positioned ahead of the McLaren duo.]
In this situation, even Leclerc, who was enduring the toughest times, managed to overtake McLaren’s Steven King in 9th.
[Leclerc seems unusually aggressive today. Was there some agreement with the team director?]
[It should be a strategy discussed. It appears quite aggressive, almost precarious.]
[Still, it’s a completely different side from Leclerc until now. Very impressive.]
Leclerc was racing in a style that even he, having watched him for years, had never seen before.
Quick decisions, movements that defied common sense, and continual attempts to break the mold.
“Yui-hyun…”
I cannot be certain, but it was undoubtedly influenced by Yui-hyun.
Yet an unembodied style remained clumsy.
The quick decision-making—not by a full step but half a step—was proof of that.
Binotto watched as Leclerc put himself in danger.
His strong will to break down his safe and comfortable world to venture into a new one seemed to be shouting at him.
‘I won’t surrender. I won’t fall. I will destroy my world to do so.’
Desperation.
It was a desperate measure for change.
In that moment, Binotto felt an indescribable storm of emotions.
The wounds Leclerc would suffer upon receiving this news, the pride that would crumble, the confidence that would plunge below…
He felt vividly the sentiment of Leclerc wanting to change on the circuit despite everything trying to shatter his will.
‘I…’
And then he realized.
The unavoidable reality was that he must step forward and face it.
That even if he had to break, crumble, and shatter, he must do so.
In that moment, Binotto made up his mind.
He would not leave Leclerc alone on that lonely battlefield; he resolved himself.
*
*
*
The roar of race cars echoed incessantly at the Bahrain Circuit.
Leclerc closely chased Steven King of McLaren.
‘At this rate, I’ll just be chasing behind forever. What should I do…’
Steven King was a promising rookie who joined McLaren from last season.
He showcased impressive skills, debuting in a top-tier team like McLaren. In the 30th season, even as a rookie, he consistently entered the points in almost every Grand Prix, and once, due to extreme luck, he finished in 3rd place during a Grand Prix that featured accidents and critical mistakes from other teams, even making it to the podium.
However, viewed objectively, Leclerc believed that his talent was not inferior to Steven’s.
After all, among F1 drivers, who is not a genius? Leclerc himself debuted at Ferrari and performed miracles by entering the points several times while driving a car mocked as a piece of junk.
Now, the only reason he was behind Steven was due to the race car.
Leclerc believed this. Not to blame the unreasonable reality, but because he knew himself so well and had that much self-belief.
However, he could not change the race car. The only thing he could change was himself.
And the miraculous things that would happen when he changed himself, he learned through Yui-hyun.
‘Right. Let’s give it a try… I can’t keep relying on the current me to continue this stagnant race. I need to advance to the next level.’
Whether in practice or in a real race. Remembering Yui-hyun, who always put forth his best and sought change, Leclerc felt his heart begin to boil.
A rising desire, impossible to suppress, surged within him, beginning to clear his previously darkened vision.
The path he must take and the things he must do guided his skills to the next level.
A dizzying, dangerous road that even veterans fear to tread.
Yet in that moment, Leclerc acted and achieved a result.
Name / Time / Laps / Team
⑨ Charles Leclerc 0:58:844 +4.981 – Ferrari
⑩ Steven King 0:59:124 +5.216 – McLaren
‘Yui-hyun has always walked this path…’
Leclerc was being reborn with the realization that enveloped his entire body.