[TS] Formula One Streamer - Chapter 190

When Ricciardo and Mr. Yooihyun began to exchange fierce moves.

The F1 Ferrari staff looked at Mr. Yooihyun with worried eyes.

“Is he going to be okay…?”

“There’s no way he could be. From now on, it’s a long game.”

They knew better than anyone that as time passed, Mr. Yooihyun would be at a disadvantage.

In racing, the driver’s skill is important, but the race car that can endure that long lap is also crucial. Every day, they analyzed Red Bull’s race car and understood how much V-1 was lacking compared to Red Bull.

Mr. Yooihyun’s miraculous play in qualifying to take an early position was just a stroke of luck. They had no doubt that he would inevitably lose as time went on.

“He has also used up relatively more tires. His pace will keep falling from now on.”

“The problem is how he defends… If he only focuses on defense, he’ll keep getting eaten away and get overtaken.”

Mr. Yooihyun had already consumed quite a lot of tires. Of course, it was still in much better condition than expected, but it was indeed insufficient to rival Ricciardo.

The pace that had peaked as the tires returned to their optimal condition was expected to gradually decrease with each lap, and as the pace dropped, the chances of being attacked by Ricciardo would increase accordingly.

Tire consumption meant that his acceleration would be further hampered.

“It’s begun…!”

As expected, Ricciardo began to pressure Mr. Yooihyun based on the performance of his race car and the condition of the tires.

He relentlessly exploited any gaps and created situations where Mr. Yooihyun had no choice but to make a risky move, entering into a planned hunt.

Yes, a hunt.

Ricciardo’s, or rather Red Bull’s, movements were nothing but a meticulous hunt.

To securely capture his prey, he carefully pressed on until his stamina ran low, and when he was ready to pounce, it was a very safe and brutal method.

Red Bull’s hunting strategy took a long time, but it was a method that had very low risk and was reliable.

From Ferrari’s perspective, it felt as if they were staring into an inevitable d*ath.

However, Mr. Yooihyun didn’t move according to their intentions. Even the same team, Ferrari, questioned her choices.

“What’s that…?”

“Why is she deliberately opening a path?”

Cornered, Mr. Yooihyun began to create space on purpose. Ricciardo, who could not miss such a tempting opportunity, infiltrated that space every time, and Mr. Yooihyun managed to defend herself just barely each time.

The staff couldn’t hide their perplexity at Mr. Yooihyun’s seemingly risky behavior.

“Is that really okay?”

There was someone speaking bluntly.

“I don’t know. Anyway, losing without doing anything is still losing.”

Some let go of their hands.

Only Minoto remained without doubt, and the look in his eyes as he watched the screen felt like he was reveling in a blissful state.

How many laps had they run like that?

The engineers, who had questioned Mr. Yooihyun’s incomprehensible choices, began to express their realization one after another.

“Ah…”

“Mr. Yooihyun…”

Panels analyzing the race cars of Mr. Yooihyun and Ricciardo displayed the changes and current status from the 9th lap when the battle began.

“It wasn’t just a coincidence that she opened the door on purpose…”

Since the 9th lap, both had seen a rapid increase in tire consumption, and obviously, Mr. Yooihyun’s tires were in a worse state than Ricciardo’s. However, during the six laps, the total tire ‘consumption’ recorded was about 7% higher for Ricciardo than for Mr. Yooihyun. This could only mean one thing.

“She led Ricciardo into that trap…”

Mr. Yooihyun had thoroughly analyzed and understood both herself and her opponent, controlling a situation that should have been uncontrollable.

She knew precisely how Ricciardo would act and how he would hunt her down, enabling her choice and the result.

Rather than facing a slow d*ath from being picked apart, she intended to use her weaknesses as bait to shake Ricciardo.

Her movements were so strange and well-concealed that anyone lacking considerable insight into racing could only find Mr. Yooihyun’s actions odd.

Only Minoto, the head of Ferrari, could read that intention and was left in awe.

In fact, even Ricciardo and Red Bull, who were chasing her, could not decipher Mr. Yooihyun’s strategy and were suffering significant losses. Although they were not without strategists as adept as Minoto, from Red Bull’s perspective.

The unexpected slip of their ranking in qualifying.

Being positioned in front of a Ferrari that was considerably lacking in performance.

Focusing on thoroughly dismantling them while avoiding a major confrontation and instead opting for a war of attrition.

Spending more time than expected because of that attrition.

Thus, as the situation unfolded, Red Bull found themselves in a state of excitement and fury, leading to impaired judgment. Considering that Red Bull’s higher-ups had poured their efforts into Ricciardo, it was more accurate to say it was a ‘result’ rather than something they ‘could see.’

Of course, even considering the peculiarities of the situation, it was an undeniable truth that Mr. Yooihyun had cleverly concealed her intentions.

Such emotional circumstances combined with Mr. Yooihyun’s profound judgment naturally caused the Ferrari engineers to display confusion.

“Was it all part of the plan? If they had missed it once, they would have been overtaken!”

“There were several conflicts in the six laps, and she succeeded in controlling everything…”

“Really… I’m glad we’re on the same team.”

The engineers marveled at her appropriate and clear judgment and her ability to execute that judgment. Anyone can come up with a plan, but executing it as intended is a different matter altogether.

Mr. Yooihyun possessed an execution power that could not be overlooked. It felt as though if she decided that things would turn out a certain way, it would unavoidably be so.

This was akin to a truth derived from the short time she had built up her accomplishments since joining F1 Ferrari.

“The structure is collapsing…!”

At that moment, an engineer who had been staring intently at the screen shouted.

Lap 15. Ricciardo, who had suffered terribly from a counterproductive war of attrition, and Red Bull had switched completely to an aggressive stance to bring Mr. Yooihyun down.

Like bees attacking a beehive, the furious engine sounds roared as if filled with a desire for revenge, and at the same time, the distance to Mr. Yooihyun began to close in an instant.

F1 Ferrari watched the situation with anxious eyes.

“Are they planning to end it here…?”

“They can’t afford to take any more losses. They seem to want to overtake as quickly as possible since the pit-in point is approaching anyway.”

“They won’t be able to hold on anymore.”

A simple and certain method of pressing with the performance of the race car. Yet, precisely because of that, there was no suitable countermeasure, and Red Bull began to push Ferrari hard.

It was a way to gain a clear advantage, but Red Bull had to endure significant losses too, which is why they had chosen a war of attrition. However, it seemed there was no room for rational judgment anymore.

Ricciardo’s demeanor, whether fueled by revenge or not, was one of a desperate need to eliminate the immediate enemy.

“If this continues, he’ll catch up after the next corner on the straight.”

“No matter what, we can’t escape.”

“It can’t be helped…”

“We’re not at the point of giving up yet. Red Bull also has huge losses, so if they can plan a decent pit strategy, they might have a chance to turn things around.”

They spoke optimistically, but just like when they were overtaken by Norris, the engineers were preparing to accept reality as they laid down their hopes. That way, they could look forward to the ‘next.’

As they passed the corner, which was destined to be like a d*ath sentence, they met the straight.

Kiiing!!!

With a sharp sound, Ricciardo’s race car began to advance. The race car surged forward without restraint, and absurdly, in an instant, it was side by side with Mr. Yooihyun.

Wheel to wheel. Seemingly displeased, Ricciardo began to inch ahead of Mr. Yooihyun.

Seeing the change in ranking, the engineers nodded.

“Well fought. Truly well fought.”

Though frustrated, they thought about whether they could have come this far without Mr. Yooihyun. They believed it was absolutely impossible.

Even though she was overtaken, Red Bull should be grateful for Mr. Yooihyun’s power to force them to exert every effort to allow a flip.

Just as everyone was accepting defeat.

Grrrr!!!

Mr. Yooihyun stood side by side with Ricciardo again, and not only that, she started to overtake him once more.

Impossible. This doesn’t make sense.

Yet, reality was as it was.

【 360km/h 】

“Wha, what…?”

“What the hell is that…?”

“3, 360km?”

An unprecedented top speed. The speed that V-1 was deemed unable to reach was clearly displayed on the dashboard.

The once noisy pit lay in silence. Not just F1 Ferrari, but every pit in the ten teams was engulfed in stillness.

Mr. Yooihyun was flying.

It could only be described that way.