[TS] Formula One Streamer - Chapter 199
The Bahrain Grand Prix truly experienced a major upset.
A team that seemed clearly limited and unable to win confronted that limitation head-on and broke through the wall of impossibility. No one expected it. Commentators laid out all sorts of logical arguments asserting the team’s disadvantage, and fans believed in the challenge but thought no one would win.
Yet that team ultimately emerged victorious. They defied all expectations and claimed their own victory.
That team was none other than Ferrari.
[The winners of the Bahrain Grand Prix are Benz and Hamilton, but isn’t the true winner Ferrari!!]
[Ferrari, which started with Yoo Yi-hyun, perfectly finished with Leclerc.]
[I’m already curious about how much Leclerc’s final lap will be talked about.]
In the front, Yoo Yi-hyun led, while in the back Leclerc responded to him, pushing each other. Leclerc began to climb the inexplicable wall known as Red Bull and eventually reached the top.
The peak of the inexplicable wall. He conquered a height so lofty that the ground was invisible. As Leclerc climbed the wall, he examined his battered body.
“…”
There was nothing. Just himself, having come this far without any equipment. It was then that he realized how unreasonable and cruel the situation he was in was. The heavy truth that the first driver had been decided, breaking long-standing tradition, had been weighing on him.
He realized it.
In that moment.
“Ugh…”
He didn’t care about that. He had been protecting Ferrari for years, and being pushed back by Yoo Yi-hyun didn’t matter. If Ferrari could stand as Ferrari, then he didn’t care what happened to him.
‘It hurts so much. But I’m happier than that.’
He shed tears unknowingly. The cry that erupted from deep within him was not something that could be easily stopped. The more he tried to hold it back, the more it burst out loudly. So Leclerc accepted the incoming sadness, forgetting his shame. He wanted to, and he couldn’t resist it anyway.
It was a profound loneliness. Tears of someone who knew of Ferrari’s betrayal as it was crumbling but could not leave. Tears of Leclerc, who had initially boarded that ship as a passenger, but had now become a part of it.
He had longed for this day, and finally welcomed it with his own hands. He had placed Ferrari, which had hovered between 16th and 20th, into 7th place with his own hands.
“Ugh…”
Leclerc buried his head in the steering wheel. More than the fact that he had beaten Red Bull, he was so happy that Ferrari, which had now become a part of him, had regained even the slightest meaning of that name.
The blunt and strange emotion where sadness and joy, tears and smiles coexist made him cry so much.
Caught in a whirlwind of uncontrollable emotions, Leclerc couldn’t escape the cockpit for a long time. He was embarrassed by his own crying.
He had saved Ferrari from the abyss with his own hand, so why was he hiding in the cockpit? He could be proud. If Leclerc wasn’t proud, who in this world could be?
Soon, just as he had saved Ferrari, someone approached to save Leclerc.
“Leclerc.”
There was Yoo Yi-hyun. He, who understood all of Leclerc’s feelings, was waiting for him with a bright smile.
“Everyone is waiting.”
“…”
“Let’s go together.”
Grabbing Yoo Yi-hyun’s firm and soft hand, Leclerc finally stepped out of the V-1.
‘You’ve worked hard too.’
Looking at the V-1, which had quieted down as if it were asleep, Leclerc took off his helmet and raised his head.
“Wow!!!”
“Ferrari! Ferrari! Ferrari! Ferrari!”
The whole world was waiting for him.
*
*
*
I felt grateful to the audience who had supported Ferrari without giving up during the long stagnation as I took a lap around the circuit.
“Yoo Yi-hyun!!!”
“Ferrari!”
“Wow!!!”
As I walked slowly around the track, raising my hand to greet everyone, there was a thunderous cheer, my name, and my team’s name being shouted. To their eyes, I was just a rookie driver who had just joined Ferrari, only just completing my first Grand Prix…
I was simply surprised and grateful for such a warm welcome.
While continuing to greet, I received an urgent radio call from Enrique.
– Yoo Yi-hyun! Leclerc is in 7th! 7th!
It was news that could make one anxious.
‘This is quite touching…?’
In fact, I didn’t expect Leclerc to be able to do it. It wasn’t that I thought he couldn’t. Rather, his ability was already sufficient. However, the reason I didn’t expect it was that I wasn’t sure if I had rekindled the fire in his deep, burned-out embers.
Even if the fire had indeed been ignited, I wouldn’t have been sure. Lighting the fire was something I could do, but illuminating the world with that flame was something only he could do.
After completely distancing himself from Ricciardo, concerns about Leclerc had kept swirling in my mind, but seeing the results, my worries were completely unfounded.
– He quickly passed Ricciardo on the outside during the last corner, successfully overtaking him, and crossed the finish line! It was truly dramatic!
“Yeah. It’s dramatic, it’s dramatic.”
It couldn’t not be dramatic. I hadn’t seen it yet, but that overtaking maneuver must have been chillingly dramatic. It would probably be considered one of the most talked-about moments of Leclerc’s driving career.
But there was something more dramatic than that moment.
That was Leclerc regaining his true self.
“He’s back.”
– Huh? What do you mean by that?
I quietly answered Enrique, who asked in confusion.
“He’s returned to the original Leclerc. That’s who Leclerc is.”
– …….
I had been saying all along that Leclerc needed to change, but paradoxically, that was precisely the original Leclerc.
So, Leclerc had returned. He had finally regained that strong and resilient part of himself.
– Originally, he was… that kind of person…
The intelligent Enrique mulled over my words repeatedly and seemed to grasp what they meant. He realized that today’s victory was not simply a victory.
Today’s victory was more about liberation.
For Ferrari, it was the liberation of buried glory; for me, liberation from Jin Hyun-woo; and for Leclerc, liberation from the depths of despair.
This is why today’s victory holds such immense value.
“It might not feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders, but right now I feel a little lighter.”
– Yeah. It’s just the first step. Finally.
Just as he said, we had finally taken our first step. From now on, teams that hadn’t regarded Ferrari and us as competitors would be conscious and wary of us. They would put all their efforts and energy into racing car research and development, and in enhancing each driver’s capabilities. Resources would be fully invested to maintain their positions and climb higher.
No matter how deeply we were immersed in the victory, the Bahrain Grand Prix was just the start of the 21 Grand Prix events scheduled ahead. Having drawn everyone’s attention from that start, Ferrari must be well-prepared.
– But is that first step anything ordinary? We made a very large first step.
“That’s true. We dealt a big hit to Red Bull.”
– Then what about McLaren?
“Um… McLaren… half a hit?”
– Half a hit? Haha! That makes sense.
We laughed, tossing around trivial jokes.
The only comforting thing was that we had taken a remarkably large first step.
Ferrari, which had finished 8th overall last year and didn’t get past 16th in driver standings, had risen to 6th and 7th today, and in terms of overall performance, was in 3rd place.
The first place, unsurprisingly, was Mercedes Benz. Hamilton, who achieved 1st place, took 25pt, while Max, who finished 2nd, took 18pt, leading with an overwhelming point difference. Furthermore, Hamilton achieved the fastest lap of the race, earning an additional 1pt, totaling 44pt.
In 2nd place was Renyo. In 3rd was Carlos Sainz and in 4th was Valtteri Bottas. They secured 15pt and 12pt respectively, totaling 27pt, landing in 2nd.
Our Ferrari stood in 3rd. I, in 6th, and Leclerc, in 7th, earned 8pt and 6pt respectively, totaling 14pt for 3rd place.
In 4th was McLaren. Norris in 5th and Steven in 10th took 10pt and 1pt respectively, totaling 11pt.
In 5th, the biggest victim of this race was Red Bull. Sharing 4pt and 2pt with 8th and 9th place, they totaled 6pt. Had it not been for Ferrari’s rise, 3rd place would have originally been secured by Red Bull.
‘By the way, what happened to him, Kang Ho-yun?’
I suddenly remembered Kang Ho-yun and asked Enrique.
“By any chance, how did he do?”
To avoid any misunderstandings, I mentioned his name, not Kang Ho-yun.
– Him? Ah…
From his reaction, it seemed that Enrique was aware of the relationship between me and Kang Ho-yun as academy senior and junior. However, perhaps to hide his awareness of my interest, he only let out a vague response.
“I’m saying this because we have some personal friendship, so don’t think too deeply about it.”
– Yes, yes. Of course. How could I doubt you, Yoo Yi-hyun driver.
“Do you want me to k*ll you?”
Enrique. Why are you becoming more and more like Won-jin?
I sighed as I imagined Enrique’s smirking face.
– Oh, and he did pretty well! Kang Ho-yun finished 16th, and Shumi came in 17th.
That’s quite an improvement. It’s remarkable that he, who always struggled for 19th and 20th, has now entered the competition. Even though his ranking is low, just having competitiveness matters.
Moreover, rookie Kang Ho-yun achieved an impressive result in his first Grand Prix, finishing even one rank higher than Mick Schumacher!
“Wow. Kang Ho-yun, a rookie driver, finished 16th? That guy is quite impressive.”
Then Enrique said with an incredulous tone.
– What about you…? So what are you?
Huh? Exactly. What am I?
“I am veteran driver Yoo Yi-hyun.”
With that frivolous joke, I soon entered the pit.
There, the real veteran driver, Leclerc, was present.