bestfiction Chapter 1158 - 438: Major Blood Change (Part 2)
Chapter 1158 - 438: Major Blood Change (Part 2)
Although there were no performance upgrades for the cars, Mercedes brought new front wings and rear wings for both cars this week.The upcoming race is at the Monza circuit, and everyone knows the specific effects of these aerodynamic packages brought by the Mercedes team.
During the first practice session, both Qin Miao and Hamilton used the new front wings and rear wings for testing on the track, and they also tested with the original rear wings.
However, before the first practice ended, both drivers unanimously concluded that the low-drag aerodynamic packages were more effective at the Monza circuit.
After all, the biggest change for Mercedes this season was the car’s strong downforce, naturally resulting in more drag than expected.
At the Monza circuit, the low drag of the aerodynamic package and the strong downforce of the W13 made the W13 remarkably balanced at Monza.
The speed on the straights was considerable, and the speed around the few high-speed corners at Monza was also impressive.
As a result, after the first practice session ended, Mercedes’ two cars topped the charts.
During the second practice session, the drivers focused on tuning the cars to their liking while helping the team gather data to further refine parts later.
A noteworthy incident in the second practice was Mick’s car suffering an engine issue midway through the session.
This led to a brief yellow flag on the track, which then turned into a red flag. However, Tsunoda did not sufficiently slow down during the yellow flag period and was penalized with a three-place grid drop and two points on his Super License, placing him at the back for the race.
In the third practice, Qin Miao’s results were mediocre as he didn’t focus on single lap times but continued to collect long-distance data, similar to the second practice.
The noteworthy event during the third practice was Albon being taken to the hospital for appendix surgery due to abdominal pain.
Albon’s spot will be filled by Williams’ reserve driver De Vries.
This is undoubtedly great news for De Vries.
There was a chance to prove his capabilities on the track.
Moreover, De Vries is 15 kilograms lighter than Albon.
That’s thirty pounds.
This weight difference translates to at least a 0.5-second advantage per lap on the track.
As for why De Vries is lighter despite both being drivers...
Alex Albon is 1.86 meters tall.
While Nick De Vries is 1.68 meters tall.
Of course, the FIA would not leave such a loophole for teams to exploit, so all cars have a minimum weight limit, and De Vries’ car will have ballast added before the race to meet this requirement.
However, there is an advantage for the Williams team in being able to adjust the car’s balance by changing the ballast position.
Despite this, with De Vries joining, the Williams car met the FIA’s minimum weight limit, significantly increasing its speed in today’s race.
...
In the qualifying phase, both Qin Miao and Hamilton were set to receive grid penalties during the race.
However, they still participated in qualifying.
This allowed for some adjustment time for the replaced parts in the car.
Additionally, the qualifying phase acts as a stress test, and any problems identified can be addressed beforehand.
Since they were starting at the back, further penalties wouldn’t matter.
The final consideration was for the drivers to get more familiar with the track.
In Q1, Qin Miao and Hamilton didn’t slipstream each other but maintained their own pace to clock lap times.
Given their individual skills and the car’s performance, both naturally advanced to Q2.
In Q2, Qin Miao and Hamilton advanced easily, using only one set of soft tires and old soft tires for another flying lap.
Q3.
Because Qin Miao knew starting from pole position only meant beginning at 15th in the race, he used tuning more suited for the race.
This meant the car had higher downforce than in qualifying.
Even though Qin Miao was in the green for all three sectors in Q3, his ranking was only 7th.
Thus, in tomorrow’s race, Qin Miao will start from 19th.
Qin Miao’s starting position wasn’t at the back, thanks to Tsunoda’s grid penalty. Without Tsunoda, Qin Miao would have started at the back.
Tsunoda was eliminated in Q1 due to a 13-place grid penalty, helping Qin Miao from starting last.
Simultaneously, Qin Miao’s teammate Hamilton finished fifth in qualifying, starting 18th in the race ahead of Qin Miao.
The final qualifying standings are:
1: Leclerc
2: Verstappen
3: Sainz
4: Perez
5: Hamilton
6: Norris
7: Qin Miao
8: Ricardo
9: Gasly
10: Alonso
But given all the grid penalties, the actual race starting lineup is:
1: Leclerc
2: Norris
3: Ricardo
4: Gasly
5: Alonso
6: Verstappen
7: De Vries
8: Zhou Guanyu
9: Russell
10: Vettel
11: Stroll
12: Perez
13: O’Kang
14: Bottas
15: Magelsen
16: Mick
17: Sainz
18: Hamilton
19: Qin Miao
20: Tsunoda
No matter how many penalties Qin Miao and the drivers faced, Ferrari fans were ecstatic after the qualifying session.
Ferrari’s Leclerc claimed pole position at their home circuit; Sainz also secured third.
Though Sainz’s race start would be from the back, Ferrari cars performed well, proving to fans that despite the tumultuous season, the drivers’ talent and car speed were intact.
Fans at the home circuit still have hope Ferrari could achieve a pole-to-win tomorrow.
After qualifying, Qin Miao attended the post-event interview, wrapping up Saturday’s duties.
On Sunday, Qin Miao arrived early at the circuit.
Qin Miao rediscovered himself in Italy, realizing that besides Ferrari’s two drivers, he was the most popular, even more than Alfa Romeo’s home drivers.
Qin Miao found this quite surprising.
However, on second thought, it made sense.
He had trained with Ferrari and was a world champion, akin to a Ferrari nurtured protege who succeeded in the eyes of Ferrari fans.
Without any pressure on the track, Qin Miao’s mindset at the Italian Grand Prix this week became much calmer.
Yet neither Qin Miao nor Hamilton aimed to score points on the track today.
Both hoped to earn as many as possible but were unsure how many they could achieve.
The race conditions at Monza were comparable to yesterday’s qualifying: 26° air temperature and 39° track temperature allowing most data to be applied directly.
A 53-lap race with a pit stop consuming around 25 seconds made a one-stop strategy mainstream.
Qin Miao planned to use a yellow-red one-stop strategy before the race started.
PS. Feeling a bit off today, didn’t add more - just 4K...