How Did I Become an F1 Driver?

Despite having the advantage of a later pit stop, Verstappen’s lap times are still faster than Qin Miao’s, but even his lap times are inevitably starting to decline.

At this moment, Qin Miao hears the team strategy group synchronize a message to him from the TR: "We expect Verstappen to catch up to your DRS zone by lap 53."

According to the team’s strategy group estimates, if Qin Miao wants to win today’s race, he needs to defend against Verstappen on the track for four laps.

This news for a typical F1 driver would be tantamount to a bolt from the blue.

After all, you worked so hard on the track for so long, and in the end, the championship you strove for is likely not going to be yours.

After all, Verstappen’s lap times are faster than yours, and with four laps of attack left after catching up to you, a normal driver would know there’s a high chance they won’t be able to defend.

But at this moment, Qin Miao’s heart is relatively calm.

Despite Verstappen’s aggressive momentum, Qin Miao has confidence in himself.

Relying on his defense capabilities exceeding human limits at 101 points.

Furthermore, Qin Miao is not a careless person; during the time Verstappen was chasing him, Qin Miao took the opportunity to charge his car’s battery.

Starting from lap 46, Qin Miao’s ERS strategy was adjusted to use only the energy recovered in that lap, without using the battery reserve.

This mode is also the update to this year’s winter break ERS mode that Mercedes added, designed specifically to fit Qin Miao’s driving habits and characteristics.

And Qin Miao’s current ERS battery level is at 79%.

As for why it’s not 100%?

F1 car batteries actually have a lifespan too, albeit longer than the components on the car’s engine.

If there isn’t a crash, FIA permits two battery packs to be used a little conservatively throughout the season.

Of course, it’s assumed you take care of your battery.

Many know from marketing content online that there are two states most damaging to batteries.

The first is charging them fully and maintaining above 90% for extended periods; the other is draining the battery to below 10%.

These two extreme states have the most impact on battery damage and lifespan.

The most direct impact is reduced discharge and storage capacity.

This is why phone batteries become less durable over time.

And F1 car batteries are no exception.

In fact, F1 car batteries are even more valuable than phone batteries.

To enhance battery lifespan and energy storage, it’s crucial during races to avoid fully charging or using the battery entirely.

Therefore, Qin Miao locked the battery at 79%.

Just waiting for Verstappen to catch up so he could use his car’s battery reserves against him.

Qin Miao doesn’t believe Verstappen will have battery power left after catching up with hard effort.

If Verstappen still has energy reserves he hasn’t used, Qin Miao would admit defeat gracefully even if he loses this race.

Quickly, the race reaches lap 53, and the time gap between Qin Miao and Verstappen is now 2.4 seconds.

In the previous lap, Verstappen gained 0.9 seconds on Qin Miao.

Despite being well-prepared, Qin Miao instinctively checks his rear mirror to confirm Verstappen’s exact position while managing his tires.

Lap 54, the time gap between Qin Miao and Verstappen reaches 1.7 seconds.

"Okay, we see Verstappen is about to enter Qin Miao’s slipstream range; if nothing goes wrong, Verstappen should reach Qin Miao’s DRS zone next lap. We can only hope Qin Miao, known for his exceptional defense, can withstand the pressure from Verstappen this time."

At Five-Star Sports, the commentators were sweating for Qin Miao.

Being Chinese, their natural stand is with Qin Miao.

Zhou Haoran analyzed rationally: "Verstappen’s lap times during the chase have been stable but show a downward trend. Although Verstappen will enter Qin Miao’s DRS zone likely by lap 55, Qin Miao just needs to withstand two laps of Verstappen’s attack; by the final lap, Verstappen might lack the speed to attack Qin Miao."

"Come on, Qin Miao, hold on!"

[Please, don’t jinx it]

[Qin Miao is driving well, suddenly finds his steering wheel starting to ooze milk]

[Sanshui is quite steady, his defenses have always been strong.]

...

On lap 55, Qin Miao could even see the reflection of the helmet visor of Verstappen mirrored by the Sakhir track lights through his rearview mirror.

At this moment, Verstappen has officially entered Qin Miao’s DRS zone.

Having chased Qin Miao for twenty-one laps, Verstappen couldn’t hold back and cursed: "FK!"

For Verstappen, those twenty-one laps felt incredibly stifling, like catching a train during the spring festival travel rush.

The pressure on Verstappen was indeed immense; now finally having caught up to Qin Miao’s DRS zone, ready to make a move, how could he not be excited?

There are three laps left until the race ends.

You don’t even need to think to know the upcoming offense-defense showdown will be spectacular.

Having been under Verstappen’s pressure all the way, Qin Miao didn’t feel nervous once Verstappen finally entered his DRS zone; instead, a calm demeanor settled over him instead.

Since Verstappen is here, it’s time to see if he’s real or not.

Verstappen caught Qin Miao’s slipstream and simultaneously obtained DRS in the start-finish straight DRS zone.

As everyone knows, Red Bull’s DRS efficiency this season is extremely high.

Qin Miao knew this well too, so when Verstappen appeared in his DRS zone and activated DRS, Qin Miao began weaving in front of Verstappen.

In the fight for the race win, Qin Miao, who typically doesn’t skirt these grey areas, now begins to exploit every rule he could to grasp any opportunity.

Naturally, Verstappen opened his DRS while keeping pace with Qin Miao’s weaving, determined to catch his slipstream.

However you resist, it’s useless.

Yet Qin Miao actually wants Verstappen to weave with him.

Wear some rubber and dust; even a small effect on your DRS efficiency counts.

Ultimately, before reaching the T1 braking point, Verstappen only reduced the gap between them to 0.2 seconds.

Actually, if Verstappen wages a late brake at this turn, there’s a chance to threaten Qin Miao.

After nearly two years of combat on the track with Qin Miao, after the conclusion of the 2022 finale, Verstappen spent the entire winter break analyzing videos and footage frame by frame with his father, Joss Verstappen, at home.

Now Verstappen is full of confidence.

Meanwhile, he understands that to truly surpass Qin Miao, the crucial point is not to rush.

He needs to accumulate a large advantage and at the last moment place all his cards on the table at once; that’s the most likely method to surpass Qin Miao.

The chance of Qin Miao making a mistake and appearing suddenly before you is likely a trap left by Qin Miao.

Stepping into it would cause a quiet downfall.

Thus, Verstappen eased off the throttle slightly.

And with three laps remaining in the race, Verstappen is prepared for not having great opportunities in the remaining two DRS zones on this track, anticipating overtaking Qin Miao with DRS on the next lap’s start-finish straight.

Safely through the first DRS zone, the second and third DRS zones await Qin Miao now.

The second DRS zone is close to the first, separated only by three turns.

And before the DRS detection point, Verstappen wasn’t side by side with Qin Miao, preventing Qin Miao from accessing DRS.

So in this DRS zone, Qin Miao had to rely on himself.

Then Qin Miao prepared to give Verstappen a brake test.