How Did I Become an F1 Driver?-Chapter 640 - 274: Abstract Art Showcase (6K, Extra 2/20)

After finishing up, Qin Miao finally had time to take his crew members for a walk around the track.

After all, something that no one on the Mercedes team wanted to see happened last race weekend. Although no one mentioned it, Qin Miao could still feel that his crew members felt guilty towards him after that incident.

Sometimes, this kind of emotion can indeed boost the work efficiency and enthusiasm of the crew technicians, but in the current state, what Qin Miao needs is not the enthusiasm of his crew, but stability.

So, taking them out for a walk around the track not only helped to strengthen their bond but also served to soothe their somewhat restless emotions.

It's worth mentioning that while walking the track, Qin Miao encountered the host driver of the Russian Grand Prix, Mazepin.

If we say that despite some setbacks and surprises, Qin Miao's entry into F1 has been relatively smooth sailing.

Mazepin, honestly, truly embodies what it means to experience the ups and downs, downs, and more downs of life...

Since the Bahrain race where his teammate Mick Schumacher finished with over a minute lead by a margin of one second per lap, Mazepin's spirit shattered.

All the confidence he built during his F2 days was utterly crushed by his teammate Mick Schumacher in that one race.

Mazepin even suspected that the Haas Team principal Steiner prepared two different versions of the car for them.

But it turned out Mazepin was overthinking—it was simply because he's not good.

Subsequently, Mazepin fell into a slump, often being left a minute or more behind his teammate Mick Schumacher in a race.

The key point is, both of them were driving the same Haas cars.

Yet Mazepin always felt that his car had issues with balance and consistency and that its speed on the straights was not as good as Mick's, feeling that everything was off with this car.

After a poor race performance, he would complain to his father at the scene.

Acting like a big baby.

However, because Qin Miao previously focused more on races and improving himself, he wasn't aware of this. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

Qin Miao actually heard this gossip from Leclerc.

But I believe that after arriving at his home track, Mazepin's performance should be much better than usual, since after all, this is his home turf.

Qin Miao didn't greet Mazepin, even though they both entered F1 the same year, they didn't have much interaction, barely nodding acquaintances.

After walking the track, Qin Miao spent over two hours communicating with his team's technicians.

After chatting for two hours, everyone found common ground in conversation topics. Although Qin Miao is not skilled at creating a lively conversation atmosphere, he is at least candid enough.

Even though the track is spacious, when walking it, Qin Miao and his team's technicians were in a relatively isolated state.

Because no one would disturb them until they finished the lap, and even if there were people around, they wouldn't be close enough to hear the conversation.

Therefore, after spending over two hours together, even if the technicians had some issues in their hearts, the least would be that the guilt would ease significantly.

After finishing the track walk and returning to the team compound, Qin Miao participated in the pre-race engineers' meeting, learning about the small upgrades brought to the car for the week and discussing the engine durability issues for the two drivers.

After finishing the day's work, Qin Miao took Qimeng back to the hotel to rest.

However, while walking, Qin Miao suddenly remembered that when he first entered F1, all he wanted was to drive and experience the fun of driving an F1 car.

Since when had he, like other drivers, been so busy during the race weekends that he barely had time to play on his Switch?

...

Friday.

Today is a sunny day.

Qin Miao's mood was as good as today's weather.

After getting up, Qin Miao packed his things and went to the paddock.

Since Russia, unlike those EU countries, doesn't have lax pandemic controls, there weren't many spectators today, with the grandstand occupancy not even reaching half. Of course, it might also be because today was just Friday.

However, when Qin Miao entered the paddock, it was the same as always, with fans in front asking for autographs and photos, and photographers following him throughout.

To Qin Miao's surprise when entering the paddock, Hamilton had arrived even earlier than him, followed by a round of intense pre-race work.

After everything was completed, Friday's two practice sessions began.

This week, Mercedes had different goals for the two drivers during the practice sessions.

Hamilton was initially focused on testing the car's extreme performance and its compatibility with this track, finding the right setup.

While Qin Miao was getting familiar with the track and gradually improving his lap times.

Even though Qin Miao had driven the Sochi Autodrom back in F2, F2 isn't F1; the sensitivity of the two different vehicle specifications is completely on different extremes.

Furthermore, Sochi is a street circuit, offering little room for driver errors.

Even though Mercedes is financially sturdy, not fearing the economic loss from crash repairs, repairing after a crash takes time, and after a crash, the collection of track data would also halt.