How Did I Become an F1 Driver?-Chapter 655 - 279: The Team Steps In to Mediate (6K, Bonus 4/20)_4

But there just wasn't a good chance to attack.

Norris's speed in this race was indeed a bit too fast, and his mind was very clear. His handling of many corner details was even better than Hamilton's.

And Qin Miao, along with the increasing entanglement and probing between Hamilton and Norris, gradually got closer to the two of them.

For a moment, the top three drivers seemed to have formed a small DRS train at the front.

In lap 46, drivers gradually began to report to the team that they felt raindrops on the track.

At this point, the two Mercedes drivers were still stuck behind Norris.

To be honest, Qin Miao was getting a bit anxious at this moment.

Because there were only 8 laps left until the end of the race, what if Hamilton overtook Norris too late?

Even if he managed to painstakingly pass Norris, he wouldn't have time to swap positions with Hamilton. It would be embarrassing if he ended up third after giving up his position.

Meanwhile, the sky was getting darker and darker.

Of course, Qin Miao was just a bit anxious, but he was still able to keep his cool and didn't make any inappropriate comments over the team's radio.

As the broadcast camera shifted, Bing exclaimed, "Oh! It's raining!"

In the broadcast footage, spectators sitting in the open-air stands by the track were seen pulling out raincoats and opening umbrellas from their backpacks.

The weather now was completely opposite to the qualifying session yesterday.

In qualifying, whoever entered the pits first to change to dry tires had the advantage. This could be seen from Russell starting from third place.

But in the race, whoever entered the pits first for a tire change was at a disadvantage.

As the rain intensified, Qin Miao, who initially comforted himself with excuses, was now unable to sit still.

Hamilton was still following behind Norris, showing no sign of overtaking.

Even though Qin Miao was fast, with Hamilton having DRS, Qin Miao couldn't overtake him.

Moreover, with the rain, Qin Miao's speed would drop even faster.

Even while it was raining, Qin Miao was confident that his lap time was faster than Norris's.

But after the rain started, Qin Miao couldn't be sure he could overtake Norris.

After all, the race director would likely close the DRS, and traction would decrease.

In short, at this point in the race, a lot of unfavorable situations appeared in front of Qin Miao.

However, compared to other drivers, Qin Miao and his team still had a significant advantage.

After all, there was a 30-second time gap between Qin Miao and Sainz behind him, so the three of them could stay out on the track longer.

The top three drivers could wait for the others to switch to intermediate tires, see their lap times, and then consider the pit stop issue.

Of course, Qin Miao knew that if he just followed behind Hamilton, he might get caught out by Hamilton.

So upon seeing rain, Qin Miao wanted to pit as soon as possible.

He then asked the team staff over the radio, "When can I pit for a tire change?"

"Even though it's raining now, we believe the rain won't be too heavy in the next two laps, please stay out for now. We will call you in if necessary," Frankie paused and responded.

Since the team said so, Qin Miao said nothing further and continued lapping steadily on the track.

In lap 47, the sky in Sochi continued to darken, and raindrops were visible to the naked eye falling at T5, with signs of rain wetting the track.

Coming out of T5, Norris even went off track because of the rain there.

Fortunately, the runoff area outside T5 was large enough, and Norris quickly rejoined after going off track.