How Did I Become an F1 Driver?-Chapter 674 - 285: Continuous Rain at the Turkish Grand Prix

Can't catch up, really can't catch up.

Moreover, Qin Miao's speed is achieved with Qin Miao holding back a bit, and Leclerc behind has been pulled away by Verstappen by 9 seconds, yet Verstappen still can't catch up to Qin Miao.

Once Verstappen enters the 1.5-second warning zone behind Qin Miao, Qin Miao will slightly increase the speed and expand the gap to 2 seconds.

So the time gap between the two is fixed at around 2.5 seconds, and both their overall speeds have decreased.

On the 22nd lap, Norris was the first to make the pit stop for a tire change, switching to a new set of intermediate tires.

McLaren seems to be betting on the light rain persisting throughout the race phase, so they called Norris in early. Following this, Norris has 11 seconds of clear air ahead.

On the 28th lap, Frankie routinely asked Qin Miao: "How are the tires holding up?"

From Qin Miao's angle, he could just see the tread of his right front tire, and after a glance, while setting the fastest lap, Qin Miao replied: "Quite good, the tires should last a bit longer."

"Okay, please continue to protect the tires. If possible, you might finish the race on this set," said Frankie.

Qin Miao was surprised by Frankie's words: "Can we really finish on them?"

"Yes, but we will adjust according to the situation on track at any time. I will notify you immediately of any updates."

According to FIA rules, there is no explicit requirement for drivers to make a pit stop for a tire change in rainy conditions.

Thus, that which is not prohibited is allowed, which is also true for the F1 rules set by the FIA.

Otherwise, so many team engineers wouldn't spend countless hours studying FIA's rules, all to find loopholes within the regulations.

The conversation between Qin Miao and Frankie was released by the broadcaster, and when the slow-motion showed Qin Miao's car tires, it was obvious that the tread was still visible on the right front tire.

"Qin Miao's tire management ability is really impressive." Watching the tread on Qin Miao's tires, Bing sighed.

"It's already 28 laps, and Qin Miao's right front tire only has slight wear, just that the tread is much shallower." Fei nodded.

On the 30th lap, Perez had been behind for a full 15 laps, with Hamilton still behind Perez.

Of course, it's not that Hamilton wasn't attacking Perez; for most of the time previously, Hamilton was closing the gap to Perez.

By this time, Hamilton's tire grip was not as strong, encountering the same problem as other drivers where the tread on the intermediate tires was worn out, forcing Hamilton to use them as if they were a softer slick tire.

Meanwhile, on the track, some corners were already showing racing lines, but most areas were still covered by rainwater, so Hamilton's speed didn't improve.

In contrast, Qin Miao has already expanded the gap to Verstappen to 5.2 seconds.

Everyone was puzzled as to why Verstappen, usually 0.2 seconds faster per lap on dry ground, was being suppressed by Qin Miao, especially in rainy conditions, which Qin was not adept at.

On the 33rd lap, Hamilton finally came up behind Perez and began attempting to attack Perez.

The broadcaster also focused the camera on these two drivers.

By the 35th lap, after two laps of chasing, Hamilton finally found an opportunity to attack Perez and showcased an exciting wheel-to-wheel battle in the third timing sector for the audience.

This wheel-to-wheel battle was the only relatively exciting exchange of the race.

The two battled through four corners before a result was reached.

Perez, in the end, held off Hamilton's attack with determined defense and multiple cross-line maneuvers.

After years of driving in the paddock, Perez, although less talented than gifted drivers like Qin Miao. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Possesses ample race experience.

Despite still being somewhat unaccustomed to the highly responsive front-end directionality of the Red Bull car, Perez's rich experience helped him make the right choices at the right places.

Perez ultimately defended against Hamilton's attack.

Notably, during their offensive and defensive battle, Perez was once squeezed to the pit entry by Hamilton.

On the 37th lap, Red Bull, realizing that Verstappen indeed couldn't catch Qin Miao, called Verstappen in through team TR.

Continuing to follow with old tires behind Qin Miao would only result in Verstappen securing second place at best.

But at this time, due to Perez and Hamilton's ongoing battle, the gap between them and Leclerc in front had reached 20 seconds.

Upon exiting the pit after the tire change, Verstappen could slot ahead of Perez and find a large patch of clean air.

Verstappen emerged ahead of Perez but behind Leclerc after the pit stop.

At this point, all the pressure shifted to Mercedes and Qin Miao.