How Did I Become an F1 Driver?-Chapter 795 - 321: The "Wealthier" Fan
"Alright, after this race you've once again widened the gap between you and Hamilton and Verstappen. Do you think this will make the next race easier for you?"
Qin Miao shook his head and responded, "Impossible. Every F1 Grand Prix is a challenge. No one can predict what will happen on the track until the actual results are confirmed."
"Okay, last question. We noticed a significant drop in your speed towards the end of the race. Can you tell us what happened? Did the car encounter any problems?"
Talking about this, Qin Miao recalled that moment with a cold sweat running down his back. After all, if his battery had failed half a lap earlier, the championship wouldn't have been his.
"Yes, there seemed to be an issue with the car's battery. I was using nothing but the internal combustion engine's power at that time, so it's obvious that my speed dropped significantly towards the end of the race. But this is good news for me, at least I've eliminated a potential critical issue ahead of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix that could have impacted my results."
"Thank you very much. Our interview ends here. Lastly, congratulations on winning the race and we sincerely hope you can defend your career's first driver's championship at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix."
Qin Miao nodded with a smile and said to the host, "Thank you so much."
After speaking, Qin Miao waved to the audience at the venue who came to support him and then walked into the backstage preparation room for the podium celebration amidst cheers.
Next in line for interviews were Hamilton and Verstappen. It was evident that both drivers were not too enthusiastic and were visibly agitated during their interviews.
At least from Verstappen's perspective, Qin Miao's championship was one he felt was snatched from his hands.
So during the interview, Verstappen's words were not without some resentment towards Qin Miao.
However, Qin Miao at this moment couldn't hear what Verstappen was saying during the interview, and even if he could, it wouldn't stir much emotion in him. After all, just like Verstappen thought during the race.
F1 only looks at the final result, not the process.
Soon, the post-race interviews for the two drivers concluded, and everyone from the Mercedes team gathered below the podium.
This race might be a bit tough for Hamilton, as a small error cost him a sure win at the race, possibly affecting the driver's championship direction this season. However, for Mercedes, it was indeed a landslide victory.
With both drivers securing first and second, no matter who it was, everyone had joyful smiles on their faces, at least on the surface.
Soon, Verstappen was introduced by the host, followed by Hamilton, and lastly, Qin Miao wearing the Pirelli winner's hat.
At the same time, Frankie, now significantly slimmer than when he first joined Mercedes, also stepped onto the podium.
In fact, Frankie never intentionally lost weight, and he naturally tends to gain weight, given that European diets are generally high in calories, gaining weight was a given for him.
He slimmed down purely because of the sudden increase in workload and pressure after joining the F1 team.
Though the team has nutritionists to adjust staff diets, the intense work pressure still led to Frankie slimming down.
Despite being a bit tired, Frankie was quite satisfied with his current physical state and physique.
Once all four stood on the podium, the national anthem played.
As usual, Qin Miao took off his hat and sang the anthem he grew up with.
Soon, the anthem concluded, moving to the award ceremony.
The person presenting the awards this time didn't seem to be a local celebrity or government official like previous Grand Prix. It seemed like several princes from the Saudi royal family were presenting the awards.
It's said they came to the award ceremony simply because they're fans of Qin Miao.
Whether this is true, Qin Miao didn't know.
When Verstappen and Hamilton received their awards, it seemed normal, but when it came to Qin Miao, the three with white headscarves handed Quinn Miao the trophy, a wreath made of olive branches, and even a bottle of champagne.
These three, while handing things to Qin Miao or presenting the award, shook Qin Miao's hand for more than 5 seconds.
Qin Miao had a strong hunch that these three were eager to present the awards just to shake hands with himself.
Of course, Qin Miao wasn't sure about the truth of this guess.
Nonetheless, the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix championship trophy was in Qin Miao's hands.
After the award ceremony, typically it's the drivers' champagne celebration phase.
But Verstappen chose not to participate, leaving with unopened champagne and the third-place trophy.
Whereas Qin Miao, Hamilton, and Frankie, the three from Mercedes, celebrated briefly on stage.
Soon after, they left the podium with their respective accolades.
As they headed off, the broadcast director habitually displayed the race's driver rankings and points situation.
1: Qin Miao +25
2: Hamilton +18
3: Verstappen +16 (fastest lap)
4: O'Kang +12
5: Ricardo +10
6: Gasly +8
7: Leclerc +6
8: Sainz +4
9: Giovinazzi +2
10: Norris +1
11: Stroll
12: Latifi
13: Alonso
14: Yuki Tsunoda
15: Kimi
16: Vettel (DNF)
17: Perez (DNF)
18: Mazepin (DNF)
19: Russell (DNF)
20: Mick Schumacher (DNF)
The fastest lap of the race was still won by Verstappen.
However, at this point in the season, this one-point from the fastest lap seemed almost futile in having a decisive impact.
Simultaneously, after displaying the drivers' points and scores, the broadcast also provided the total points standings after the race.
1: Qin Miao 376
2: Hamilton 363 (+6→+13)
3: Verstappen 354 (+13→+22)
4: Perez 174
5: Leclerc 161
6: Norris 131
7: Sainz 123
8: Ricardo 101
9: Gasly 78
10: Alonso 65
11: O'Kang 60
12: Vettel 49
13: Stroll 26
14: Tsunoda 14
15: Russell 10
16: Kimi 7
17: Latifi 3
18: Giovinazzi 2
After this race, the points gap between Qin Miao and Hamilton increased from 6 points to 13 points.
This means that if Hamilton still hopes for the drivers' championship this year, he must win the next Grand Prix in Abu Dhabi.
Alongside winning the Grand Prix, Qin Miao must finish outside the top three.
These are harsh conditions for winning, aren't they?
Now let's look at Verstappen's situation.
If Verstappen wants to overturn the two Mercedes drivers in the next race and seize the championship.
He not only needs to win the final race but also needs Qin Miao to finish no higher than eighth, or directly DNF.
In short, not scoring more than 3 points.
Verstappen's winning conditions are much harsher than Hamilton's.
Apart from the competition for the championship between these three drivers, there was a new face on the drivers' total score leaderboard.
Giovinazzi finished eighth in this race, earning 2 valuable points for the Alfa Romeo team.
While it couldn't lift the Alfa Romeo team above the Williams team in the standings, earning points was still good.
Except for the two Haas drivers, there are now 18 drivers in the paddock who have scored points.
This means unless there's a breakthrough in the final race in Abu Dhabi, Haas will end the season without any points, with neither driver having scored throughout the entire season, which seems a bit bleak now.
PS. Sorry, only 4,000 today...
