My Formula 1 System-Chapter 571: S3 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. 2
If not for the robust electrical system of the circuit’s infrastructure, the Saudi Arabian GP could easily have descended into disaster.
About ten seconds after the spark and blackout, the fail-safes kicked in, drawing support power from neighboring sector boxes.
Electricity was swiftly restored to Sector 2, the floodlights buzzing back to life, and the darkness was chased away.
Once illuminated again, the damage to Di Renzo’s machine was re-exposed.
It was a harsh, smoking scene, but with the lights restored and systems stabilized, regular clearance activities were able to proceed.
But what about the drivers who had unfortunately been passing through Sector 2 during those crucial ten seconds??
The blackout struck after the VSC had already been deployed, which then triggered stricter yellow flag measures.
However, those measures only came after the ten-second blackout: VSC → Blackout → Double Yellow (Standard SC).
Luigi, leading the parade, was the first to barrel into the shadowed track—and Luca, close behind him, was the second.
Though the sky wasn’t pitch black—more like a midnight veil, laced with hints of natural night light and the glow of nearby buildings—the sudden plunge into darkness when the floodlights died was enough to disorient Luigi.
The shock rattled him, and for the first time, he lost control.
Luca was stunned as well, but the moment the lights vanished, his vision sharpened as he instinctively activated his <Night Mastery> skill.
Within seconds, his eyes adjusted, and he could see the darkened circuit even clearer than when the floodlights had been blazing.
Weaving respectfully behind his rival under VSC conditions, he had the perfect vantage point to watch the reigning champion twitch and falter, the Mercedes wavering on the edge of a crash-promising spiral!
Luca smiled when he saw his rival flirt with zero points, but the further he weaved and advanced, the more his <Spatial Awareness> screamed that Luigi might graze him and drag him into chaos too!
Instinctively, Luca veered away from the struggling car, yet a sudden, sharp kiss of metal met his sidepod.
He was shoved to his right, while Luigi slowed slightly from the soft impact.
"Darn," Luca hissed.
Crunch!
The more he engaged <Gripper>, the more it felt like he was accelerating straight into the wall!
As his Ferrari tore its rear against the barrier, carbon fiber ripped loose across the street, leaving the damage exposed for all to see the instant the floodlights flickered back on.
"...Unbelievable! It’s a different kind of lights out! Luigi loses control, and kisses Rennick into the wall! THE WALL’S GOT HIM...!"
"WOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHH!"
[Rear Wing Damage: 35%]
"...How on earth is he still on track? Incredible durability—he survives that scrape, unscathed on the asphalt, and he takes the position...!"
[Silent Restore +1]
[SYNC BAR: [][][][] 12.5%]
Clenching his fist in triumph, Luca lunged ahead, seizing the lead with an unconventional overtake.
[1ST POSITION]
Normally, in parade conditions, overtakes were strictly disallowed, but exceptions existed for moments like this.
Luigi’s shove had inadvertently set it all into motion, giving Luca the perfect window to seize the lead.
Even Luigi was left speechless, his own car finally stabilized. He stared in disbelief, still stunned by the blackout, and now at how his rival made it through unscathed, claiming P1 outright.
**Luca, that... wow. Mild scrape, but we’re good now. Delta’s stable to Antonio. Keep it tight. Standard Safety Car will be deployed**
"Affirmative," Luca replied.
From the radio, he could hear more chatter. Muffled, it sounded like the team was awed—whether at how expertly he’d handled the scrape or at the sheer durability of the Z24, they could not say.
It was an awesome save, courtesy of <Silent Restore>.
As the standard safety car parade fully concluded, Luca surged forward in P1, resuming the race with a lead born from the most uncanny sequence of events Saudi Arabia had yet witnessed.
Squadra Corse seethed over what had just transpired, grumbling that if the stewards didn’t intervene regarding the blackout, they had been robbed of a fair shot.
Yet with the electrical issue resolved but still unaddressed, any immediate action remained uncertain, leaving the chaos to linger in the background.
The Italian team then decided they would turn the tide soon enough, using the pitstop phase as their game changer.
From all that could be seen, Luigi wouldn’t be challenging Luca head-to-head anytime soon; the Mazerunner had truly fed off the momentum from that incident, extending a FOUR-second lead over the reigning champion by the 20th lap!
Luca was on a cruise, calmly receiving team radio updates, nailing the lines, and blurring past Riyadh Zenith Circuit’s streets.
Precise and alone, he was undeniably dominant.
But after laps upon laps of flawless execution, Luca was suddenly struck with a stunner.
Race Control had been monitoring his pace closely, and the stewards quickly launched investigations with the telemetry data they could gather.
Eventually, they discovered that Trampos Racing had employed a tactic eerily similar to Squadra Corse in the Canadian Grand Prix. The team had tampered with the chassis, subtly enhancing the car’s performance.
Apparently, Rennick was now achieving speeds slightly beyond the usual on this track, giving him a clear and undeniable edge over the competition.
Race Control hadn’t expected this from the rookie saints, Trampos Racing—but at the same time, it wasn’t entirely surprising.
After all, it seemed the team was willing to do everything possible to reclaim the lost lead from Squadra Corse.
What needed to be done was done: the announcement came through, and Luca was instructed to make an immediate pit stop for a parts change, halting his momentum in the process.
"Car 1 — Luca Rennick is to make a mandatory pit stop on the next lap. This is a direct order from Race Control. Failure to comply may result in disqualification."
The telemetry review had been executed so swiftly that Trampos Racing didn’t even have a moment to register their apprehension.
With barely concealed fear in their voices, Luca was informed of the mandatory pit stop.
When their dumbfounded driver pressed for a reason, the team couldn’t bring themselves to answer. Shame swallowed the engineers in the radio’s silence, while Luca’s anger echoed louder than any words they could muster.
"...It’s the second Race Control order tonight after Ignatova’s penalty. Rennick is to pull into the pits earlier than scheduled for the team..."
"...I’m curious—what could possibly be going on? What are the tweaks? There is a cunning play we aren’t seeing...!"
"WOOOOOOOOOOHH!"
"...We’re wondering what the strategy here could be as Trampos’ pit crew is already on alert. Twenty-four laps in, and the official pit window has likely opened by now, so this might not affect Rennick..."
Trampos had done it again; the same enhanced rear wing change, the same tweak designed to give Luca that extra edge in speed.
It had been executed despite his earlier discussion with the team, where he had clearly told them not to repeat it.
Every day for the mouse, a day for the cat—Race Control had finally caught up to them in this race where they chose to reemploy the forbidden advantage in the heat of the Saudi Arabian GP and its high-speed street track.
Uneasiness rippled through the entire Rising Suns, both the team in the garage and those in the suites, responsible for making the decision.
**Luca, sorry for the hiccup here**
"..."
**Race Control is insisting both wings get swapped, standard procedure under invigilation here in the telemetry. We’ll focus on quick stop and getting back to speed**
The circuit’s cameras and hovering drones tried to capture good clips of Luca and his helmeted expression as he steered into the pits, losing the lead in a couple of seconds.
Luca remained silent, eyes forward, revving and steering calmly, seemingly focused on living this setback through rather than dwelling on it.
For those who understood the deeper story behind this, they knew this meant more to Luca than just losing the lead and his momentum.
[Retrieving pitstop info...]
[Service Time: 2.65 seconds]
[Front Tires: Soft → Soft]
[Rear Tires: Soft → Soft]
[Rear Wing: Replaced]
[System’s prediction: 15 sec—18 sec]
[Host’s pitlane Entry and Exit: 24 sec]
The tires were swapped as well during the stop, so in essence it was just a regular pit, only extended because of the additional rear wing adjustments and the strict order from race control.
As Luca roared down the pitlane to rejoin the track, Trampos breathed a collective sigh of relief.
The immediate hurdle had been overcome, and at least the race could continue smoothly, even if their secret edge had been exposed and stripped away.
Yet they all knew that, just like Squadra Corse, the official reprimand would be coming shortly after this night.
Luca rejoined in P6, a punishment enough.
A lap later, Albert Derstappen, Jackson’s only hope left in the race, showed some promise.
He outmaneuvered the Mazerunner, snatching P6 away and dropping Luca down to P7 as the crowd erupted wildly.
"...What a turn of events—Luca Rennick, the man who looked untouchable earlier, suddenly looks mortal tonight...!"
"...The Saudi Arabian GP, full of shocks and shadows, and Rennick’s fall might be the biggest of them all...!"
’Alright. Focus. Focus. Breath and focus,’ Luca said to himself in the burning comfort of his cockpit.
The realization that the speeds he had been claiming as his own triumph were just the work of the enhanced rear wing disheartened him.
But still... why couldn’t it be him? Luca knew what he was capable of. He had the touch, the reflex, the finesse to prove it wasn’t just machinery carrying him forward.
He was speed. He was convinced.
Gripping his wheel tighter, Luca began shrinking that same gap Derstappen thought he had secured.
