ctnovel Chapter 66 Difficult to Bear
Chapter 66 Difficult to Bear
While Tang Che was encouraging the engineers in the pit lane, the engineers came to apologize to him. Tang Che knew they had done their best and didn't think they had anything to apologize for. —The race control center announced: "The race will resume at 17:15 local time—rolling start."
At 17:15, the race restarted with the safety car in charge.
Race control center: "Cars that have been lapped can get out of the loop."
On lap 33, all the lapped cars were freed, the safety car left the track, and the race officially restarted!
Verstappen, who was in the lead, kicked Sainz away with one kick. With the old white tires against the new yellow tires, Sainz simply couldn't keep up with Verstappen!
Perez, behind Sainz, used his tire advantage to ram right into Sainz's rear end, and Sainz couldn't shake him off.
Sainz sent a telegram over TR: "******! Look what you've done! *****!"
This is why it's difficult to overtake on the Monaco circuit. Using the old white tires helps prevent the new yellow tires from being damaged; otherwise, Sainz might have had to take down the VfL strategy team.
Although Leclerc wasn't immediately overtaken by Tontard after the start, he wasn't far behind. With the tire advantage, Tontard was faster than Leclerc and was wiping out Leclerc's already meager lead.
Leclerc's emotions were much more stable than Beenz's. On the one hand, he had just adjusted his emotions in the pit lane; on the other hand, the task that the Wofa strategy team had assigned this time, the Hongqi without changing tires, was much smaller than the previous task of two cars entering the pit. This kind of small task could no longer stir up any waves in Leclerc's heart, who had experienced big tasks before.
On lap 35, Tanger closed in on Leclerc and entered his attack zone. At that lap, the race stopped counting laps and instead began a 34-minute countdown.
(For ease of writing, the timeline will still be marked with circles below.)
Tang Che needs to figure out how to overtake.
Although he knew that overtaking on this track was extremely difficult, Tang Che could not just sit there; he had to do everything he could to gain a position!
Fight to the very last moment! Suicide! Slit! Return to Heaven!
There are only two places on this track that can barely be considered overtaking points: the Drs section and turn 1 after the Drs section, and turn 10 and turn 11 after exiting the tunnel.
The DRSE zone is very short, making it difficult to overtake with sufficient tail speed advantage.
Turns 10 and 11 can be considered overtaking points because entering Turn 10 requires heavy braking, with a very short braking distance, offering a possibility of overtaking with delayed braking. However, the probability is slim, and the maneuverability is extremely high. Moreover, these two turns are only slightly wider than the other turns, barely wide enough for two cars to pass side by side, leaving very limited space for overtaking. It can almost be said that overtaking is only theoretically possible.
With DRES currently unavailable, Tontard's lap time advantage over Leclerc isn't significant enough to allow him to overtake Leclerc in the DRES zone without DRES. He can only attempt overtaking at Turns 10 and 11.
Approaching Turn 10, Tanger did not attack, but Leclerc defended first.
Leclerc: I change lanes and block the car before braking, brake early to occupy the center line, and then cut inside. How do you respond to that?
Tang Che: Man, what can I say?
The places where it's difficult for the car behind to overtake are also the places where it's easy for the car in front to defend. Leclerc's smooth little combo is an impenetrable wall on Turn 10, and there's absolutely no way to break through it!
The road is completely blocked here, and there's no chance for Tangche to overtake anywhere else.
But Tanger did not give up. He tried to attack almost every single lap, lap after lap.
Leclerc had to defend every lap.
One can't overtake the other, and the other can't shake them off. They're locked in a tangle on the track, truly a pair of star-crossed lovers!
On lap 40, Mattia reminded Tanget in the radio: "DRS is now available. You're 0.6 seconds behind Leclerc, so you can use DRS."
drs! Start!
Is that enough for a fast-paced attack? No! Absolutely not enough! This short DRS zone is simply not enough!
To overtake in this DRS zone, the car behind must already have a significant advantage in straightaway performance, and only by using DRS can there be any hope of overtaking.
The AT03 does have better straight-line performance than the F1-75, but the advantage is not significant enough to support overtaking.
Both barely feasible overtaking opportunities were blocked, and unless Leclerc made a mistake, Tancher had absolutely no chance of moving up the position.
But Leclerc was incredibly consistent in the p4 position, making not a single mistake until the end of the match.
After Tangche crossed the finish line, Mattia said dejectedly in the TR, "Sorry, Tang, we lost your championship."
"That malfunction was very serious. In other teams, it might have meant retirement. But we not only didn't retire, we even came back in P5, which is something to be very proud of." Tangche remained as calm as ever. "There will be plenty of time in the future, and we will always have the opportunity to win another race."
In competitive sports, one should not be complacent when winning, nor should one be able to accept defeat with equanimity—this is what Tang Jingning taught seven-year-old Tang Che at the Shanghai karting track when he was first introduced to karting, and Tang Che has always kept it in mind and put it into practice.
Mattia was still very down, and the entire Alfa Romeo pit wall was also down.
They are regretting:
There's certainly plenty of time ahead. With Tonteau's talent, he will definitely have more opportunities to win races, many more, but it's highly unlikely he'll win them with Alfa Romeo. The AT03 isn't a championship car; only with perfect timing, location, and circumstances in Monaco can one have a chance to win—that's an extremely demanding condition, and it's unlikely such conditions will exist for the rest of the season. And after this season, Tonteau will leave Alfa Romeo.
They are blaming themselves:
The Monaco victory is truly special! If you asked an F1 professional to choose the most meaningful race win from all the race wins, the vast majority would choose Monaco! The Alfa Toli team lost the Monaco victory that was almost in their grasp, and it was also the first victory of Tottenham's career, so they really can't let it go.
"Lift your heads!" Tang Che noticed their dejection, and his voice became more passionate. "Is there anyone who still wants to win the game with me? If so, please lift your heads and join me in preparing actively for the next match!"
Tang Che has never given the Pit Wall any passion despite being on the podium so many times, but this time, ridiculously, he gave it to the Pit Wall after falling from the lead to P5.
How could those figures on the pit wall not be deeply impacted?
Mattia was almost in tears: "I'm sorry, Tom, it's clearly our job that wasn't done well enough, but in the end, we need you to comfort us."
Tang Che: "I don't want to hear any more of this. I just want to know, do you guys still want to win!"
Mattia: "Yes!"
Tang Che: "I can't hear you! I can't hear you at all! You think you can win the game by speaking so softly?"
"Yes!!!" Mattia shouted loudly, drawing the attention of the pit walls of the other teams on both sides.
The attention from other teams didn't embarrass the Alfa Toli players on the pit wall in the slightest. Right now, they only had one thought in their minds—to give Toli the most solid and reliable support in the next race!
Tang Che on the other end of the TR line nodded: "Good! Very energetic!"
In contrast, Leclerc's return post-match commentary read: "Speechless, truly speechless. We shouldn't have made this decision, we really shouldn't."
Leclerc grew increasingly angry; all the emotions he had suppressed during the Red Flag period surged up again. He immediately sent a telegram: "****! ****! ****!"
(I thought Monaco's performance in the 22 season was unbeatable, but I didn't expect Monaco's performance in the 26 season to be even more impressive than in the 22 season.)
Binuto: "I understand, I think so too, we shouldn't have done it that way."
Then there is no more.
After getting off the bus and being weighed, Toncher and Leclerc exchanged a glance and couldn't help but laugh.
That's how it is when two people in the same boat meet; once their eyes meet, they can't hold back their emotions even if they want to.
Just then, the racing emperor, who had just taken off his helmet, looked over, and another person couldn't hold back.
The Emperor started in P8, was bounced around by Mercedes' dynamic racing cars throughout the race, and was also wrecked by Gasly in P7 for the entire race. P8 brought him back, and he died. How could the Emperor possibly remain calm in that situation?
(I thought putting the Emperor in P8 was already a huge mistake, but last night the Emperor's fate was even worse, directly reincarnating as the Legendary King of Punishment)
(Compared to reality, my imagination is still too lacking.)
The Emperor's teammate, Cupping King Hamilton, started at p10, but was held back by p9's leader for the entire game, and p10 brought him back.
The cupping master was a seasoned veteran; he remained expressionless after getting off the bus, unlike the younger guys like Tang Che who couldn't hold back.
It's possible that the guy next to him was laughing so hard that the cupping king couldn't laugh.
All non-podium drivers moved to the mixed zone for interviews.
As the two most dramatic drivers of the day, Toncher and Leclerc naturally received more media attention.
Tang Che naturally gave an interview to CCTV Sports Channel first.
Reporter: "We all saw that you encountered a rather strange malfunction in today's match. How did you feel at the moment the malfunction occurred?"
Tang Che: "I didn't have any special feelings, because malfunctions are part of F1 racing, especially in the first year of the new regulations. Drivers should be prepared for the possibility of their cars malfunctioning at any time. In that instant, I was thinking about whether the malfunction could be resolved quickly, so I immediately communicated with the team, and the team gave me very good technical support."
Reporter: "After the race, in response to the team's apology, you gave them a rather passionate encouragement in the TR. Does this mean that the result of this race wasn't too difficult for you to accept?"
Tang Che: "As I said in TR, it's already quite remarkable that we were able to keep P5 after such a serious malfunction. We don't need to be overly critical or overly concerned. What we should do is look forward and prepare carefully for every game from now on."
Reporter: "But this is Monaco's championship, and it's more likely to be your first career title."
Tontard was relieved, but domestic racing fans, including CCTV reporters, were far from at peace. This race was truly the most heart-wrenching one they had ever witnessed. The CCTV reporter, watching from the scene, nearly suffered a heart attack when Tontard's accident occurred in the tunnel. Although Tontard finished the race safely, the championship was lost, leaving domestic fans with only endless regret and disappointment.
Tang Che: "You don't need to say that the championships you didn't win should have been yours. That's meaningless, even if they could have been yours in the past. It's like pursuing someone; if you didn't win them over, you didn't win them over. No matter how much you claim that you could have been together, that person could never have been with you."
The reporter was reminded of some unpleasant memories: Pain! So much pain!
On the other hand, things aren't going so well for Leclerc.
A Sky Sports reporter immediately threw a difficult question at you: "Do you feel the team has let you down?"
Anyone with a normal level of intelligence can see that Leclerc's championship was completely rigged. But when facing the media, one cannot state such an ugly fact; one must use tactful public relations rhetoric.
Leclerc didn't care about his complaints: "Letting down others doesn't even begin to describe how I feel right now. Mistakes are inevitable in a race, but the team made far too many mistakes today. In these complex road conditions, drivers rely heavily on the team's judgment because we're in the cockpit and can't see whether other drivers are using wet or dry tires. The team asked me before if I wanted to switch from wet to dry tires, and I clearly stated: I could switch, but not now, it would be better to wait a while. But I just can't understand why the team changed their minds at the last minute and made me pit for tires earlier..."
Leclerc's complaints about Vorfair were like a torrent of water, endless and unstoppable, like the Yellow River overflowing its banks.
If it weren't for the Sky Sports reporter interrupting him, Leclerc could probably have talked all day without repeating himself.
-----------------
Master Tang, who had worked in vain all day, left the hunting grounds.
After returning to the hotel, Chef Tang received a message from Jiang Zhiyu.
"Dish, it wasn't a malfunction that ruined you, it was two mysterious forces that killed you!"
"【video】"
The video title is: "Five-star once again instantly jinxes."
Tang Che clicked on it in a flash, so fast!
Fei Ge: "The battle for position between Verstappen and Tom Cruise should be the only suspense in the remaining races, but there isn't much suspense. It's difficult to overtake at the Monaco circuit, and Tom Cruise is a top defensive master among active drivers. Verstappen's chances of overtaking Tom Cruise are slim."
Soldier: "That's right... Oh no!!!! What happened? What happened? Little Tang's race car suddenly slowed down!"
……
After watching the video, Tang Che almost couldn't hold back his emotions.
Exiting the video reveals another mysterious force, as Jiang Zhiyu mentioned.
"Also, Le Laosi wanted to return to his position, but the track conditions didn't support it, so they randomly picked an unlucky guy to drop out of the top four."
"The fourth one is a god of concepts!"
"With two mysterious forces serving you alone, how could you not be incredibly lucky?"
Tang Che couldn't hold back any longer: "Just a smile and it's all over.jpg"
Jiang Zhiyu: "I'm holding back.jpg"
At the same time, Tang Jingqing forwarded a YouTube video to Tang Che.
Video title: "The Rosberg Photo Curse".
Tang Che clicked in instantly, really fast!
"After the Monaco Grand Prix, I discovered a surprising fact - drivers who took photos with Nico Rosberg all performed poorly in subsequent races!"
Charles Leclerc and Tontard, who both suffered setbacks in the main draw of this year's Monaco Grand Prix, took photos with Nico Rosberg before the competition!
Four-time world champions Sebastian Vettel and Tontatta posed for a photo with Nico Rosberg. Although Seb did not encounter any malfunctions or bad strategies in this tournament, he failed to enter the points zone, which can definitely be considered a poor performance!
"Let's rewind to the 2021 Monaco Grand Prix. Charles Leclerc was taking a photo with Nico Rosberg before the race, and then he suffered a mechanical failure at the start of the race and had to retire immediately!"
"This is absolutely a conclusive conclusion—drivers who take photos with Nico Rosberg before the race will perform poorly in the race!"
After watching the video, Tang Che made that player's signature move: "Man, what can I say?"