"Is the new talent from China really that strong?"
An engineer from an F1 team asked the question that was on almost everyone’s mind at that mont.
The temperature and track conditions at the Spa Circuit today were indeed ideal for breaking records, with lap tis nearly a second faster than last year as the best evidence.
But that doesn’t an Chen Xiangbei could be 0.2 seconds faster than Hamilton.
The more terrifying part is that this Chinese kid only pushed for two laps from start to finish.
One lap during practice and one during qualifying.
Once could be attributed to an extraordinary performance or a stroke of luck.
But doing it twice ans this Chinese kid has absolute confidence!
At the very least, he’s extrely confident about his lap ti consistency. The average lap ti on the simulator is hovering around the track’s pole position record.
Astonishing, truly astonishing.
In F1 history, there have been countless genius drivers, but compared to Chen Xiangbei, their growth paths are often traceable.
For instance, they might co from a prestigious racing family, exhibited extraordinary talent in karting, and advanced to high-level formula racing by overpowering opponents all the way.
With such young geniuses, people are at least sowhat prepared psychologically, having a hunch they might perform extraordinarily.
But Chen Xiangbei has always been beyond people’s expectations!
"Nelson, check this Chinese kid’s profile data."
The Renault team leader Blair gave an instruction to the team’s sports departnt manager, Nelson.
Chen Xiangbei’s performance at this mont once again caught the attention of the Renault Team’s managent, known as the "Big Three."
In fact, the Renault engineering team noticed Chen Xiangbei as early as during the Catalonia Circuit testing and had reported the rookie testing results to the managent.
However, at that ti, the Renault Team wasn’t particularly interested in Chen Xiangbei. Their third driver was GP2 champion Grosjean, nicknad "Gros Flag," so they had no need for a Chinese rookie to compete for a spot.
The reason for letting Dong Hebin test was purely to capitalize on the hype of having a Chinese F1 driver and the sponsorship funds he could provide.
Moreover, testing results do not equate to actual track performance; there have been many precedents in F1 history where rookies perford impressively in testing yet poorly in races. Chen Xiangbei still needed to prove himself with race results.
But things are different now!
In August, Renault Team announced the dismissal of their second driver, young Piquet.
They considered this Brazilian second-generation driver to be way too inadequate, not even able to catch a glimpse of Alonso’s rear lights. Why keep him around?
This is similar to the situation of Red Bull Racing Team frequently changing teammates for Verstappen in later years. The team doesn’t need you to be extraordinary; after all, no one can outrun Verstappen. But at least, you should barely keep up with him and serve as a competent support driver.
If you’re eliminated in Q1 of qualifying and can’t even fulfill the role of drag, you might as well be kicked out directly.
This resulted in the spectacle of Verstappen being the ironclad constant in the Red Bull Racing Team while the teammates keep changing.
Under normal circumstances, replacing an inadequate second driver in a "Big Three" team wouldn’t cause much controversy, as everyone would find it perfectly reasonable.
But young Piquet is no ordinary new driver; his father’s na is Nelson Piquet, a three-ti F1 world champion!
By the way, old Piquet also has a daughter nad Kelly Piquet, who chose Verstappen as her boyfriend, forming a perfect circle...
Seeing his son cut mid-season by the Renault Team, old Piquet of course couldn’t stand it and directly exposed the truth about Renault Team’s "Crashgate" at the Singapore Station in 2008.
He told the dia that young Piquet crashed upon the team’s instructions, aiming to trigger an incident and safety car, assisting the number one driver, Alonso, to win!
Nowadays, Renault Team’s actions are seen as betrayal once the grinding wheel is gone.
With this news, the Renault Team was in hot water, with team manager Briatore permanently expelled from the F1 world, team leader Simmons banned for 5 years, and several executives facing suspensions ranging from 3 to 1 year, effectively leading to an overhaul of the managent.
At the sa ti, the number one driver, Alonso, "backstabbed" them by announcing his transfer to Ferrari Team next year, causing the entire managent and driver structure to collapse, leaving the "Big Three" title hanging by a thread.
The team urgently needed potential drivers to bolster their main and reserve driver lineup. Without a doubt, Chen Xiangbei’s performance will now be on their consideration list!
It’s not just the Renault Team; both the Red Bull Racing Team and Saub Team have also shown interest in Chen Xiangbei.
In a way, Chen Xiangbei has achieved half of what he set out to do. He has caught the attention of F1 team managent with a breakout performance, and now his task is to make them resolute in their decision!
Compared to the "low-key" and "reserved" nature of F1 managent, witnessing Chen Xiangbei’s lap tis on the track made comntators and audiences feel like they were in a frenzy.
"MY GOD, Xiangbei, in just one flying lap during qualifying, reclaid his top position and broke the track record at the sa ti, securing the pole position for the F3 series at Spa Station!"
"I distinctly rember Xiangbei boldly declaring that he has dominated the Renault Formula."
"Could he be proving today that he will dominate F3 as well?"
Jas had favored Chen Xiangbei before the qualifying, believing he would achieve a top-three result in the paddock.
But he never dared to imagine that Chen Xiangbei would secure the pole position so overwhelmingly and break Hamilton’s record twice.
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