"Chen, Hamilton is very confident."
Seeing the smile on Chen Xiangbei’s face, Briatore seized the opportunity to stir things up.
"Indeed, but I like it."
"Like it?"
Hearing Chen Xiangbei use this word, Briatore’s expression was sowhat strange.
Did this guy suddenly beco gay...
Just as they were watching Hamilton’s interview, the technical director Bob Bell approached.
He said to Odetto and Chen Xiangbei, "The issue with the engine’s linear power output can’t be adjusted through software. To avoid problems in qualifying and the race, I suggest a major overhaul."
"A major overhaul?"
Hearing Bell’s words, Odetto frowned.
A major overhaul now would an that Chen Xiangbei would at least miss the second practice session.
If it were a familiar track, coupled with shared adjustnt data, missing a session actually wouldn’t have much impact.
The FIA had a mandatory policy in later years that required each team to dedicate at least two practice sessions per season to their junior drivers.
This was partly to develop reserve strength and let junior drivers adapt to the F1 Paddock in advance.
The other aspect was to test the potential of the junior drivers.
Those who finish at the back in practice aren’t necessarily bad, but those who finish at the front are definitely impressive!
Even if a junior driver only secures the fastest lap in a practice session, it will imdiately attract the attention of many team managers within the paddock.
For example, several newcors in the 2025 season, such as Duhan, Colapinto, Bellman, and Hajjar, all participated in practice sessions during the 2024 season, becoming part of their credentials to compete for a full-ti seat.
But on a completely unfamiliar track with a purely rookie teammate,
missing a practice session ans a lack of adjustnt data, making Chen Xiangbei’s qualifying and race situation increasingly difficult.
"Well, I think it’s safer to skip a practice session than to compete with underlying issues."
Bell shared his perspective, then aningfully added.
"Chen, try to trust Perez; he will be your teammate for at least the next few races."
Bell knew exactly what Chen Xiangbei’s concern was, feeling that Perez couldn’t manage the car adjustnts independently.
But ultimately, F1 is a team sport, and many things can’t be resolved by a driver alone; the importance of unity has already been demonstrated with Trulli.
You have to trust your teammates to win races.
Especially given the current trend, Perez’s chances of staying with the HRT Team could be much higher than just the next few races.
"I understand, let’s go ahead with the repair."
Chen Xiangbei didn’t insist; after all, he wasn’t completely distrustful of Perez.
You must know that with a god’s perspective, he rembers the rankings of second drivers throughout the 21st century.
Barrichello is undoubtedly number one, with no real weaknesses and only faced the "godlike" Schumacher.
Otherwise, with his skills, if he had Jenson Button’s luck, winning a world championship wouldn’t have been a problem.
Masa ranks second, with strengths being very obedient and willing to submit to stronger drivers, be it pairing with Schumacher, Raikkonen, or later Alonso; he got along well and was suitable.
His weaknesses are naturally rain battles and a significant decline after injuries, becoming a retirent-age driver.
Perez could rank third, with his driving style being considered a "reverse" Bottas.
Bottas’ style is familiar to many; having absolute speed, especially when driving the Mars Rover, his qualifying results could keep up with Hamilton.
But once it ca to race day, if he couldn’t lead from the front, getting stuck in the pack ant disappearing from visibility, with wheel-to-wheel battles being quite weak.
Perez is the complete opposite, having average absolute speed and not being great at finding the car’s limits. But Master Pei’s wheel-to-wheel battles are top-notch, and he can spar with anyone.
Especially when the team needs him, he can rise to the occasion, leaving many morable monts in the paddock.
Carrying the load is a very important trait for a second driver, which is why Perez ranks ahead of Bottas.
However, Perez’s adaptation to the track and car is relatively weak, often requiring two or three tid laps to achieve the best speed, similar to Zhou Guanyu in later years.
Another crucial point for Chen Xiangbei’s hesitation is Perez’s driving and adjustnt style don’t really suit him.
Perez’s driving style can be described in two words: "smoothness."
Smooth turning, smooth throttle application, smooth cornering.
He strives to minimize occurrences of sliding, fishtailing, and spinning, always keeping the tires within a reasonable temperature range, and rarely goes full throttle into corners to stress the tires.
This is why Perez’s tire preservation ability is incredibly exaggerated.
If you’re consistently holding back the throttle, how could you not save tires?
Chen Xiangbei, on the other hand, is the complete opposite; he likes heavy braking into corners and, unless forced, never coasts to reduce speed.
Of course, Perez being called a "Tire Preservation Master" isn’t just because he can maximize tire preservation, but because in the latter part of the race he can make a coback and achieve good results.
If you’re preserving tires but end up last, what’s the point?
"OK, let’s settle it this way."
Bell nodded and began calling the technician team for an engine overhaul.
Soon the second practice session followed, with cars driving out of the P room as planned for tire testing.
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