My Formula 1 System

Luca couldn't believe what he was hearing. The next thing he knew, the announcement of the safety car followed, as the situation demanded strict regulation.

**Don't worry. It happens sometimes. I knew this crowd was frightening. Five minutes to bring order is what the stewards have predicted. Try maintaining the heat of your tires**

Luca swallowed hard, his mind racing with possibilities. What had caused the overrun? A fight? Or maybe the crowd was just intent on creating havoc for no reason at all? Whatever it was, he didn't like the sound of it, nor the deafening roar of the crowd outside, the noise seeping through his helmet pads.

He glanced at the yellow flags waving through his visor. With a deep breath, Luca shifted his focus and resumed obeying the instructions. He moved from left to right, maintaining a safe distance from the safety car while keeping his tires warm. Max Addams was right behind, waiting and preying until the five minutes elapsed.

Luca wondered what would happen in the remaining 72 laps, since only 3 had been completed. Surely, this wouldn't be the last attempt to storm the track, he thought. And in these few laps, the leaderboard had changed slightly, but the top three barely maintained their positions as Derstappen kept applying pressure on Max Addams over the chicanes, who in turn channeled the pressure to the pack leader, Luca.

The major change over the three laps was only between P6 and P7, as Miles pushed himself further to where his competition most lay, overtaking Kristensen and now trailing behind Ansel as they all aligned behind the safety car.

Mr. Grant's best guess was that Ansel wouldn't survive Miles' pressure, as Baku, Bahrain, and Budapest had told such a story. However, he hoped Ansel could heighten his aggressiveness—but at a safe level—as the team needed Luca to stay as high on the leaderboard as possible. To do so, Luca would need less competition and pressure at the lead.

**Safety car is coming back in**

"...Tras una breve interrupción, la carrera ha reanudado. La calma ha vuelto al circuito y el coche de seguridad ha salido. Luca sigue al frente, seguido de cerca por Addams y Derstappen!"

"...Luca Rennick resumes the race. He moves down the grid...and we are underway. Max Addams wastes NO time, but Rennick maintains strength. Addams should watch out for Derstappen on his slipstream! The trio make Turn 1!"

[2nd Position closing in]

[Host has unlocked Skills to disclose opponent]

Max is no ordinary opponent, system, Luca mused as he took a straight line that served as an inner tangent to the apex of Turns 1 and 2, granting him a smooth entry into the bendiest section, Turn 3.

Circuito del Barca–Raval featured a wide uphill corner at Turn 4. From this vantage point, the faraway mountains and valleys came into view. Perhaps, Luca thought wryly, if a driver went mad enough, they might choose to shoot straight off the cliff instead of navigating the turn.

Luca led into Turn 4 after a brief stretch connecting the leveled part of the circuit to the uneven terrain ahead. Max Addams, capitalizing on Luca's slipstream during the short first straight, lined up beside him, ready to pounce on any moment of vulnerability to overtake.

[Analyzing 2nd Position's distance from host and Dallara (F2 04)...]

[2nd Position is 0.5 sec away, host.]

[System's prediction: that value might decrease and not in your favor.]

Surely, if Miles had been driving an F1-rated car like the Rotterbad-powered single-seater Luca had spotted the other day, Luca knew his chances of holding onto P1 would have vanished instantly. However, with both of them piloting SomberCore-powered Dallaras—the hallmark of F2 machines—every driver in the feeder series could always sense the moment an overtake was imminent because they all knew what the B-level engine was capable of. Luca's System predicted that might happen if he didn't take action.

Max adjusted his brake bias as Derstappen entered Turn 4 just as they exited, trailing by two seconds. Miles studied Luca's car as it smoothly transitioned from Turn 4 to Turn 5, marking the start of the slower downhill section. This left-hander carved a precarious path along the mountain's edge, plunging through breathtaking natural landscapes before returning the drivers to the visibility of the Mandalora crowd. The lack of grandstands at Turns 4 and 5 made the section feel solitary, heightening the tension of the race.

[Analyzing optimal entry speed based on current velocity, tire traction, and curvature of the bend...]

[Tire traction: 80%]

[Recommended speed for maneuver: 60 km/h]

That is a big drop in speed!

The left-hander demanded precise braking control, especially given its sloping and also curved nature. Prioritizing a clean exit with optimal traction was crucial, as Turns 6 and 7 followed immediately with a challenging, tight complexity. Luca had noted this during the Track Walk the previous day, but he hadn't anticipated the speed recommendations to be so conservative. Perhaps it was time to begin tweaking those values slightly to his advantage. Even though these particular two turns of Mandalora had claimed many crashes over past GPs, Luca trusted himself to remedy such a situation.

[Speed: 80 km/h]

[2nd Position closing in]

The soft cheer of the crowd intensified as Luca's Dallara appeared at the horizon, Max just right behind with Derstappen poking into view a second later. Luca had attempted Corner Chopping twice, yet he wasn't even sure if one attempt had worked or if none had worked at all. He would have surely received a notification if both had worked well. Considering he had managed to hold Max off this long as they entered the complex chicane, Luca believed one Corner Chopping must have worked after all.

"WOOOOOHH!"

Impatient, Max Addams made a move to change the leaderboard.

"...Addams dives to the inside on the exit of the chicane. He's using Luca Rennick's slipstream to its full advantage, closing the gap as they approach Turn 8. Rennick attempts to shut it down, but Max Addams is daringly slotting in!"

Luca felt his chassis vibrate as his back tires bumped softly against Max's front tires. The soft contact felt almost as though the cars had touched themselves for real. The track flattened out and led them into Turn 8, a very tight bend, the crowd's favorite for obvious reasons.

[Analyzing optimal entry speed based on current velocity, tire traction, and curvature of the bend...]

[Tire traction: 60%]

[Recommended speed for maneuver: 110 km/h]

Luca made his cut into Turn 8 first, the car dipping sharply as he aimed for the perfect apex. His hands trembled slightly—whether from adrenaline or sheer effort, he couldn't tell.

[2nd Position]

Max followed seamlessly, shadowing Luca's line with unnerving precision, drifting just behind him.

[1st Position]

"Shit!" Luca cursed as he felt zero downforce on his car at the pinnacle of his drift. Within seconds, he lost traction in his back tires, the turn too steep coupled with the momentum he had entered with.

[Traction drastically low...]n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

Max Addams suffered the same fate as Luca, but he smartly used Luca's car as a pillow. The slight nudge helped act as a stabilizing force for him to steady his curved trajectory and prevent his own car from slipping out.

The moment Luca's car absorbed the minimal impact, Max seized the regained balance. He adjusted his straight line and shot out of Turn 8.

"Damn it!"

[2nd Position]