CHAPTER 41: RACE WEEKEND | SUNDAY | THE UNFAIR FIGHT

Fatih immediately pushed the penalty to the back of his mind, his focus narrowing to a single, all-consuming task: drive faster, open the gap. Just as that resolve hardened, a new mission screen appeared in his vision.

[Urgent Recovery Mission]

You have been given a five-second penalty, which some might argue is unfair. But the greatest of all time don’t complain about the fairness of their circumstances; they prove that despite the unfairness, they are still capable of winning.

Objective: Win the race.

Rewards: Doubling of all championship points earned in this race.

Punishment upon failure: NONE

[ACCEPT] [DENY]

Although [Zone] didn’t trigger, he accepted the mission without hesitation. The lack of a punishment was telling; the System had most likely deemed the incident was not his fault and would only compensate him if he managed to overcome the odds and win.

Just because there was no punishment, however, didn’t mean he wasn’t going to try his absolute best. He was fiercely competitive. He hated losing more than anything, especially when it came to driving. He focused his entire being on the task ahead, planning to maintain that razor-sharp concentration for the remainder of the race.

......

Lap 3: Gap to P2: +0.290s

"He’s just opened a gap of nearly three-tenths of a second in that last lap, bringing his lead to over half a second! Wow! He is not putting a single foot wrong, but the chasing pair are trying their absolute best to make sure that gap remains as small as possible," Süleyman said as the timing screen updated.

"If he continues at this pace, he will most likely be able to build that five-second gap before the end of the race, but will he be able to continue at this pace?" Zakir added. "On that last lap, he came very close to the track record again, only missing it by a few hundredths. It seems our speculation was right; the penalty didn’t rattle him. If anything, it has caused him to push to his absolute maximum limit."

As Fatih entered the triple hairpin for the fourth time, Selçuk and Jackson seemed to realize the danger. They started pushing harder, knowing that if they maintained their current pace, they wouldn’t be able to benefit from Fatih’s penalty. As Fatih crossed the start-finish line to begin his fifth lap, he once again broke the track lap record, this time by a hundredth of a second, increasing his lead by another four-tenths.

"Oh my god, this is amazing!" Süleyman roared. "He’s improving his time with every single lap as the track evolution sets in!"

The gap continued to grow, lap after agonizing lap for the chasers.

Lap 4: Gap to P2: +0.720s (+0.430s gained)

Lap 5: Gap to P2: +1.070s (+0.350s gained)

Lap 6: Gap to P2: +1.485s (+0.415s gained)

Lap 7: Gap to P2: +1.795s (+0.310s gained)

Lap 8: Gap to P2: +2.130s (+0.335s gained)

Lap 9: Gap to P2: +2.510s (+0.380s gained)

Lap 10: Gap to P2: +2.960s (+0.450s gained)

Lap 11: Gap to P2: +3.445s (+0.485s gained)

Lap 12: Gap to P2: +3.955s (+0.510s gained)

"It is unbelievable what we are seeing!" Süleyman’s voice was strained with excitement. "For the last eleven laps, this young kid has been relentlessly increasing his lead over Selçuk, consistently breaking the track lap record one after another! As he starts his final lap of the race, he has already opened the gap to 4.591 seconds! If he improves by only another four-tenths, he will fully recover from that unfair five-second penalty! But will it really be that easy? Or do Selçuk and Jackson have another gear? They seem to be pushing even more, trying to make sure the gap remains below five seconds! Their coaches are showing them the pit boards with the gap to Fatih written on them! They see the possibility of still winning! They’re over-driving, over-braking, doing everything they can to stay within that distance!"

Fatih started navigating the triple hairpins for the last time this weekend. He trail-braked into the entry, keeping as much speed as possible, taking the perfect line while preparing for the next hairpin. He took it gracefully, getting on the power as early as possible as he entered the short straight. He took the right-hander, went wide, then took the last of the triple hairpins, exiting T8 and keeping his foot planted as he took T9 flat-out. He barreled through the straight, braked for T10, got on the power for a moment, then lifted for T11 before returning to full power as he crossed the finish line!

But the race wasn’t over. We see Selçuk and Jackson navigate the final corners! They too get on the power as they exit T8 and take T9 flat-out, pushing to the absolute limit, knowing they still have a chance to win this race! Selçuk out-brakes Jackson, keeping his lead into T10! He mirrors what Fatih did, takes T11, gets on the power, slides for a moment but keeps it pointing in the right direction, and goes through the start-finish line! Was that enough for a win?! YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES! SELÇUK WINS THE ANKARA ROUND OF THE CHAMPIONSHIP! HE FINISHES UNDER FIVE SECONDS BEHIND FATIH, AT EXACTLY 4.913 SECONDS, DEMOTING FATIH TO P2! Fatih, who had driven a masterful race with one hand tied behind his back by a penalty, breaking his own and the track’s lap record more than six times, is dragged down by that unfair penalty! Despite crossing the checkered flag first, he officially finishes the race second! Selçuk takes first place, and Jackson misses the P2 position by less than a hundredth of a second! The race, marred by a controversial decision at the very start, comes to a dramatic end!" Süleyman shouted, focusing on the top three, and mostly on the poetic injustice of Fatih and Selçuk swapping roles from the previous race weekend’s penalty drama.

"I’m pretty sure Fatih is not amused in the least by that celebration," Zakir said, shaking his head as the camera showed Selçuk pumping his fist repeatedly throughout the cool-down lap, driving as slowly as possible, as if wanting to savor the moment of his first career win for as long as he could.

Selçuk turned to look at the grandstands, and when he saw his father, Aslan, clapping and cheering for him, he let out a guttural scream of pure happiness under his helmet. He finally saw his father smile at him the way he had smiled at Fatih. To Selçuk, it didn’t matter how he won. What mattered is that he won. Nothing else.

"That is true," Süleyman said, his tone shifting to one of professional analysis. "This race has practically been robbed from him at the start, and despite a superb drive, he still couldn’t mitigate the damage. But let’s not take this win away from Selçuk. He is not the one who caused the punishment; he just benefited from a hurried decision by the race directors. I’m pretty sure they will have to explain themselves to Fatih’s academy, who will undoubtedly be protesting this and requesting a rule change, at the very least, and perhaps the suspension of the race director for the next race weekends. As for Fatih, I don’t want to be in his shoes for a moment, but it looks like I’m going to have to be during the post-race interview. Although the podium members are as we expected, we really couldn’t have seen it happening in this manner. What a shame." He trailed off before handing over to Zakir, leaving the commentary booth to rush to the interview area.

As Zakir summarized the race, the screen shifted to a live feed of the pitlane. It showed Fatih, sitting motionless in his kart, while others celebrated, left their karts, or began their weigh-in procedures. He was the only one still sitting there, his hands gripping the steering wheel, making it obvious to everyone that he was not happy in the least with the outcome.

.........

But unlike what people thought, his mind was not filled with anger or frustration. He was conversing with Apollo.

’Well, I did everything I could,’ Fatih stated, an eerie calm settling over him. He realized this was the effect of [Invictus] at play, making him extremely level-headed no matter the situation. That didn’t mean he was fine with what had happened; it just meant he knew there was nothing more he could have done that would have led to a different outcome.

After sitting in his kart for a full minute, he finally climbed out and walked to the weigh-in area. He cut the line, using his podium position privilege, and found Selçuk just stepping off the scale. Selçuk stiffened for a moment, but then the triumphant smile that had briefly paused resumed on his face, as if taunting Fatih for losing the race.

"Congrats on your win," Fatih said, his voice even, as he extended a fist. The gesture initially caused Selçuk to take a step back, thinking Fatih was about to punch him.

Reluctantly, Selçuk met Fatih’s fist bump, his eyes vigilant. But whatever he expected, Fatih didn’t do it. Fatih simply walked past him, tapped him on the shoulder, and went to have his own weight taken, leaving Selçuk looking after him for a moment, completely dazed.

All of this was shown on the main screen, and it immediately earned Fatih a round of applause from nearly all of the viewers. Zakir, back in the booth, spoke highly of Fatih’s behavior and maturity, especially given his young age.