CHAPTER 551: CHAPTER 239: FIVE-STAR POISON MILK (PART 2)

The starting order of the top ten drivers for the race phase is as follows:

Pole Position: Hamilton: 1:15.419

P2: Verstappen +0.412

P3: Perez +1.002

P4: Qin Miao +1.012

P5: Gasly +1.064

P6: Norris +1.070

P7: Leclerc +1.077

P8: O’Kang +1.234

P9: Alonso +1.296

P10: Vettel +1.331

Honestly, this was the first time Qin Miao suffered such a loss, and it was a lesson learned the hard way.

"It’s okay, not a big problem, we believe in Qin Miao. With Qin Miao’s tire management and long-distance performance in the race, as long as it doesn’t rain during the race phase, Qin Miao’s performance in this race will definitely be promising!" Fei spoke confidently in the final moments before the end of the qualifying session.

Just as Fei finished speaking, Qin Miao, driving back into the pit lane, shivered, feeling that something bad was about to happen.

Bing also nodded in agreement: "Qin Miao’s offensive ability is indeed top-notch in the field. Although the Hengelo circuit is one of the most challenging circuits for overtaking this season, second only to Monaco, the scene of Qin Miao overtaking in Monaco still resonates in my mind. I think the audience can look forward to seeing Qin Miao’s overtaking in tomorrow’s race phase."

Zhou Haoran picked up a data sheet and said: "This may sound counterintuitive, but this is only the second time since Qin Miao entered F1 that he hasn’t made it into the top three in qualifying."

Reminded by Zhou Haoran, both Bing and Fei suddenly realized that despite being just a freshman like Yuki Tsunoda and Mick Schumacher, Qin Miao has already shown such an impressive performance on the track.

Gradually getting used to Qin Miao’s presence, they’ve unconsciously separated Qin Miao from the term "rookie driver."

But mainly, it’s because Qin Miao’s performance on the track has been too dazzling, and it’s no wonder they felt that way.

...

After the qualifying session ended, Qin Miao parked the car in the inspection area at the entrance of the pit lane.

After getting out and putting the steering wheel back, Leclerc came over and put his arm around Qin Miao’s shoulder.

"How come you’re here? Oh, I got it, you didn’t make it into the top three."

Qin Miao had already reinstalled his steering wheel onto the car, and with nothing else to worry about, he followed Leclerc’s lead to get weighed.

While taking off his gloves and helmet, Qin Miao helplessly explained: "On the last lap of Q3, I felt the track got a bit colder, with a slight drop in grip. So, the speed wasn’t as fast as on the first flying lap.

Speaking of which, did you encounter the same issue?"

Leclerc shrugged: "Of course, but Hengelo’s track characteristics don’t really suit our Ferrari. I couldn’t go fast at all, making it to Q3 was purely lucky for me, so I was mentally prepared. But honestly, I was happy to see you here."

Qin Miao rolled his eyes, wondering where Leclerc got this annoying habit of magnifying bad news.

"Get out of here, don’t let me find a chance to get in front of you on the track. If I manage to do so, I’ll write my name backward."

Leclerc sneered: "Your W12 is so fast, can it even slow down to deliberately block me?"

Qin Miao thought about it and agreed; indeed, the W12 was much faster than this year’s Ferrari SF21. After about four laps, the SF21 couldn’t even see the W12’s taillights.

"True..."

With that, the two chatted while completing the post-race weigh-in and driver interviews together.

Although it was only Qin Miao’s second time going through this routine, at least he had someone to accompany him.

During the post-race interviews, many journalists waved Qin Miao over for an interview after seeing him.

This Chinese driver was a rare sight in the FIA’s interview area. Knowing Qin Miao didn’t make it into the top three, the journalists responsible for the interviews had prepared quite a few questions for Qin Miao.

However, the questions they specifically prepared weren’t very original, mostly asking why he ended up in that position this race and whether he could reclaim his position during the race phase.

Qin Miao picked a senior-looking man to accept his interview.

After completing the routine task, Qin Miao’s work for the week was considered done.

He even felt that getting fourth wasn’t bad when he finished the interviews and left the paddock.

He didn’t have to attend the one-hour-long post-race press conference and could sneak out as soon as the interviews ended.

So Qin Miao finished his day earlier than usual today by about half an hour.

He was back at the hotel by 4:30 p.m.

In the hotel, Qin Miao didn’t turn on his computer, took a moment to relax, and went to bed by 10 p.m.

A night without words, Sunday, the race day begins.

A good mood for the day ends when he sees the rainy sky.

When Qin Miao got up, washed, and habitually opened his hotel room curtains to check the weather, the scene outside gave him a huge slap in the face.

Right now, it was overcast outside with fine raindrops falling from the sky. Although the rain drove away some of the summer heat, to Qin Miao, rainy days really were a disaster.

Looking at the rain outside, Qin Miao frustratingly ran a hand through his hair and then dressed to head out.

On the way to the paddock, all Qin Miao could do was keep praying for the rain to stop soon or at least get lighter.

Perhaps Qin Miao’s praying worked because when he arrived at the paddock, the rain had indeed stopped.

However, the clouds hadn’t dissipated and still hovered over the track, always ready to rain again.

After breakfast, Qin Miao went to the team HQ, found a meteorology colleague, and learned that there was no chance of sunny weather in the short term, and it was very likely to rain during the race.

Even though it was raining, the pre-race driver parade hadn’t been canceled, only the cars the drivers sat in had been switched from convertibles to ones with canopies.

After the driver parade, they had some high-calorie snacks to replenish energy and rested for ten minutes before preparing for the race.

At 2 p.m., Qin Miao, fully equipped, came to the track.

Although it wasn’t raining at that moment, the sky was still overcast, and parts of the track were damp.

Given that the track could rain at any time, all teams had erected rain canopies over their cars.

Qin Miao’s car was no exception.

After completing the pre-race national anthem ritual at the event venue, Qin Miao returned to his car.

He chatted with Reyes about the car’s condition, the fuel prepared for his car, and the setup, confirming everything was correct, and it was nearly time for the race to start.

With everything set, Qin Miao donned his gear and got into the car.

At first, nothing happened, but as the race start time drew closer, rain started to dribble down from the sky again.

Fortunately, there were still a little over ten minutes before the race started. Seeing the light rain, every team promptly switched their drivers to intermediate tires, having prepared ahead of time.

Qin Miao watched as his car’s slicks were swapped for intermediates.

He sighed, but on the bright side, Red Bull’s original tire strategy was nullified, and all teams and drivers were now on the same level in terms of tire preparation.

With new tires on and all team personnel withdrawn, the warm-up lap began.

After a quick run, Qin Miao noticed that it was only drizzling in the first and second sectors, but it was raining considerably in the third sector, about medium intensity.

Seeing the situation, Qin Miao decided not to focus on overtaking or aiming for the podium. His priority at the start was to maintain his current position.

Once the warm-up lap was completed and everyone returned to their respective grid positions, the track surface that had been somewhat dry was now thoroughly soaked.

Qin Miao slowly parked his car into his designated grid slot.