CHAPTER 577: ALL ABOUT SPEED

PROVISIONAL CONSTRUCTORS’ CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS (ALL 10)

Position | Team | Points

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1. | Squadra Corse | 185

2. | Haddock Racing | 177 ↑

3. | Trampos Racing | 157 ↓

4. | Bueseno Velocità | 155

5. | Outback Performance | 120

6. | Jackson Racing | 62

7. | Nordvind Racing | 25

8. | Iberia Grand Prix | 20

9. | Velox Hispania | 5

10. | Alpine Swiss F1 | 4

There were so many headlines in the past interim week that it was difficult to keep track of them all—or rather, to give each the attention it deserved.

Apparently, Trampos Racing, Luca’s team, had lost their second-place spot in the Constructors’ Championship.

As ironic as it seemed, the team had wanted to make that second place temporary—and it was, just not in the way they’d planned.

Instead of climbing higher and reclaiming first place from Squadra Corse, the Rising Suns slipped to Haddock Racing in just one round.

And now, Bueseno Velocità were so close behind that it was almost unfair not to call the top of the standings a three-way tie.

The team had seen what a Rennick DNF could mean for them after enjoying his full, consistent play for eight straight races.

This only hardened their decision to begin looking for a stronger Driver B by the end of the season, someone who could back Luca up when things went south.

Because Squadra Corse managed to gather just enough points to retain their top spot in the standings, thanks to Marko Ignatova’s finish in Riyadh.

This game of abundance was one Trampos simply couldn’t play yet.

During the Race Nation dinner, this specific factor was thoroughly considered when the championship standings predictions were presented by Ergast API.

Ergast API was Formula 1’s top statistical database service, the one with the most comprehensive and accurate data on the sport.

Analysts, developers, and even official broadcasters relied on the company’s projections, trusting them more than any other.

But there were other outlets like Forbes and Azzets; they too also produced reliable numbers.

And when the final championship predictions were revealed that night, they surprised everyone in attendance.

1. Squadra Corse— 34.8%— 2.8

2. Bueseno Velocità— 28.6%— 3.1

3. Haddock Racing— 22.4%— 3.4

4. Trampos Racing— 9.7%—4.1

5. Outback Performance—3.1%—5.0

6. Jackson Racing— 0.8%—6.8

7. Nordvind Racing— 0.4%—7.2

8. Iberia Grand Prix—0.1%—8.3

9. Velox Hispania—0.1%—9.0

10. Alpine Swiss F1—0.1%—9.6

The numbers on the left, expressed in percentages, represented each team’s probability of winning the championship, while the numbers on the right indicated their projected average finishing position.

According to Ergast API, the data was drawn from a fusion of performance trends, constructor and team reliability, driver form, and the impact of seasonal upgrades.

And so, if things played out exactly as the system had forecasted, Squadra Corse would retain their title, and Trampos wouldn’t even make it to third place.

This was a call for the team to sit up.

Luca knew he was doing his best, so he wondered what more could possibly be done from his end.

1. Luca Rennick—40%—1.9

2. Jimmy Damgaard—28%—2.4

3. Antonio Luigi—18%—3.2

4. Ailbeart Moireach— 6%— 4.1

5. Luis Dreyer—3%—5.3

Collectively, the other fifteen drivers shared a 5% chance of championship victory.

Luca’s announced 40% chance of winning the championship vexed a lot of people and gladdened just as many.

Those who supported him called it proof of consistency and dominance, while his critics took it as another example of media bias in his favor.

But Jimmy Damgaard’s second-place prediction over Luigi was the most surprising detail.

So, if both championship predictions played out exactly, Squadra Corse would indeed retain their title—but not Luigi himself.

In the Centro Armonia, you could only imagine the atmosphere of the place while all these were being called out.

People were smirking professionally and sinisterly, some wearing blank faces, others nodding their heads as though validating numbers they didn’t quite believe in.

A few acted as if they were too high or important to even be listening.

In general, many took the Ergast API predictions as a joke.

When Luca looked at his rivals—Damgaard, Luigi, and Moireach—they didn’t seem moved either.

Perhaps it was because predictions were just predictions, and in motorsport, anything could upend in a blink.

But also, the forecast was the last bit of the night’s program, and by then, most guests were already halfway through their champagne, waiting for the applause to end so they could leave.

And when one compared championship predictions that weren’t even reality to the more important topics presented earlier, it was understandable.

The Race Nation dinner was more weighty than Luca had thought.

After the long review of the season so far, there were important briefs on significant events, such as the unprecedented shooting in Australia that had almost claimed an investor’s life.

So on and so forth, the FIA made it appear as though the first half of the year had been dealt with cleanly, with every stain scrubbed away and every controversy diplomatically buried.

Jackson Racing’s sacking of Matthews was formally acknowledged, alongside a string of other administrative changes across the paddock that were treated with ceremonial politeness but carried underlying tension.

And then came the awe-stirring announcement of the recovery of the Singapore Grand Prix.

The Singapore Grand Prix was said to have been lost years ago to infrastructure and legal disputes that simply didn’t make organization smooth.

But everyone knew the truth about the Singapore Grand Prix and its circuit, the Marina Apex Street Circuit, and what grim discontinuation had followed.

For two consecutive seasons, the Singapore Grand Prix had claimed the life of Henryk Frankowski and almost that of the very Robert Jakobsen whom Luca had visited in the Netherlands.

After that tragedy, Singapore had never been on the F1 calendar again, so infrastructure and legal disputes clearly weren’t the real reasons behind its removal.

The FIA had also invoked a rule that temporarily ceased any Grand Prix with a fatality for a minimum of two years, a law born out of hard-learned lessons.

So, there was no Spanish GP on the F1 calendar this season or the next either, as per Ansel’s demise.

Marina Apex was a high-speed street circuit, infamous for its razor-tight chicanes and punishing corner entries that left no room for error, and that same intensity made it deadly.

The city of Singapore would now undergo thorough adjustments to ensure the track met modern safety standards if the FIA truly intended to recover one of the fastest and most dangerous Grands Prix in history.

But no matter what renovations or safety measures were introduced, it was almost certain that the circuit’s high-speed nature would remain intact.

It seemed the FIA had begun to prioritize speed once again.

Or perhaps, Luca thought, it was simply because the suspension of a high-speed circuit like Mandalora in Spain demanded a worthy replacement to keep the balance of the calendar.

But whatever the case, speed now appeared to be the new cornerstone of dominance, and Luca knew it would be absolutely crucial in the upcoming Italian Grand Prix.

He stuck to this thought when he lowered his visor inside his humming Z24 at the mouth of his outfit’s garage.

Autodromo di Lombardia, the Serpent Track, was a circuit he had only raced on once.

And on that very track, he had clinched the F2 World Championship, an evening he could never forget, right here in Monza, two years ago.

But that had been a nineteen-year-old Luca Rennick in a Dallara F2 04. Now, he was a grown man behind the wheel of a Ferrari.

And as it seemed, with Trampos’ ties to Ferrari strengthening, he might soon upgrade from the Z24 to a new model—but deep down, Luca knew he preferred this old beast best.

Winning pole on Thursday, Luca proved to everyone that he was the best when it came to balancing speed with finesse, because that was exactly what this serpentine track demanded.

Ailbeart Moireach had crashed midway through his Q3 run, nearly taking Jimmy Damgaard with him in the aftermath, which cost the Norwegian his final flying lap.

Only Antonio Luigi among the big guns had truly rivaled Luca’s pace, but before him, his own teammate, Marko Ignatova, had gone faster—just not fast enough to beat Trampos’ star.

P1 — Luca Rennick — 1:18.442

P2 — Marko Ignatova — 1:18.506

P3 — Antonio Luigi — 1:18.889

P4 — Luis Dreyer — 1:19.121

P5 — Albert Derstappen — 1:19.255

[You have received:

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[You have received:

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Luca was proud of himself. Why? Because he had done all of this without the illicit boost of the EN rear wing his team had been secretly testing.

He was glad they were seeing it for themselves now—that his pace, his skill, and his balance were his alone.

Trampos had been fined heavily and sanctioned after that illicit tweak, and for a team that wasn’t fully financially free, it really shoveled the pocket unnecessarily.

Luca’s wage and salary were already the biggest expenditure, draining most of the team’s budget by default.

But it served the team right, and Luca couldn’t care less about their financial struggles. They’d made their choice despite his warnings, and now they were paying the price—literally.

He didn’t even give ear to their excuses about implementing the tweak. Luca had just been silent, addressing nothing, as if Saudi Arabia had gone smoothly for the team.

The management’s excuse was that he hadn’t been at his peak for three races, and that they needed a push to re-overtake Squadra in the standings.

Now, things were the opposite. Luca had rediscovered his edge.

And with a P1 start ahead of everyone else, Trampos had a genuine chance to reclaim the top spot.

No tweaks.

Ready, Luca was satisfied he’d claimed pole on enemy soil. It was a solid statement.

If Rennick went on to win the Italian Grand Prix, it would be more than just victory!