Chapter 199: Another Tire Battle
After Wu Shi left, he naturally had no idea that Hamilton was still working on Rosberg's mindset. It had to be said the old man was far from as harmless as he liked to appear.
In the paddock, every driver had their own way of surviving and competing, and their personalities were sharply distinct.
Many reporters caught the moment on camera and eagerly awaited the post-qualifying interviews. Unfortunately for them, neither the old man nor Wu Shi would reveal much.
After three races, Wu Shi had long adapted to the rhythm of Formula One media duties. He knew exactly what could be said, what could not, and how much truth to mix with diplomacy.
After all, Williams simply did not have the outright performance of Mercedes or Ferrari. Whether their qualifying advantage could be maintained over race distance was still a big question mark.
This kind of cautious, almost formulaic response nearly identical every weekend left many reporters speechless. How could someone so young already be so composed and airtight in interviews?
After qualifying, the Williams team ran through their race strategy as usual.
Even though the Bahrain Grand Prix would now start after sunset at six o'clock, and the track temperature would be lower than in previous years, tire degradation remained severe enough that a one-stop strategy was impossible.
This was mainly due to the fine sand blown onto the circuit. After all, being surrounded by desert, no matter how well the track was maintained, wind would always carry sand back onto the racing line.
As for wind direction, the strategy engineers could only estimate wind speed. Predicting where it would blow was nearly impossible. Bahrain's winds were simply too unpredictable.
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The next evening, the air temperature was 26°C, humidity 51%, and wind speed around 32 km/h.
The sky was slightly hazy, and the setting sun hung low on the horizon, enormous and glowing, giving the scene the feeling of "a long river beneath a round sunset."
After completing their reconnaissance laps, the drivers parked on the grid and shut down their engines.
With the cooler conditions, tire blankets were still essential.
"Button's car won't start and he won't take part in the race," Jonathan told Wu Shi over the radio.
"Copy."
The five-minute warning sounded, and the mechanics cleared the grid.
Engines fired up.
Wu Shi pressed the starter button as usual but the engine did not respond. He froze for a split second, immediately checking the displays.
"Oil pressure's too low. It won't start what's happening?" Wu Shi said urgently on the radio.
"Easy, easy," Jonathan replied calmly.
Buzz!
With Wu Shi's adjustments, the engine finally fired.
Just then, Hamilton's Mercedes began to roll forward for the formation lap.
Wu Shi quickly followed, relieved that he wouldn't have to start from the pit lane.
Then Jonathan added, "Massa's car hasn't started. Looks like the same issue, but he's missed the start window."
Wu Shi glanced in his mirrors. The second Williams was indeed missing.
He was about to explain what he had done, but stopped himself. Jonathan hadn't asked—and this was an open radio channel. Some parameters weren't meant to be discussed publicly.
After the other eighteen cars set off, Williams mechanics rushed back onto the grid and pushed Massa's car into the pit lane.
Using Wu Shi's situation as a reference, they checked the oil pressure first and quickly confirmed the cause.
Once the issue was identified, restarting the engine wasn't difficult just a matter of increasing pressure and adjusting the system.
"Massa's car is running. He'll start from the pit lane," Jonathan said.
"So he'll be last," Wu Shi replied.
"Yes. Also, Sainz has received a five-second time penalty for speeding in the pit lane."
The cars lined up again for the start.
Since Rosberg wasn't starting second, Hamilton parked squarely in his grid box instead of angling the car.
It showed his caution toward his teammate and his indifference toward everyone else.
Wu Shi noticed the detail immediately.
He flexed his hands on the steering wheel.
The safety car took position at the back of the grid. A marshal waved the green flag and hurried across the track.
The red lights came on slowly, one by one.
Wu Shi held his breath, eyes locked on the gantry.
Five lights.
Then out.
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The 2015 Bahrain Grand Prix is underway!
Vroooom!
Wu Shi launched perfectly, almost instantly pulling alongside Hamilton, who also got a strong start.
He immediately moved left to cover Vettel and Rosberg behind. Vettel had a slow launch and was already boxed in by Rosberg, who had edged across.
Turn 1 isn't my priority right now.
Wu Shi shifted all his focus onto Hamilton ahead.
The old man's form this season was terrifying. His launch and initial acceleration were exceptional.
Just before the braking zone, Wu Shi cut toward the middle, shortened his braking phase, and dove to Hamilton's inside as the Mercedes approached from the outside line.
But Hamilton carried huge corner speed and aggressively squeezed across.
Wu Shi hadn't reached his braking point yet he let the car roll forward without lifting.
Hamilton made his move but instead of turning back out, he suddenly got back on the throttle and shot forward!
Wu Shi hadn't expected that, but he had no intention of risking contact on lap one. He had already run multiple scenarios in his head before the start.
The moment Hamilton accelerated, Wu Shi immediately turned in.
The two cars brushed past each other.
Got him.
Hamilton's earlier acceleration ruined his apex, forcing him to hesitate.
Wu Shi ran over the kerb with all four wheels beyond the white line, but his left wheels were still on the kerb itself—which, under FIA rules, is part of the track.
Even though the right-side tires touched the green-painted, sand-coated runoff, he still emerged just ahead of Hamilton.
"Whoa what just happened?!" someone blurted out in the commentary booth.
"Can he hold it?!"
But Turn 2 was a left-hander, giving Hamilton the inside line.
Both Mercedes engines roared.
The W06 had the advantage. Even though the Williams was marginally ahead on entry, the inside line and superior stability allowed Hamilton to reclaim the position on exit.
Turn 3 followed a right-hander that should have favored Wu Shi.
But the Mercedes surged forward, opening up nearly a third of a car length. The shallow corner angle gave Wu Shi no opportunity to attack.
Hamilton pulled slightly clear.
"That gearbox is incredible…" Brother Bing sighed in the studio.
In the Williams garage, engineers also shook their heads.
Wu Shi's heart rate was already over 190 not just from exertion, but from the thrill of nearly stealing the lead from Hamilton.
But the peak-form old man wasn't someone you could "touch porcelain" with using a slower car.
Behind them, Räikkönen attacked Rosberg in Turn 1 using the same inside move.
He completed the pass, then immediately tucked in behind Vettel, forming a Ferrari train through Turn 2 and completely blocking Rosberg's racing line.
Räikkönen grabbed fourth place!
Rosberg dropped to fifth.
In the Mercedes garage, Toto stood with arms crossed, expression grim.
---
"Wu Shi went beyond track limits in Turn 1," Hamilton said on the radio. "Is that legal?"
"We'll check with race control. Focus on your driving," Bono replied.
"Track temperature is 31°C, tires aren't up to temperature yet. Be careful."
Wu Shi knew the rules well enough to be confident there would be no penalty.
He hadn't gained a lasting advantage, and Hamilton had left him no space anyway.
He immediately replied on his own radio:
"He forced me off. Floor might be damaged."
Then he continued pushing—trail-braking into Turn 4 with no sign of underfloor damage.
After half a lap, the order was:
Hamilton – Wu Shi – Vettel – Räikkönen – Rosberg
Mercedes at both ends, Ferraris trapped in the middle.
Turns 5, 6, and 7 required caution crossing the white line here would trigger penalties. Wu Shi didn't question the rule; he simply obeyed it.
"Tire temps still low. Cars behind spinning watch yourself," Jonathan warned.
By the end of lap one, Hamilton had already pulled a 0.7-second gap.
Vettel was only 0.4 seconds behind Wu Shi.
Lap two: Hamilton set fastest lap, 1:38.955.
The gap to Wu Shi stretched to 1.1 seconds.
Rosberg was closing rapidly on Räikkönen.
"What's my gap to Vettel?" Wu Shi asked.
"Three-six-nine. He was quicker in sector three," Jonathan replied instantly.
Wu Shi knew pulling away now would destroy his tires.
Instead of burning rubber to defend short-term position, it was better to fight and wear Vettel down.
"What about Kimi and Rosberg?"
"Gap is one-tenth. Attack range."
End of lap three Rosberg lunged down the inside of Turn 1, locking up hard but making the pass stick with excellent traction.
Decisive move.
Rosberg then blocked Räikkönen on the following straight, killing the re-attack.
They remained locked together until DRS.
Williams strategy predicted Räikkönen wouldn't hold him.
Sure enough, when DRS was enabled on lap five, Rosberg had already pulled over a second clear.
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Now Vettel had DRS on Wu Shi.
Through the first DRS zone, Vettel closed rapidly, but Turn 4 offered no space to pass.
"He'll attack after Turn 10," Brother Bing said.
Wu Shi didn't try to open the gap through the downhill section doing so would shred his tires.
Tonight's race would be decided by tire management.
After Turn 10, the gap dropped to 0.23 seconds.
Vettel launched with full electrical deployment.
Wu Shi deployed everything as well, then defended aggressively into Turn 11, forcing Vettel wide.
Turn 12 favored Wu Shi again right-hand corner, inside line.
They ran side-by-side.
Wu Shi gave absolutely no room, pinning Vettel to the outside and slowing both cars by two-tenths.
"Rosberg now within one second of Vettel," Jonathan warned.
Wu Shi kept the pressure on.
Turn 13 another right-hander again he squeezed Vettel, then exited hard and moved fully to the left to shut the door.
"Brilliant defending!" the commentators shouted.
Cheers erupted in the Williams garage.
As the white and red cars charged onto the straight
A silver arrow appeared in their mirrors.