After successfully shaking Piastri out of his DRS window and locking down 8th place, Alex Sun's eyes sharpened, instantly fixing on the cars ahead.
The TR system relayed new information: Drugovich, running in 7th, was just 1.5 seconds up the road. The gap was close enough to ignite all the attack he had been holding back.
During the Virtual Safety Car phase earlier, Alex Sun's lack of experience had allowed Piastri to pull away.
Now free of that entanglement, he no longer held back on tire usage. Entering a state of Man and Machine as One, he relied on precise control to steadily reel in Drugovich, gaining roughly four tenths per lap.
On Lap 14, the chance finally came on the DRS straight. Alex Sun decisively pressed the DRS button. With the rear wing flattened, the sudden speed gain pulled him straight onto the gearbox ahead. Using the slipstream, he swept past on the right and cleanly moved up to 7th.
Just as he set his sights on Ticktum in 6th, the race broadcast cut in urgently:
"Attention! Jack Aitken of Campos Racing is suspected of an engine failure and has stopped in the run-off area. The Virtual Safety Car is deployed again! All drivers must immediately reduce speed. No overtaking!"
"Again?" Alex Sun could only feel helpless frustration. The momentum he had just built—and the mere 0.6-second gap to Ticktum—was instantly broken.
"Slow to 102 km/h," Mark ordered at once, his tone firm. "This VSC will last until the end of Lap 16. Use this window to cool the tires. Your tire wear is already 5% higher than drivers on the same lap. If you keep pushing like this, you'll hit the cliff very soon. Watch your consumption."
Alex Sun suppressed his irritation and smoothly reduced speed, merging back into the train. The dashboard showed tire temperatures dropping toward 90°C, but tread wear had already reached 25%. The hidden cost of his earlier push was now clear.
He knew a pit stop would cost nearly 20 seconds—essentially a death sentence in a sprint race this tight.
The thought made him recall the "God of Racing's Blessing" trait that could reduce consumption. Unfortunately, he had no idea when that stage task would become available.
At the end of Lap 16, green flags waved and the Virtual Safety Car was withdrawn.
Alex Sun immediately went back on full throttle, lining up another attack on Ticktum. Remembering Mark's warning, he resisted the urge to force it, instead using the precision of Man and Machine as One to patiently hunt for an opening through the corners.
On Lap 18, Ticktum drifted slightly wide on corner entry. Alex Sun seized the moment, crossed over on the racing line, and completed the pass to move up into 6th.
Before the satisfaction could settle, Mark's warning came sharp and fast:
"Hold it! Tread wear is at 32%. Push any harder and the tires will drop off early!"
Alex Sun snapped back to reality and glanced at the dash. The remaining tire life simply wouldn't allow another all-out chase. He asked over TR, "How are Piastri's tires?"
"Pia's at 28%. His tire management is better," Mark replied with some regret. "In battles like this, you have to control single-race consumption. A sprint-race pit stop is too expensive."
Alex Sun's desire for the "God of Racing's Blessing" trait only grew stronger. With it, he could push flat-out without being trapped between attacking and saving tires.
As his lap times dipped slightly, pressure began to build from behind.
On Lap 22, Piastri—benefiting from superior mid-race tire management—activated DRS on the straight after Turn 16 and slipped past Alex Sun on the right with ease.
Alex Sun instinctively tried to counterattack, but Mark shut it down immediately.
"Don't chase! Your tire wear is near the critical threshold. Aggressive driving now will only accelerate the drop. If you blow a tire, it's over."
Hearing this, Alex Sun's frustration only deepened. He silently prayed that the cliff would come later, just long enough to protect these hard-earned two points.
But trouble never comes alone.
Early in Lap 23, Alex Sun's soft tires hit the degradation cliff. Tread wear passed 40%, and grip fell away sharply.
Charging up from behind, Guanyu Zhou—on fresher tires and with a cleaner line—made the move at Turn 13 and slipped past.
Watching the car pull away, Alex Sun could only grit his teeth and focus on bringing his unstable car to the finish.
He looked at the shrinking rear wing ahead, then at his own car teetering on the edge. All he could do now was give everything just to cross the line.
"Lawson has won the sprint race," Mark reported over TR. "The car behind you is four seconds back. Don't worry. Your only goal now is to bring the car home safely."
Alex Sun crossed the finish line in 8th place.
His first career points.
The tension finally drained from his body. Following procedure, he eased off the throttle, switched off DRS, and began the cool-down lap.
"It's over, Mark. Eighth place. Points," Alex Sun said, his voice hoarse but unmistakably relieved.
Even through the helmet speakers, he could hear cheers echoing from the pit lane—every electronic tone carrying a smile.
"Congratulations, kid," Mark said warmly. "Control your speed and head back in. Everyone's waiting for you."
Alex Sun's grip on the steering wheel loosened, the numb ache in his fingers becoming clear as the adrenaline faded. He acknowledged and guided the car toward pit entry.
Track lights flashed past the cockpit. Beneath his helmet, joy and regret mixed together as his mind replayed the race in fragments.
The car rolled to a stop beside Prema Powerteam's pit box.
Alex Sun unbuckled, removed the steering wheel, climbed out of the monocoque, and took off his helmet, handing it to a mechanic as sweat ran down his temples.
Mark was already there.
"This race had a lot of problems," he said sternly. "Your single-race consumption was too aggressive—we nearly didn't make it to the end. Your attack and defense were also too one-dimensional. You had the pace, but you wasted too much tire by forcing it."
Mark's words reminded Alex Sun of the classic Abu Dhabi showdown:
Perez delaying Hamilton to help Verstappen win the title, while Tsunoda failing to hold Norris—two outcomes that perfectly illustrated the importance of attack and defense.
"Good offense and defense save tires, secure position, and build points," Mark continued. "If you'd blown a tire today, you wouldn't just lose these points—you'd compromise the next race too."
"Every race, you have to manage tires properly and combine that with smart attack and defense. Find the balance between speed, wear, and positioning. The second sprint race is at 7:40 tonight—we don't have much time to adjust."
A thought crossed Alex Sun's mind. At first, he'd focused only on lap times and physical condition. The qualifying penalty had taught him the importance of emergency reactions. Now this sprint race had shown him the value of attack, defense, and consumption management. He couldn't keep learning only after making mistakes.
Mark went on, "From here on out, tire management is the core—not blindly saving tires, but precisely controlling the rate of wear. Combine that with proper attack and defense so you keep speed without losing positions to pit stops.
The first sprint race is done. We race again at 7:40. Digest today's issues fast. Tonight, tire management and attack-defense strategy come first. Find the balance."
Alex Sun nodded. As much as he wanted to ignore everything and just charge forward, Mark was right. The cost of a pit stop and the losses from inefficient battles left no room for recklessness.
He thought of his unlocked attributes—Resource Management, Track Tactics—and the lesson on emergency reactions from qualifying.
Motorsport, he realized, was a test of complete ability. He had to grow on every front.
Back in the rest area, Alex Sun refueled his body, then opened his laptop and began reviewing the race.
Suddenly, insight struck. During his fight with Piastri, if he'd anticipated the DRS timing earlier and used flexible lines tailored to the track, he might have passed while saving tires. On defense, disrupting the opponent's rhythm instead of matching pace might have held the position.
Everything clicked.
He grabbed his notebook and started writing furiously, thinking through how to apply these ideas in the race to come.
Time flew.
Before he knew it, the second sprint race was about to begin.
...
(20 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser