Car Racing without Money

Chapter 749: Chapter 304: The Team’s Challenge Across Levels

"Schumacher didn’t choose to block?"

Seeing this scene, Park Dongxu’s face was full of disbelief.

You have to know that in this era, the impression people in this East Asian Country have of Schumacher is almost the same, still stuck at that peak King of Cars moment of the Ferrari Yue Ma Dynasty.

Even though he was defeated by Alonso, it still didn’t affect public opinion about Schumacher’s strength.

The reason is very simple: in recent years the Ferrari Team has been sprinting ever faster down the path of a "clown". As the factory team with the longest history in the F1 Paddock and the biggest brand influence, don’t even mention building a Mars Rover—many times they can’t even produce a genuine title-contending car.

The speed at which they collapsed in just a few short years is beyond imagination; only Renault could still put up a fight.

But at least Renault had a reason: the main members of their R&D force, including the chief designer, were banned, and then Briatore poached a batch of people to the HRT Team. A precipitous decline after such upheaval is perfectly normal.

Ferrari, by contrast, seemed to fall from the summit without any warning at all.

Even though Raikkonen took the last world championship in 07, it was only by a single point, and the entire process was filled with risk.

You can only say that Raikkonen at his peak went into a full "爆种" mode, pouring all his luck and strength into that one title with Ferrari. From then on he sprinted down the path of a "health-preserving" driver, never again living up to the reputation of the super prodigy who had burst onto the scene.

From Park Dongxu’s point of view, Schumacher’s comeback was about creating the history of an eight-time champion; he should still belong to that undefeatable existence.

Even if his form rose and fell, it shouldn’t have reached the point of "avoiding a fight".

Yet he just went into the pits?

"Schumacher’s tyres have already reached the pit window. Not choosing to tangle with the two HRT cars is a wise move."

Red helped explain for Schumacher: pitting after running more than ten laps on the soft red tyres is completely normal.

If there were no external pressure, he could still nurse the tyres and drive a health-preserving race, but with the two HRT cars charging in aggressively they would inevitably attempt some hard overtaking moves. There’s no need to risk missing the pit window by staying out on track just to block them.

But after saying this, Red still added, "Judging from his performances in the last few rounds, Schumacher’s form has been fluctuating a lot. Maybe that’s also one of the reasons he chose to pit for fresh tyres."

"Even a King of Cars will in the end grow old; heroes do fade." freeweɓnovēl.coɱ

Although Renault had found reasons to give a rational explanation, in his subconscious he still shared the same emotional thought as Park Dongxu.

That’s why he uttered those four words: "heroes do fade".

If it were the Schumacher of the past, even if he’d been hit and was driving on three wheels, even if a gearbox failure meant he couldn’t shift, he still wouldn’t have chosen to shy away from their edge. At the very least he would have let the two youngsters from HRT experience the might of the King of Cars.

Many people hope to witness Schumacher’s return as a king; they don’t think, or don’t want to believe, that the King of Cars’ competitive level has dropped and that he can no longer maintain the dominant rule he once had.

But just like the setting sun, even a god has a moment of falling.

A new generation replaces the old; this is the eternal melody of the F1 Paddock.

After commentator Red finished speaking, many people on site felt a twinge of melancholy, especially Ross Brown and Jean Todt, standing in the Mercedes Pit Room.

As members of the iron triangle of the Ferrari Dynasty, one has now become the team principal of Mercedes, and the other the president of the FIA.

Although they are still working in motorsport, so it can’t quite be called "each going their separate way", they have nonetheless said farewell to their former identities.

"Do Schumacher’s old injuries still have an impact?"

As Schumacher’s closest friend, and one of the few who could visit him in later years, Jean Todt naturally knew the reasons for his decline in form. Besides the influence of age, the greater factor was the injuries caused by that motorcycle accident.

It was just that Jean Todt didn’t have such a clear grasp of Schumacher’s rehabilitation. After all, as FIA president he is extremely busy; many times he doesn’t even have time to watch F1 races, let alone keep constant tabs on his old friend’s physical condition.

"Mm."

Without many words, Ross Brown merely gave a brief response.

Schumacher’s physical condition is currently a top-level secret within the team; once leaked, it would cause a huge negative impact.

The first issue is a decline in commercial value. In the eyes of sponsors, they too are hoping for the global sensation that would be sparked by Schumacher becoming an eight-time champion.

If they are told that this is very hard to achieve, then the sponsorship amounts and endorsement fees—without even talking about any drastic cuts—would at least get trimmed by twenty or thirty percent with no problem.

The second issue is the team’s deterrent power!

No matter how much Schumacher’s form fluctuates, his name in the F1 Paddock is equivalent to "nuclear deterrence". No one dares to show any slack when facing this King of Cars, and even less to rashly make any challenges.

Injuries are not the same as normal fluctuations in competitive form; their appearance means you’re only going downhill, and it’s very hard to see any kind of rebound.

Once the "golden body" is shattered, a Schumacher without deterrent power will face even fiercer competition. His form is not enough to sustain victories, and the situation of the entire team will only become more and more difficult.

This is somewhat similar to the scenes of an aging Raikkonen and Vettel before their retirement, completely reduced to gods walking down the mountain.

It’s obvious that a Mercedes Team brimming with ambition cannot accept this, so they must conceal Schumacher’s injuries and condition, and wait for this veteran to create another miracle!

"We’re old too."

Jean Todt didn’t continue discussing Schumacher’s injuries; he only uttered this sigh.

Each era has its own gods; Ferrari’s glory may already have stayed in that summer of 2005.