Red Tide

Chapter 136 Red Tide
Sky Sports: "Breaking news! Ferrari has signed Lu Zhizhou as their 2018 driver."

Concise, clear, and containing only objective facts.

Without any rumors or prior knowledge, a bombshell was dropped: it was Sky Sports, an official F1 partner. While this doesn't guarantee their absolute authority, the credibility of the source skyrocketed, instantly elevating the significance of the entire event.

So, does this count as an official announcement?
In an instant, everyone went mad—

Buzzing... The world spun wildly, the stars shifted, and everything began to spin erratically.

After a full day of noise and excitement, the traffic had calmed down slightly, and various speculations and discussions were rampant. But then, at a sudden turn of events, the energy exploded, igniting the fervor that had accumulated throughout the day, and social networks entered an unprecedented frenzy in an instant.

Not to mention netizens, even the team leaders were trembling with excitement, feeling a long-lost surge of passion, just like young lads.

Early in the morning, Horner arrived at the paddock and immediately saw a dense crowd of reporters spread out before him. As soon as he appeared, flashes of light rained down like a summer downpour. In the dazzling light and shadow, Wolf could be vaguely seen being interviewed.

Horner chuckled and teased, "Why are you getting involved in Ferrari's business? Or are you planning to swap driver seats with Ferrari?"

In short, the reporter's hair stood on end.

Wolf, unfazed by Horner's stab, said calmly, "It's not my turn anyway. I've heard you're looking forward to him and Max teaming up."

Without making a sound, Wolff also tricked Horner.

Horner wasn't fooled and yelled at the reporters, "Don't waste your time on this old guy, Maurizio is right behind us."

Wow!
In just one second, all the flashes came out towards the entrance of the paddock, and the whole world was instantly dyed silver, leaving only a blurry line of light and shadow as far as the eye could see.

Even Horner and Wolff had never experienced such a spectacle. Ferrari was already the absolute focus of the paddock, and Lu Zhizhou was a rising star who had suddenly become a hot topic. The encounter between the two sparked an incredible chemistry. In less than 24 hours, the reporters' rationality was completely thrown to the wind.

Sure enough, Arivabené appeared.

Calm, composed, and collected, Arrivabene maintained his usual style: "...We need to focus on this weekend. Monza is the only important thing."

The Ferrari team principal tried to steer the conversation back on track and avoid diverting attention, but the reporter clearly refused to compromise and went straight to the point: "Is it true that Lu Zhizhou will be wearing the Ferrari jersey in 2018?"

Arivaben took a breath, and in that brief instant, the flashes of light, the sound of breathing, and the sound of heartbeats all stopped, and time seemed to freeze in a short gap.

Then, "Yes. That's true."

In short, it completely unleashed all the energy—

They all went crazy.

And so history was born.

A butterfly flapping its wings in Europe unleashes a tsunami in Asia, sweeping across every corner of the Pacific coast.

There was no time to wait for CCTV's official announcement; it had already gone viral on social media platforms.

"Lu Zhizhou joins Ferrari" instantly topped the trending search list and attracted a massive surge of over 100 million views in less than 30 minutes.

At this moment, Song Bo was packing his schoolbag, preparing to go home after school.

After a whole day of hard study, he was now as listless as dried pickled cabbage. Sure enough, the senior year of high school lived up to its reputation. It was already so hard at the beginning of the semester. Even though the weekend was just around the corner, the thick stack of test papers and questions weighed heavily on his chest, making him unable to feel happy at all.

Nevertheless, Song Bo still kept the video account in mind. This time in Monza, Lu Zhizhou was under the spotlight, and the pressure he felt was unimaginable.

As he pondered, Song Bo opened his phone, tapped on the video channel, and considered whether he should create a popular science video about the Monza circuit to lay the groundwork for the race.

result--

scare!
Song Bo was shocked by the flood of "9999+" inboxes. He couldn't believe his eyes and quickly opened the backend, taking a deep breath.

The long string of numbers below the number of followers, counted down by tens, hundreds, thousands, and millions, reads, "130,000..."

Song Bo pinched his thigh hard, almost crying out in pain.

What happened? So, what happened?
Wait, could it be...? A thought flashed through Song Bo's mind, and he quickly opened social networks, not to look for his own account, but for Lu Zhizhou's account.

three million!
Lu Zhizhou's Weibo followers have easily surpassed three million, and the number keeps changing with each refresh, visibly and rapidly increasing.

After the last Spa event, Song Bo witnessed Lu Zhizhou's follower count surpass 500,000, and in less than a week, it has multiplied several times over.

What about Instagram? What about Twitter?
These things were a bit troublesome. Song Bo was slightly flustered and his heart was pounding. When he saw that Lu Zhizhou's photo wall had easily surpassed one million followers, he had a premonition. He quickly opened Twitter and easily found the official accounts of F1 and Ferrari.

really!

It was officially announced that both F1 and Ferrari had verified the information, and the news spread like wildfire, affecting every account related to F1.

Lu Zhizhou lives up to his name, continuing to create miracles and rewrite history. With overwhelming force, he has garnered unprecedented attention in the racing world, creating a sensation even before stepping onto the official F1 track.

"what!"

Song Bo suddenly stood up and let out a scream—

Ferrari! Ferrari! Aa ...
Immediately afterward, Song Bo realized that he had become the center of attention. The clamor on social media contrasted sharply with the calm of the real world. The pairs of eyes that had gathered around him were filled with confusion and surprise. The huge gap dragged Song Bo's heart back to the ground, and he barely managed to regain a bit of composure.

No, he had to go home immediately and get a "roaring letter" from Lu Zhizhou to express his excitement and exhilaration.

Just then, a head popped out from the front door of the classroom. "Excuse me, is Lu Zhizhou in your class?"

Brush brush.

All eyes were on Song Bo, who froze in his tracks as he was about to leave. Before he could react, the boy raised his voice again.

"So, really? Lu Zhizhou has joined Ferrari and will be racing next year?"

The world seemed to press the pause button, all movement ceased, and Song Bo could clearly feel the scorching gazes surging towards him, hotter and sharper than the traffic frenzy on social networks.

Wang Lin jumped to his feet, his face filled with astonishment. "What? Lu Zhizhou joined Ferrari? How is that possible!"

A voice came from the direction of the door, "It's true, it's trending! Is that Lu Zhizhou from your class?"

In the past, Song Bo would have definitely shown off and shut up all those who doubted Lu Zhizhou, especially Wang Lin's embarrassed look. But now it seemed that didn't matter anymore. In an instant, Song Bo felt a sense of crisis. It was better to leave than to flee. He grabbed his schoolbag and prepared to leave.

Unfortunately, he was still a step too late. The back door of the classroom was also crowded with people, turning the place into a zoo in an instant, as if welcoming a giant panda. This made Song Bo involuntarily take a step back.

No...don't come any closer!
Now, everything finally feels real; it's no longer just a bunch of numbers on social networks that have broken free from their constraints and are sweeping into our lives.

……

Chaos! Complete chaos!

The rain dispersed and the clouds flew away, the sky spun and the earth spun, the whole world was in a cacophony of noise and chaos, and everyone was completely bewildered.

I was stunned.

CCTV. Five Star. LeTV. Tencent. There are quite a few platforms in China that broadcast F1 races live. Although they don't broadcast GP3, it still shows the mass appeal of motorsports. F1 truly deserves its reputation as one of the world's three major sports, on par with the Olympics and the World Cup, attracting considerable attention and sponsorship.

Naturally, the paddock news wouldn't miss it either. Lu Zhizhou, Zhou Guanyu, Albon, Han Shilong, and other Asian drivers with the potential to break through all came into focus. In particular, Lu Zhizhou's rapid rise in GP3 was impossible to ignore, and he became an absolute topic of conversation.

However, the more professional they are, the more rational and clear-headed they become. They know very well that there is only one Verstappen. Even the Verstappen of yesteryear, who descended from F3 to F1 Toro Rosso, went through a process that was so tortuous and difficult that it can be said to be an unrepeatable legend.

Favorable timing, advantageous location, and harmonious relationships are all indispensable.

Moreover, ideals are lofty, but reality is harsh. Countless GP3 talents have faded into obscurity in F2, with former Ferrari academy prodigy Antonio Giovinazzi being a prime example.

Previously, he was invincible in karting, F3, GP2 and other series of races. In the 2016 Baku Grand Prix, Giovinazzi also achieved the feat of winning two championships in a single weekend. Leclerc, Albon, Russell, Stroll and others were all defeated by him. He is a young prodigy who is on par with Ocon and Verstappen. His resume is dazzling and he is considered to be Italy's next world champion.

But what about now?
After competing in three races for Sauber at the beginning of this year, there has been no further news about him. He has been serving as a substitute driver for both Sauber and Ferrari while waiting for his opportunity.

If even Giovanni, backed by the two giants of Formula One racing, Ferrari and Italy, is inevitably blocked by the differences in Formula One promotion levels, then Lu Zhizhou, who emerged from nowhere with no background, has even less hope.

It was precisely because of this that Qian Jun's plan to find media outlets and sponsors in China to conduct in-depth feature reports on Lu Zhizhou ultimately failed to materialize.

But now?

From Spa to Monza, back from the summer break, a flurry of events erupted in just two weeks, leaving no time to react.

In an instant, everyone was caught completely off guard and killed—

How did things actually come to fruition like this? China's first F1 driver, whom they had been waiting and hoping for, has suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
Everyone was dumbfounded.

In the conference room of Five Star Sports, no one spoke. They were all immersed in shock and unable to extricate themselves. Everything was too amazing and too wonderful to be real. They couldn't help but wonder if all of this was really not a dream.

Then, Shi Yiying spoke first, "We must go to Europe, even if not Monza, we must go to Maranello immediately."

Shi Yiying worked as a reporter in the paddock in her early years and is very familiar with the F1 ecosystem.

Actually, Shi Yiying had already noticed Lu Zhizhou before Qian Jun found her.

She had always hoped that Zhou Guanyu's generation could break through the constraints and break free from the shackles to pursue the ultimate speed on the F1 track. The time for Asian drivers had come, and the younger generation was ready. So, when Lu Zhizhou emerged and rose to prominence, she was immediately moved.

She had tried to push for a feature report on Lu Zhizhou, but was rejected.

“It’s just GP3, there’s no need to rush.” “Similar situations have happened more than once or twice. We’ve been disappointed time and time again. This time we need to be patient.” “If we rush to shoot data now, it will all be useless and a waste.” “The station has neither funds nor manpower. Let’s wait and see. At least let’s talk about F2.”

Unconsciously, Shi Yiying also agreed. The scars left after repeatedly embracing hope only to be disappointed again and again would harden and become numb after the scabs had formed.

So, after a brief period of wavering, Shi Yiying put those thoughts aside.

However, that's exactly what happened.

Even now, his heart was still pounding, all the blood in his body rushed to his head, and his gaze was resolute: "Our chance has finally come."

Through the continuous efforts and challenges of generation after generation, they finally broke through that barrier and secured a place in the F1 paddock, a feat worthy of being celebrated.

Moreover, it's a Ferrari.

Words alone cannot accurately express the fervor; every aspect and corner of motorsports in mainland China was swept up in this storm.

Then, it went viral, and even casual observers who had no interest in racing noticed the frenzy. Lu Zhizhou firmly held the top spot on the trending topics list for more than twelve hours without anyone being able to shake it. F1 has never received so much attention in this land.

A storm is spreading rapidly.

So, what about Monza?

At the Iron Buddha Temple headquarters, the enthusiastic fans were in an uproar. The surging waves of excitement continued to burn, seemingly without end. Such a spectacle had not been seen since Italy won the World Cup in 2006. And it wasn't just in Monza; this fire was spreading rapidly to every corner of Italy.

"absurd!"

Matteo Vitale's mind was buzzing, and he still couldn't believe it—

That stroller driver? Ferrari?

Damn it!

He didn't want to believe it, he refused to believe it, he was certain and absolutely certain that Arrivabene was ruining Ferrari.

"What kind of absurd, hellish joke is this? Our sacred temple, the symbol of red glory, actually allows a half-baked infant with GP3 results to sit in the cockpit of the SF70H?"

"This is a betrayal!"

In the Monza circuit, the fans were in a frenzy, their anger palpable. Matteo climbed onto a haystack, raised his arms, and shouted, while the entire crowd below looked up at him.

"Who is this baby? A rookie who has been involved in Formula One for less than a year, who has barely even lapped Monza a few times, yet dares to take over Vettel's position?"

"Has Ferrari gone mad?"

"Or has Maranello also been blinded by the money in the Chinese market?"

"Seventeen! Not even old enough to drink! We need warriors like Schumacher and Alonso, not a baby who hasn't even grown a beard yet!"

"Promotion directly from GP3 to F1 is not a promotion, but a desecration of Ferrari's tradition!"

"Even though the Iceman is old, he's still a world champion, and Vettel, a four-time champion, is still at his peak. We are destroying our own future. Is it because he ran a few laps in GP3 and got a podium that nobody cares about, or because he did something shady behind our backs?"

"Ferrari is not a kindergarten!"

boom!
The anger of the Iron Buddha Temple exploded like gasoline meeting fire. They raised their right hands high in righteous indignation, their faces red and their voices hoarse as they shouted in unison.

"Ferrari is not a kindergarten!"

Matteo's neck veins were practically bursting as he shouted with all his might, "Baby carriage driver, get out!"

A deafening roar erupted from Tiefo Temple: "Baby carriage driver, get out!"

The deafening roar and the raging fury turned the Monza circuit a sea of ​​red. The Iron Buddha Temple erupted in its frenzy once more, and the whole world began to shake. The earth trembled, the sky spun, and the monstrous roar could easily swallow the stars, enough to terrify any racing team.

In the crowd, Malena-Judith, dressed in a red dress, slightly raised her chin and looked at Matteo, who was standing on the haystack, speaking passionately. Although he was high above her and looked down on her, in her eyes he was just incredibly small, humble, and even ridiculous.

In fact, Malena did not expect that the unruly boy on the streets of Rome that night would reach his current position in less than a year, and revolutionize the entire racing world and the entire country of Italy with his sudden emergence.

She thought she had long forgotten those memories, but now she realizes that the scenes and images sealed in her memory are still vivid in her mind.

Perhaps Matteo is simply afraid to face his own cowardice and timidity. The man who constantly proclaims his intention to enter F1 has yet to even scratch the surface of Formula One racing, watching helplessly as the true prodigies effortlessly ascend to the pinnacle, poised to don Ferrari's red jersey, while he can only hide in the shadows, consumed by envy. How pathetic.

At this moment, the more desperate Matteo shouted, the more it resembled a grand death struggle in Malena's eyes.

Standing on high ground, Matteo felt a gaze upon him and looked straight ahead. In the vast expanse of red, he immediately spotted Malena's gaze.

To ridicule, to mock, to despise.

Matteo felt a rush of heat to his head—

“Leclerc is our future, Leclerc is our hope, but he is still waiting for his chance at Sauber. Why should a guy who just popped out of a rock be the first to rise to the top? Is Sergio Marchionne trying to sell us to an Asian investor? Ferrari is the king of the track, not a puppet of capital!”

"We at Tiefo Temple have shed tears, shouted ourselves hoarse, and poured our hearts out for our red faith, not to watch a baby carriage driver destroy our faith!"

"Ferrari's red represents glory, passion, and fervor; it represents Schumacher's comeback in the rain and Alonso's mad dash on the edge of a knife. It's not child's play."

"We don't want idols! We want champions!"

Roar!
Energy surged forth, baring its fangs and claws, and the entire Iron Buddha Temple raised their right hands high in righteous indignation.

"We don't want idols! We want champions!"

Once again, and then again, the sound echoed through the sky.

A wave of heat washed over her. Malena looked at Matteo, whose eyes were bloodshot and face contorted in rage, but she didn't linger any longer. She pushed through the crowd and left. She didn't want to stay any longer in the midst of hatred and violence, where she could barely breathe.

Finally freed from her restraints, oxygen returned to her chest. Malena looked around. She had only come to Monza to watch the boy's match, never expecting to witness a storm in Monza.

Clearly, Matteo is not the only one. The fanatical Iron Buddha Temple can be the most die-hard and loyal car enthusiast in the world, but it can also be the most terrifying and brutal nightmare in the world.

For Lu Zhizhou, who surpassed "Ferrari prince" Leclerc and replaced "fans' favorite" Raikkonen, this nightmare is unlikely to end anytime soon.

But... but!
Didn't they see the potential Lu Zhizhou was showing? Those uncertainties are precisely the variable that Ferrari needs most right now.

Malena let out a soft breath, and couldn't help but think back to that night in Rome. She had a premonition that Lu Zhizhou would bring another surprise.

"Marlena!"

A voice called out from afar, and Malena instinctively looked over, spotting Lorenzo Moretti waving in the crowd.

Marlena took a step forward, and Lorenzo took the initiative to meet her. He glanced at the excited crowd behind him and grinned, "Those are just paramecia, there's no need to pay them any attention. Just wait and see, when Zhizhou achieves results, they will be the first group of guys to worship him and shed tears."

Malena laughed too. "So confident?"

Lorenzo sensed the sarcasm in the words and shrugged slightly. "It's not based on imagination, but on facts. And I'm not the only one or two people who think the same way."

"Right, you're the same?"

Malena paused slightly but did not respond. Instead, her smile blossomed. Looking over Lorenzo's shoulder, she could see vast stretches of the Iron Buddha Temple behind them, with waves of red heat spreading across her vision.

In 2017, the Italian Grand Prix of Formula 1 kicked off at the Monza circuit, and a storm swept through the paddock, centered on Ferrari, the home team.

No one is an exception.

It's not just Ferrari; if Lu Zhizhou takes a spot in the 2018 season, whose position will he replace—Vettel or Raikkonen?

In fact, the paddock has already implicitly agreed that it should be Raikkonen, but Arrivabene has not yet acknowledged it. But whether it is Vettel or Raikkonen, it means that an active world champion driver is about to enter the free market, and all the other teams are eager to make a move, including Mercedes-Benz.

Who knows? Maybe Mercedes will replace Bottas with Raikkonen?
Overnight, the paddock, which had just returned from the summer break, was caught in a storm with no room to breathe. The Monza match slowly began amidst such noise and commotion, with the fierce battle between Ferrari and Mercedes escalating at the Red Devils' home ground.

However, the Ferrari team, who were eagerly hoping for a home victory and a turnaround in the constructors' championship, were disappointed.

The Red Bull drivers suffered a heavy blow from the start of qualifying, with Hamilton taking pole position while Verstappen and Ricciardo took second and third place respectively.

As for Ferrari, Raikkonen was seventh, Vettel was eighth, and even Stroll, who was behind Williams, and Ocon, who was behind Force India, were simply unbearable to watch.

The main competition was in chaos, with the entire situation disrupted by the continuous heavy rain.

Red Bull suffered a heavy blow and completely lost its competitiveness; Ferrari emerged from chaos, with Vettel finishing third and reaching the podium, while Raikkonen finished fifth. Compared to their terrible performance in qualifying, the passion that had died at Ferrari was rekindled; but in the face of Mercedes' excellent performance, no one could laugh.

Hamilton won the championship, and Bottas came in second.

In other words, Mercedes-Benz not only continued its dominance, but also pulled back from the top two, continuing to widen the gap in both the driver and team leaderboards.

A heavy rainstorm turned Monza, which should have been Ferrari's battleground to turn the tide, into a spectator event, while Mercedes-Benz declared who the real protagonist was with a grand victory on their turf.

Returning from the summer break, Ferrari suffered consecutive setbacks at Spa and Monza. The team that held a clear advantage in the first half of the season has now slipped behind Mercedes and is watching as they are left behind. So, whose responsibility is this?

Is it the team's or the driver's?
Amidst the uproar and chaos, the Iron Buddha Temple, overwhelmed by frustration and depression, sought a scapegoat, and all eyes turned to the innocent Lu Zhizhou—

Blame him.

No one can say for sure what he did, but that doesn't matter. He's a newcomer, a variable, an outsider, and he's the perfect scapegoat.

If it weren't for the uproar caused by his joining Ferrari, which distracted the team, they wouldn't have witnessed Mercedes crushing the pride and dignity of the Iron Buddha Temple in Monza.

Yes, it's all that GP3 ​​guy's fault.

However, unexpectedly, after the crowd of eyes focused on it, they suddenly realized that something seemed wrong.

because--

Lu Zhizhou has won again.

Should I say... the standard ending?

Last week in Spa, torrential rain disrupted the race schedule, but fortunately, it did not seriously affect the progress of the races, and all races from F1 to GP3 were completed smoothly.

However, this week in Monza, unbelievable torrential rain completely disrupted everything, throwing the entire weekend's matches into the storm—

Just like the big news about Ferrari, it evolved from a storm in the imagination into a storm in real life.

Due to heavy rain, the GP3 and F2 qualifying sessions were all cancelled, and the F1 qualifying session was delayed by two hours and forty minutes before a window was finally found to proceed.

GP3 has no qualifying sessions; the final ranking is based on the fastest lap time in free practice, a situation that is both laughable and frustrating.

Regardless, Russell secured his second pole position of the season, with Hubert, Lu Zhizhou, and Han Shilong finishing second through fourth respectively. For the first time this season, the ART team swept the first two rows of starting positions, continuing their dominance this season.

When the race started, it was still raining in Monza, even more so than in Spa, so much so that Monza's speed was completely soaked in the rain. This was the first real all-rain race of the GP3 season, and the unexpected and chaotic events were beyond expectations. No one could accurately predict what would happen next.

All eyes immediately turned to Lu Zhizhou, because of the Ferrari news and because he swept both the weekend championships at Spa last week in the rain.

As expected, Lu Zhizhou lived up to expectations, starting third and engaging in a spectacular offensive and defensive battle with his teammates Hubert and Russell.

Initially, people worried that the internal conflict within the ART team might lack excitement, but the reality turned out to be quite different—

This year, ART has been far ahead of the competition, leaving other teams unable to compete. Therefore, the truly exciting and thrilling battles are taking place within the ART team itself, where the cars are so similar that it truly tests the drivers' talent and ability.

ART lived up to expectations and presented a wonderful show.

Following Spa, Lu Zhizhou once again demonstrated his unparalleled driving skills in the rain, employing different offensive strategies against Bale and Russell, achieving a near-perfect performance while avoiding friction and collisions, thus preventing a tragic outcome due to internal competition within the team.

Rainy conditions truly test a driver's abilities. Hubert, participating in GP3 for the first time, exposed his weaknesses. After being overtaken by Lu Zhizhou, he was overtaken by Han Shilong, losing his position repeatedly. Near the end of the race, he was caught up in a fierce battle with the cars behind him.

Fortunately, at the crucial moment, Hubert withstood the pressure.

Lu Zhizhou. Russell. Han Shilong. Hubert.

For the second time this season, ART swept the top four spots, continuing to widen the gap with a dominant performance, completely turning this season's GP3 into a one-man show.

Russell, the Mercedes-Benz future star who has been highly anticipated, once again lost to Lu Zhizhou, who came to the game later in his career, in a head-to-head match. Although this has been the case all season and people have long been used to it, they still can't help but sigh when they witness it again.

Subsequently, on Sunday, Monza experienced continuous torrential rain and severe weather conditions. The FIA ​​waited until the last minute, but the heavy rain did not change. After careful consideration, the FIA ​​cancelled the GP3 sprint race.

Unexpectedly, the weather gradually improved, and the F2 sprint race and the F1 race were able to proceed smoothly, but the Monza weekend of GP3 came to an early end.

This also means that the ART team eliminated all suspense two races early, sweeping both the GP3 team and driver championships in the 2017 season. The remaining two races were already garbage time, and other teams and young drivers had to fight for dignity and pride, even if no one was paying attention.

What's truly outrageous is that, not only that, the ART team currently holds the top four positions in the drivers' standings and has a very good chance of maintaining this dominant position.

Complete control, inside and out.

Looking at Lu Zhizhou again at this moment, the mindset of Tiefo Temple seems to have undergone a subtle change.

Of course, the harsh criticism still exists. Lu Zhizhou's achievements are entirely based on the excellent quality of the car. The ART team is unbeatable this season. The feat of having four drivers occupy the top four positions in the standings is absolutely remarkable. They are not on the same level as other teams. They are simply a Martian car.

However, it's a fact that the car is good, and it's also a fact that Lu Zhizhou is outstanding.

He maintained a perfect record in all six races of the season and three wins in five sprint races, with the only exception being the sprint race at the Hungarian circuit where he failed to reach the podium.

Not only was he outstanding in the external competition, but he also stood out in the team. With Han Shilong ahead and Yu Beier behind, plus Russell who was also eager to prove himself, Lu Zhizhou withstood the pressure from all sides and delivered a perfect performance. It is simply unacceptable to attribute it to being a "Martian rover".

On one hand, Ferrari's stumbles after returning from the summer break seem to have widened the gap, and its shortcomings and weaknesses have been exposed to the light of day.

On one side, Lu Zhizhou continues its strong performance. If Silverstone and Budapest can be considered "sluggish," then Spa and Monza are definitely making a triumphant return.

Especially Monza.

In a rain-soaked match, Lu Zhizhou delivered a convincing performance, surpassing both Bell and Russell, and withstanding Russell's relentless attacks to claim the championship, igniting the hopes of the Iron Buddha Temple team.

In F1, Ferrari's last victory at Monza dates back to 2010, when Fernando Alonso won the championship for the Italian team on home soil. Since the advent of the hybrid era, Monza has never witnessed Ferrari's triumph at home.

Although Lu Zhizhou has only won one GP3 victory so far, who knows... maybe Lu Zhizhou can help them achieve this dream?
The real key point is that in F1, Ferrari was completely dominated by Mercedes, feeling humiliated and hopeless, with no way to vent their passion. However, things took a turn for the better, and they witnessed Lu Zhizhou's complete victory over Russell in GP3. In the competition at the youth training level, Ferrari won a round and gave Mercedes a blow.

The entire atmosphere and the entire mood changed silently amidst despair.

Has the dawn already broken for the "future"?

A light drizzle still shrouded the sky. Although it was no longer pouring rain, the sky was overcast again after the F1 race. Large swaths of ash revealed a hint of blue, and the sky slowly lowered, as if one could touch the clouds by standing on tiptoe, creating an oppressive atmosphere.

In the hazy mist, two young men, holding a red umbrella and carrying backpacks, were leaving the hunting grounds, still arguing.

"...My attention was focused on turns six and seven, but I didn't expect that there would be a loophole in turns eight and nine."

“No, Antoine, in the second timeout, the corners are all together, so your attention will naturally be focused. After leaving Turn 7, there's a long straight, and you need to pay even more attention to your braking points when the straight connects to the corners. Have you forgotten? In Barcelona? We discussed this back then…”

However, the conversation couldn't continue; a call came from the pattering rain ahead—

"Zhizhou!"

The red umbrella instinctively lifted up, revealing the figures of Lu Zhizhou and Yu Beier, who were stunned by the sight before them.

Standing at the front of the crowd, Lorenzo wasn't using an umbrella, but was wearing a Ferrari red raincoat. His eyes were bright as he looked over, and the moment he saw Lu Zhizhou, a smile bloomed on his face.

"Hey, welcome to Ferrari, baby driver!"

Just then, a bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, seemingly tearing the gloomy sky in two. The silver light poured into the water droplets, causing them to explode. The whole world was dyed a brilliant silver, and then a magnificent and flamboyant red spread out before our eyes.

It started as a spark, but in the blink of an eye it spread like wildfire, like a magnificent scroll slowly unfolding, suffocating all breaths.

Flames burned fiercely in the rain and mist, stretching as far as the eye could see, forming a vast ocean.

So this is Monza.

Malena was the first to shout, "Ahhh!"

Like a signal—

"Hey, stroller driver!"

Welcome to Ferrari!

"Lu Zhizhou!"

A cacophony of voices and cheers mingled in the crowd, instantly unleashing an incredible surge of energy, while a wave of heat, accompanied by raindrops, swept over them.

Lorenzo raised his arms high and led the jeering at the top of his lungs, "Baby! Baby!"

One sentence after another, the faint sounds drowned out by the torrential rain were no different from the buzzing of mosquitoes, but the scattered sounds gradually gathered together and coalesced into a rope, transforming into a deafening roar before the blink of an eye, rolling in amidst the flashes of lightning and thunder.

The world was in an uproar!
Lu Zhizhou stared dumbfounded at the scene before him, and subconsciously turned to look at Yu Beier, only to find that Yu Beier couldn't contain himself and jumped up and down, pushing Lu Zhizhou, "Iron Buddha Temple! That's Iron Buddha Temple!"

The next second, Hubert realized he had made a mistake.

Lu Zhizhou stepped out of the umbrella's protective range and into the drizzle, instantly feeling the chill to his bones. Helplessly, he spread his hands and turned to look at Yu Beier with a look of utter despair.

"Antoine, please don't do this."

That pitiful remark instantly caused the surrounding Iron Buddha Temple and Yu Beier to burst into laughter, the laughter rolling out in waves of heat in the rain.

(End of this chapter)