This morning alone, two factory cars were crashed during preparations, and Zhang Mingzhi's heart was bleeding.
It probably took only Lin Yan to use factory cars costing over thirty million for training.
Lin Yan, however, was unfazed. Drivers are forged through immense spending. Without talent, spending money is the only way to rapidly improve skills, though it is extremely costly.
Still, Lin Yan felt that if he had the ability, he should do his best to cultivate Chinese drivers.
After all, his retirement was inevitable. When he retired, he hoped to see more and more Chinese people standing on the highest platform.
Arriving at the main straight, Lin Yan waved to Ren Fei behind him, signaling him to put in more effort.
Ren Fei gritted his teeth. He knew such an opportunity was rare, so he had to seize it. He focused even more intently.
Under the scorching sun, the cars flew across the track, a violent roar of engines mixed with the subtle rhythm of gear shifts.
At the end of the main straight, the two GP22s reached a speed of 352 kph. Ren Fei matched Lin Yan's tail speed. The next challenge would be the heavy braking after the straight.
Before the next corner, both drivers squeezed their brakes, one after the other. Lin Yan, being in front of Ren Fei, had to brake earlier, but their braking points were identical, initiated at the exact same spot.
The moment the brakes locked, the GP22's carbon ceramic brake discs instantly heated up to six hundred degrees Celsius. Under the high-frame camera, the front brake discs began to glow red, and the front suspension was compressed to its limit in the blink of an eye.
Their heavy braking maneuvers were both impeccable, reaching world-class standards. They smoothly navigated the corner. Although Ren Fei's car shook violently, he managed to brake in time.
Seeing this, Zhang Mingzhi, standing by the pit room door, breathed a sigh of relief. As long as no one crashed, it was fine. If another crash occurred, the team's mechanics would be overwhelmed; the previous two cars were still not repaired.
Repairing factory cars was extremely troublesome and costly.
"Hey, Old Zhang, I don't understand what you're so afraid of. It's just repairing a few cars. If they can't handle it, won't you step in yourself?"
Seeing Zhang Mingzhi's expression, Viñales, standing beside him, teased with a mocking tone.
"Go away, go away. What repairing cars? Am I afraid of repairing cars? I'm afraid of Ren Fei crashing and getting injured..."
Zhang Mingzhi would never admit it, as the chief mechanic's reputation was crucial. He could only use Ren Fei as a shield.
As if on cue, hearing this, Viñales looked at Zhang Mingzhi with disdain.
"Hey, Zhang, you're not only lazy but also hypocritical!"
As always, he spoke Chinese with a European accent.
In just a few sentences, Viñales had pinned two labels on Zhang Mingzhi, making his face darken.
"Don't forget, you still have a performance to deliver."
After a brief chat, they started to expose each other's shortcomings.
Upon hearing this, Viñales jumped up in anger. This morning, he thought Lin Yan had forgotten about it, but he didn't expect Lin Yan to remember and even say he had to repay it later.
He still had to perform this joke at a specific time; it was too much!
"Alright, let's talk about something serious. What do you think about the A-country race?"
After some playful banter, Zhang Mingzhi steered the conversation back to business. The A-country race was what they should be considering now.
When it came to serious matters, Viñales's smile vanished, and his expression became much more solemn.
"It's harder than the Shanghai race, but I can't say for sure how much of an advantage we have."
After a moment of thought, Viñales said in a deep voice. To be honest, he still didn't know Lin Yan's skill ceiling. He was stronger than his current strength, but he didn't know how much stronger, so he wasn't very confident in making predictions.
Lin Yan's previous mention of a "four-six split" was somewhat referential.
European circuits inherently provided a good boost for drivers like Reissna, a difference stemming from geographical location.
If they were competing on other Asian circuits, it would also provide a boost to Asian drivers. With one strong and one weak, Viñales lacked confidence.
"Looking at Reissna's performance last year, he almost crushed the competition to win the A-country race. Reissna is incredibly strong on European circuits. It seems the Hondata factory team has been training him on European tracks privately quite a bit."
Zhang Mingzhi also lacked confidence. If he had confidence, he wouldn't have asked Viñales.
"However, I still have great faith in Lin. He always brings me many unexpected things."
Viñales was very confident in Lin Yan. He had been greatly shocked by Lin Yan during the test runs, then at the Isle of Man, and again at the Shanghai race. Each time, Lin Yan's strength surpassed his previous level.
It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that in his eyes, Lin Yan's talent was comparable to those two.
Hearing this, Zhang Mingzhi nodded. Although European circuits gave Reissna and the others an advantage, the young master's strength had also improved significantly during this period.
"What about Ren Fei?"
As his words fell, Zhang Mingzhi brought up Ren Fei again.
"He's very hardworking. Before Lin appeared, he was undoubtedly the number one in China's history."
Viñales gave Ren Fei such an evaluation.
"But..."
Yes, that "but" again.
"But his talent might have reached its limit."
Although the words were harsh, Viñales still spoke them.
As Ren Fei's mentor, he understood Ren Fei better than anyone. Ren Fei's talent ranked first in Asia, but in GP, it was only mid-to-low tier. The reason he could consistently stay in the mid-pack was entirely due to his sheer diligence.
Viñales dared to say that Ren Fei was much more diligent than Lorenz, but talent was talent. No matter how hard he tried, Lorenz would still be ahead of him. His current level was Ren Fei's limit.
Hearing this, Zhang Mingzhi also sighed. Viñales was a professional in this regard, and even he could see that Ren Fei's talent had reached its peak.
He hoped the young master could help Ren Fei improve.
Watching the two figures on the track, Zhang Mingzhi thought.
It wasn't until twelve noon that the two drove their cars back to the pit room. Although Ren Fei had made some progress this time, the effect wasn't significant. To improve lap times further, it would require a long period of practice to see results.
Long-term training meant burning more money, but Lin Yan didn't seem to care much.
In his previous life, Lin Yan valued money greatly, but in this life, he took it much more lightly. There was no other reason than his family being wealthy in this life.
"Lin Ge, thank you!"
In the lounge, Ren Fei expressed his sincere gratitude. He truly didn't know how to repay Lin Yan for taking the time to teach him.
"Remember to bring glory to China."