At the same time, Vinares also felt raindrops on his body, and a look of ecstasy appeared on his face. It was finally raining.
However, his expression quickly softened. Rain didn't mean the drivers had to pit for new tires; it had to rain heavily.
From first to second to last, the gap was considerable. The satellite team driver in last place, upon seeing Lin Yan, clearly didn't know what had happened. The leading group was too far ahead, and he hadn't seen the battle within it. Confused, he wondered what was going on and why "Lin Shen" had pitted so quickly.
Lin Yan was extremely efficient when dealing with the backmarkers. With wet tires on a dry track, he saw a few drivers cautiously navigating slowly. Lin Yan braked late and in a flash overtook two satellite team drivers ahead of him.
Not many drivers pitted at the same time as Lin Yan, but there were a few, scattered behind him.
Verstappen and Reissner did not pit, but Daniel behind them did. Whether it was intentional or not, this time Daniel's pit stop was delayed by over ten seconds by the mechanics of the Honda garage. It wasn't the entire process that took ten seconds, but the tire change itself.
Pit stops in GP are very fast. Mechanics have the car ready at the entrance before the driver even arrives. Getting out and getting in takes less than five seconds at most. Honda was clearly retaliating deliberately. Daniel didn't care; he was retired, why would he care about his ranking?
He slowly went up to enjoy the race. Fortunately, Honda only dared to dawdle during the pit stop and didn't have the guts to tamper with the car. If this four-time champion were to get hurt, it would be disastrous. Regardless of reputation, Daniel's father would likely seek retribution from Honda.
After the pit stop, regardless of what happened next, Daniel was officially in last place for this lap.
Below the stands, Vinares and the chief mechanic of the adjacent Honda garage were praying simultaneously. Looking at the incessant heavy rain, the Honda chief mechanic's heart sank halfway. Even heaven wasn't helping them!
"Ooh, Verstappen's car wobbled, he almost crashed, my goodness."
Two laps had passed since Lin Yan pitted, and the race was now in its final four laps. As they went through turn thirteen, a wobble in Verstappen's car startled Hao Dong.
In those two laps, the rain had not only not stopped but had intensified. The track was now filled with puddles. Verstappen and Reissner, still on slick tires, were driving very cautiously on the waterlogged surface, as if treading on thin ice. Their speed had slowed considerably, and even their journey to the pit lane was arduous.
The Honda chief mechanic's heart had completely turned cold, utterly chilled. Standing at the entrance of the pit lane, feeling the rain-swept wind, he had only one feeling.
Cold, icy rain slapped wildly against his face.