My Formula 1 System

After a successful yet controversial Qualifying session, the grid was officially set for the Belgian Grand Prix.

Luca secured P3, a strong position by all standards—but deep down, he believed he should have taken pole. And if what happened hadn't happened, he was convinced he would have.

Just when it seemed like he was about to complete a phenomenal Sector Three in Q3, the timing screen lit up coldly:

LAP TIME DELETED – TRACK LIMITS, TURN 9.

This meant race control had voided his lap time for reasons like exceeding track limits or gaining an unfair advantage by cutting the corner.

In this case, race control claimed that Luca had crossed the white line at Turn 9. The footage barely showed a fault but just his tires grazing the line! Wasn't that still legal?

Jackson Racing engineers were livid over the radio, angrier than Luca, furiously appealing to race control for a reversal, but the stewards stood firm.

Had that lap counted, Luca was certain it would've provisionally landed him pole.

Instead, he settled for third as Davide DiMarco snatched the fastest lap. P3 was a solid result, especially given where other drivers ended up, but Luca just wanted someone to admit he'd been robbed of his rightful qualifying time.

P1— Davide DiMarco

P2— Antonio Luigi

P3— Luca Rennick

P4— Jimmy Damgaard

P5— Luis Dreyer

P6— Marcellus Rodnick

P7— Marko Ignatova

P8— Yokouchi Yūichirō

P9— Denko Rutherford

P10— Elias Nyström

P11— Hank Rice

P12— Javier Montez

P13— Ailbeart Moireach

P14— Mikhail Petrov

P15— Alejandro Vasquez

P16— Jacob Jakobsen

P17— Desmond Lloyd

P18— Ansel Hahn

P19— James Lockwood

P20— Erik Haas

Rodnick didn't crack the top five or even top three in qualifying, but that was acceptable since Ailbeart Moireach, the Australian Grand Prix winner, fared worse. Ailbeart avoided crashes or disqualification, yet even with his Rotterbad, he only managed a lap time good for P13.

That was far from how a race-winning driver should roll into the Belgian Grand Prix.

Even P2 finisher Hank Rice was outdone by Yūichirō, who landed in the top 10. But with Rice securing P11 and soft tires playing a big role in qualifiers, Luca expected Rice to climb higher than Ailbeart in the race.

For clarity on the drivers' mindset, team strategy, and Racecraft heading into the Belgian Grand Prix, these were the final results of the Australian Grand Prix:

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Final Race Standings – Australian Grand Prix

🏁 Top 10 Finishers:

P1 – Ailbeart Moireach 🇬🇧 (Haddock Racing) 🏆 +25pts

P2 – Hank Rice 🇬🇧 (Iberia Grand Prix) +18pts

P3 – Luis Dreyer 🇪🇸 (Outback Performance) +15pts

P4 – Antonio Luigi 🇮🇹 (Squadra Corse) +12pts

P5 – Davide DiMarco 🇮🇹 (Bueseno Velocità) +10pts (+1 FL)

P6 – Javier Montez 🇪🇸 (Outback Performance) +8pts

P7 – Luca Rennick 🇮🇹 (Jackson Racing) +6pts

P8 – Marko Ignatova 🇷🇸 (Squadra Corse) +4pts

P9 – Jimmy Damgaard 🇩🇰 (Bueseno Velocità) +2pts

P10 – Elias Nyström 🇸🇪 (Nordvind Racing) +1pt

▾Remaining Finishers:

P11 – Mikhail Petrov 🇷🇺 (Iberia Grand Prix)

P12 – Marcellus Rodnick 🇺🇸 (Jackson Racing)

P13 – Yokouchi Yūichirō 🇯🇵 (Alpine Swiss F1)

P14 – Jacob Jakobsen 🇩🇰 (Alpine Swiss F1)

P15 – James Lockwood 🇬🇧 (Nordvind Racing)

P16 – Alejandro Vasquez 🇪🇸 (Velox Hispania)

P17 – Desmond Lloyd 🇬🇧 (Velox Hispania)

P18 – Erik Haas 🇩🇪 (Trampos Racing)

⨉ DNF (Did Not Finish):

P19 – Ansel Hahn 🇩🇪 (Trampos Racing) – Mechanical Failure

P20 – Denko Rutherford 🇧🇬 (Haddock Racing) – Crash

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"....Welcome to the Belgian Grand Prix, round seven of this year's Formula 1 season, live from the legendary Spae-Ferenchal circuit in Stavelot, Brazil! This 7 plus-kilometer beast, the longest track in F1 history, is back after three years, and it's ready to test every driver's grit across 44 grueling laps..!"

"...Coming off Australia, Ailbeart Moireach's P1 for Haddock Racing set the bar, but his P13 qualifying here has jaws dropping! Davide DiMarco's pole for Bueseno Velocità, fresh off P5 and the fastest lap down under, puts Velocità on top. It's stacked because Luca Rennick follows in P3..!"

[Generating track layout...]

[... successfully generated]

[. (Track layout still pending) .]

Just as Luca and Jackson Racing were gearing up in their garages, so were other teams. Lights out was moments away, and the massive crowd at Spae-Ferenchal roared, their thunderous cheers shaking the stands for the race to kick off.

Mr. Campanella, Squadra Corse's Team Principal, was hashing out last-minute strategy with his top tacticians. Squadra Corse had one goal: overtake Jackson Racing in the Constructors' standings, no matter what.

This race was a critical stepping stone to that ambition.Luigi was summoned from the dressing room for a final word before heading to the grid.

"Not because we haven't raced here in three years means it'll pose a problem," Mr. Campanella told Luigi. "I hope you're ready to hunt like we always do, so we must push hard from P2 against Davide at pole."

Luigi stayed silent, his eyes fixed, absorbing every word.

"But Luca Rennick is the real threat here. We can't afford you drifting over your grid box line again, Antonio—we don't want any penalties here. Every time is crucial."

"So, how do we handle Rennick?" a strategist interjected. "The kid's a plague. You get too close to him, or he gets too close to you, and you're in the barriers, never him."

"Antonio will come out on top if they duel during the race. Rennick's still an amateur. Strip away that Ferrari, and he'd be floundering like his Trampos counterparts," another Squadra Corse manager scoffed.

Luigi watched them deliberate, their voices sharp with urgency.

In the huddle of the debate, Campanella's gaze moved to the lead strategist, then the manager. All of a sudden, there was a wordless understanding passing between them.

After about four minutes, they nodded and agreed.

Luca's P3 start, his knack for dodging and also causing trouble, demanded more than clean racing.

The plan now was to sharpen the edge of Luigi's left front wing, just enough to nick Luca's tires if they went side by side in Spae's tight turns. A puncture could drop Luca out of points, clearing Squadra's path.

So, Campanella's right-hand man, Mr. Rose, beckoned a crew member to fetch a chisel. When the crew member returned with the tool, Rose directed him to Luigi's marvelous Mercedes.

He gave precise instructions on how to sharpen the left front wing to just the perfect sharpness, enough to slice a rival's tire. The crew member obeyed, kneeling beside the cold, sleek single-seater and chiseling away with care.

Luigi raised his chin and took a deep breath. He glanced around the room with his team principal and strategists, gave a curt nod, and walked off to continue preparing.

"...20 minutes till lights out...!"

"WOOOOOOOOOOOHH!"