My Formula 1 System

Lights out was blood-pumping. The F1 Belgium Grand Prix had begun, and the cars fluttered out of their grid spots processionally.

By the time Erik, starting in P20, had reached Turn 1, the frontrunners were already getting ahead and behind one another, squeezing through gaps and battling hard for clear and definite positions by the end of the first sector.

Squadra Corse's subtle modification on Luigi's Mercedes (AMG F1 W09) had slipped under the radar. Till the fifth lap, it was not noticed. So right there in the race, a driver was piloting a weaponized single-seater, in the midst of others who were running clean.

When Squadra made this vile decision, they had weighed certain outcomes and consequences that might come back to bite them. But since Formula 1 was built on risk, this was barely nothing compared to past exploits they had done.

Luigi might suffer a 5% aerodynamic loss. 5% was barely noticeable, but quite enough to matter to a driver. That small, sharpened adjustment on the wing, just 5% too extended or angled, could tamper with his car's balance and airflow at high speeds. Worse still, he could unintentionally puncture the tire of a non-target—that is, a driver who wasn't Luca.

But since the other driver would have to be side-by-side with Luigi, contesting for space at the exact moment the sharp tips grazed his Pirellis, that made him a threat—Luca or not—and Squadra believed such a driver would deserve it.

However, the moment that first puncture happened, the entire circuit and all the stewards would notice the chiseled wing.

Then, Squadra would be forced to face either a penalty for both Luigi and the team, or argue that it was a construction mishap—an oversight—and Luigi would be ordered to box immediately, no matter the lap they were currently in or the stakes and stage of the race at that moment.

So, for all of it to be worth it, Luigi really needed that first contact to be with Luca.

Meanwhile, Luca was completely oblivious to the danger closing in on him. "Huff Huff"— went his breathing, along with everyone else's as they pushed through to the 10th lap in Spae-Ferenchal.

By that 10th lap, Rodnick had become the undisputed MVD of Belgium, delivering a driving masterclass on the long and tough 7km circuit with lap-after-lap consistency.

He had surged up from his P6 starting position and was now comfortably within the top five—the top three in fact—holding down P3. Dreyer, Damgaard, and Luigi had all fallen behind in the wake of his climb, and his Ferrari now glided with that confidence and purpose, completely different from how it performed in the previous race.

Now, as the pack crossed into Lap 11, Rodnick was directly behind Luca. There was still a fair bit of distance between them, but it was still Ferrari chasing Ferrari.

[Analyzing 3rd Position's distance from host and Ferrari (JRX-92B)...]

[3rd Position is 2.5 sec away, host.]

And yes, Luca was in P2. He had started in P3 and took Luigi's P2 by the second lap.

His grid launch had been perfect, but Luigi held firm throughout the opening lap. Still, Luca's pursuit was undying. He hunted patiently and kept waiting for the right moment—and when a clean gap finally opened, he didn't hesitate.

So much for "Antonio will come out on top if they duel during the race..."

Rodnick had just taken P4 at that point. So when Luigi lost crucial momentum after Luca's bold overtake, Rodnick pounced and seized the moment. He claimed fresh asphalt and snatched P3 before Luigi could even begin to recover.

P1— Davide DiMarco

P2— Luca Rennick ↑

P3— Marcellus Rodnick ↑

P4— Antonio Luigi ↓

During the duel between Luca and Luigi, where Luca ultimately secured P2, the puncture didn't happen. Luigi didn't even attempt it, not just because Luca was positioned on his right while the chiseled wing was on the left, but because he was instructed to be calculated and precise with the timing of the incident.

It was still too early in the race, and any foul play would've looked completely suspicious.

Luigi would have to wait for a point when the race became tense, chaotic and when he and Luca might lock into a fiercer battle for position. Only under such pressure could a puncture be disguised as a racing incident, convincing enough for the stewards to take it as unintentional.

So, Mr. Campanella had made it clear to Luigi that if no such perfect scene arose, then he was to abandon the plan and finish the race cleanly. He would return to the garage, and they would pretend this had never been plotted. The mission would be labeled unsuccessful.

[Analyzing Ferrari (JRX-92B) and host's distance from 1st Position]

[You are 2 seconds away, host.]

DiMarco was 2 seconds ahead, while Rodnick trailed 2.5 seconds behind.

Luca found himself torn on what to do next. He could either push forward and challenge for P1 or maintain a steady pace that would keep him prepared to defend against Rodnick's charge.

Of the three—himself, Luca, and DiMarco—Rodnick clearly had the faster car. Luca, despite recent improvements, was still the slowest. That said, the upgrades on his machine were nothing to scoff at. They had brought him close—very close—to matching the performance of DiMarco's Red Bull. All it would take now was a few more successful races and attained points—some more Cs and Ws of course.

So, Rodnick closing a 2.5-second gap on a slower car like Luca's was bound to happen quicker than Luca could shrink a 2-second gap to a faster car like DiMarco's.

And since Spae-Ferenchal was 50:50 between turns and straights, Luca couldn't lean on Gripper or Yaw Flex advantages here. His only real weapons were his own Attributes and the High-speed Dominance feature in his engine that Rodnick's superior ThunderKat didn't have.

Jackson Racing wasn't concerned about which of their drivers would win the duel between Luca and Rodnick. With both of them in P2 and P3, a position swap wouldn't affect the team's overall outcome.

All they hoped for was a clean fight.

But from the look of things, Rodnick seemed to have other ideas than a clean fight.

"...Ooh! Bit of contact there between Marcellus Rodnick and Luca Rennick! Just a nudge, but that's not what you want at this stage of the race. Rodnick needs to be careful—that's flirting with the line..!"

"WOOOOOOOOOOOHH!"

"C'mon. That's not racing fair," Luca complained into the radio as Rodnick pulled back for just a moment.

Rodnick knew the stewards had seen that. Even though he wasn't officially warned, he was sure there was already a silent warning in the air.

So, he decided to give Luca racing space and planned to attack again on the next straight with DRS. The ThunderKat was quite close to the FiammaVeloce since Mercedes and Ferrari were very strong rivals even beyond F1.

As assessed earlier in the Monaco Grand Prix, the ThunderKat had massive acceleration and power bursts. The super version would even be more explosive and threatful. Any driver who dared to share a straight with the pilot would never win.

**Pardon. Pardon. Eyes forward, Luca—your pace is still strong. Next straight**

Luca sighed. His eyes were partly on his side mirrors as he made Turn 7. Rodnick's Ferrari was there, large and imposing. Luca could see the top of his helmet.

Luca thought there was hope in this one. But he decided it was time to accept the truth.

In Formula 1, there were no friends.