"Beautiful, Chen Xiangbei is going to take pole position!"

"So awesome, no wonder the F1 team is interested in him!"

"This is last year's new world champion Hamilton's record, and Chen Xiangbei can surpass it."

"0.7 seconds is really impressive, has the F3 car been greatly modified this year?"

"There have been improvements, but not much, definitely not to the extent of 0.7 seconds."

The crowd at the circuit cheered wildly, accompanied by disbelief.

After all, it seemed too exaggerated. Even the Chinese fans who had the most confidence in Chen Xiangbei dared not hope he could really surpass Hamilton's pole position and set a new record at the East Bay Circuit!

Is the Australian Grand Prix event going to usher in an era belonging to Chinese drivers?

"Keiyo, enter the pit for a tire change!"

"Motana, pit for a tire change!"

"Fang Junyu, pit for a tire change!"

Instructions from team after team were issued from the pit as there was just over a minute left in the qualifying session. Theoretically, if they forego the warm-up lap, they could pit for a tire change and push for one last lap.

This is because the flying lap time in the qualifying session is determined by the car crossing the starting line before the countdown ends.

It means even if the flying lap started with just one second left on the clock, the time still counts.

The race engineers on-site understood well that Chen Xiangbei's lap time was achieved with extremely light fuel and brand new soft tires. If they wanted to reclaim pole position, they would have to go for it just as aggressively!

Although there was no time for a warm-up lap and the tires wouldn't reach operating temperature after leaving the pit, the situation at the East Bay Circuit was different from the United Kingdom. Here, as time approached noon, the track temperature kept rising, and the characteristics of the street race allowed tires to heat quickly.

Not every circuit needs to consider warming up the tires; some high-temperature circuits focus more on how to cool them.

For instance, F1's Malaysia Station and Bahrain Station are both known for high-temperature tracks.

Singapore Station also falls under a similar latitude, but to avoid daytime heat, the FIA opted for night races.

Shortly reaching operating temperature, plus over twenty cars running fast laps for half an hour, had accumulated enough rubber fragments on the racing line to increase grip, forming the basis for teams to gamble boldly.

Whether a circuit can produce the fastest lap often depends on the timing, geographical conditions, and cooperation of the teams.

Timing doesn't need much explanation; it's not possible in rainy weather.

Human factors are easy to understand too; achieving the fastest lap time requires a skilled driver.

The most complex is the geographical condition, which includes familiarity with the circuit's layout and the state of the asphalt.

The optimal phase for grip on a circuit is typically between the second and fourth year of new asphalt paving. Throughout this changing process, it resembles a peak-valley line—after the peak, it trends downward.

Take China's East Sea International Circuit, for example, where many records remained unbroken for a time, originally set by Schumacher in 2004. Even as car performance improved, no one could surpass them.

The track surface aged over twenty years until the F1 Chinese Grand Prix in 2024 was rebooted with newer, higher-grade asphalt.

A year later, hosting the F1 Chinese Grand Prix again, starting with the sprint race, various lap records were continually shattered—this was the effect brought by new asphalt at peak grip.

The street race environment is harsher than traditional circuits, requiring rubber debris left on the racing line for increased grip. The last minute's "geography" condition achieved, now it's up to the drivers from each team to run their own "Star Circle."

"Sawano, I'm entering the pit."

Chen Xiangbei requested through the TR, having used extremely light fuel, missing the pit window would invalidate his post-race check.

"Received, prepare to enter the pit."

Sawano Hiroyuki responded.

Next, he gazed toward Odetto, saying with slight concern, "Lead, I don't know if any driver exiting the pit might threaten Xiangbei's pole position."

"If they could threaten it, they wouldn't wait until now."

"North is the winner of this qualifying session!"

Odetto gave an affirming answer ahead of time, as if Hamilton's pole record was any pushover?

Plus, with a lead of 0.7 seconds, Chen Xiangbei's lap wasn't just about victory.

He already proved with his performance that his adaptability could handle a step up!

Odetto even imagined with anticipation how it would look if Chen Xiangbei directly drove an F1 car.

Car number 13 departed the main track entering the pit lane, as Liang Chi led the team of technicians already waiting in the pit area.

As soon as Chen Xiangbei stabilized the car, everyone excitedly surrounded him, slapping his helmet and shouting, "Brother North, you got pole position!"

"Xiangbei, you also set a new pole record, 0.7 seconds faster than Hamilton!"

"Brother North, you're awesome!"

Being a mechanic in a racing team, physical strength is a basic requirement.

After all the slaps, Chen Xiangbei's mind buzzed, and he quickly removed his visor to stop them, "Thank you, thank you, I know!"

Just then, Odetto walked out of the pit room, adding calmly.

"Don't celebrate too soon; you haven't secured the pole yet."

Indeed, there were still several cars on the track doing flying laps, theoretically leaving things undecided!

"A racer's spirit is never giving up; even if Chen Xiangbei broke the track record, several drivers—among them our Hong Kong's Fang Junyu—have entered the pit to change tires and choose to challenge!"

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