Hearing Zhang Yifei's simple and rude answer, the expression on Junko Takeda's face was a little helpless, the public relations skills he is best at, as Zhang Yifei's assistant, there is almost no use, this guy is really no taboo!

"Okay, but try to be tactful in the opening game interview, after all, the opening game is second only to the finale. In addition, Singapore is a new track, and many spectators are watching F1 live for the first time, which is easy to create a bad impression."

Junko Takeda still instructed, and now Zhang Yifei's personal image is rising in the global atmosphere as a whole. This is also a characteristic of competitive sports, only the food is the original sin, and everything else is negotiable.

Today is different from the past, it is nothing to be exaggerated when the small role is small, but now Zhang Yifei has enough influence. Therefore, Junko Takeda does not want Zhang Yifei's remarks at the pre-match press conference to be too strong, and appropriately regressing to maintain a kind and friendly image in front of the audience will help improve his public acceptance and even commercial value.

"Got it."

Zhang Yifei replied casually, he knew what Junko Takeda was thinking, and it was nothing to give in when he didn't violate the bottom line, but if he didn't set up a bottom line for some things, he would be offended all the time!

As night fell, the Singapore organisers also held a grand fireworks display at Marina Bay. And several Singaporean and Southeast Asian singers sang on stage, including Yanzi Sun, who Zhang Yifei is more familiar with, and Adu, a newcomer who has just debuted in this era.

However, at this time, Zhang Yifei did not have time to enjoy any fireworks shows and concerts, but worked with the team strategy team to pay attention to the water accumulation on the track.

In the afternoon there was a light rain, but as the evening wore on, the light rain stopped. The spring rain is like this, and the intermittent changes can never be controlled, adding countless changes to the game.

Now the problem in front of Zhang Yifei and the strategy team is that although the light rain has stopped, the track will not dry out instantly, and some low-lying sections still have a little stagnant water, forming a semi-dry and half-wet racing road.

Knowing that the semi-dry and semi-wet conditions are a nightmare for the drivers and the strategy team, it is far more than a headache with heavy rain. Because of the heavy rain and wet track, it will be done directly on the rain tires, and the all-dry track will be simpler, and the conventional tactical strategy will come.

Only this kind of semi-dry and semi-wet track, how to change the tires is a great test of the wisdom of the strategy groups of the major teams. If you put on dry tires, you won't have enough grip and you can easily get out of control and run off the track.

Switching to rain tyres slows things down, and some tracks drain very quickly when it's not raining, and the water drains in less than half an hour, which isn't a long time for an F1 race that's close to two hours.

So those drivers who change to all-rain tires will face a very awkward situation, is it a pit stop and then change tires? Or do you bite the bullet and continue to run dry on the rain tires?

If you make a pit stop, you can lose 20 seconds if you count the deceleration time in the pit lane. And it's not just the time lag, it's very difficult to overtake and come back in a street race like Singapore, which is the biggest disadvantage.

If you don't pit and change tires, then you won't have any advantage in speed when you run against rain tires, and you won't be able to run well. Therefore, in addition to the experience of the team's strategy group, there is also a certain element of luck in the choice of this moment.

On the other side of the semi-wet and dry track, for the driver, the grip of the car will fluctuate. It is possible that a semi-wet and semi-dry track will be slippery in a stable corner at normal speed, resulting in insufficient braking distance to rush off the track.

And if you blindly try to slow down the corner, the driver can't guarantee whether the opponent in the corner can pass at full speed. When you seek stability, you give your opponent a chance to overtake.

So the semi-dry, semi-wet track requires very delicate throttle control technology and the driver's perception of the subtle changes in the car's grip. Even more exaggeratedly, it may take a little bit of luck to become a champion.

Because there is no such thing as a true perfect rain god, even Senna and Schumacher have actually made a lot of mistakes in the rain battle. But it's enough for them to be able to keep their speed ahead and keep the rest of their opponents on the track at bay!

So now the choice in front of Zhang Yifei and the team strategy team is to choose the speed or a more secure press.

"Fly, I think the tire tactics need to be changed, the first half of the rain tires, the second is not the previous soft tires."

Boss Prost said his decision, semi-wet tires are the most conventional and the most secure plan to deal with the semi-dry and semi-wet track, which is very in line with Prost's conservative character.

"There is still half an hour before the race, and I think the water on the track will be further reduced by then, and the speed of the semi-wet tires will not be enough."

Zhang Yifei prefers soft tires, he believes that as long as it doesn't rain, the track will be less and less waterlogged, and the track will be drier and drier. The soft tyres keep the car at speed and maintain his pole position advantage, and in terms of risk, he is confident in his driving skills.

"Fei, this time I agree with BOSS's half-wet tire plan, and I watched it along the track with Youkyo before. Because the Singapore circuit is a street, it is not a track-specific asphalt grade, and there is a thick cement layer underneath that affects the speed of rainwater soaking, so half an hour is not enough for drainage. ”

"According to the weather forecast provided by the Meteorological Bureau, there are still rain clouds over the track, and there is a great possibility of rain, and semi-wet tires are indeed the most suitable starting tire strategy."

Team leader Henry also stood up and said a word, and at the same time, Yamamoto Ukyo, who was next to him, nodded in agreement.

Judging by the current road conditions, as well as the possible future rain trends, semi-wet tires are the best choice.

Moreover, it is relatively easy to block cars at the Singapore circuit, and they have already taken pole position, so there is no need to risk such gains outweighed by the slight advantage in speed.

After Zhang Yifei finished talking about his opinions, he looked at Cosell, as the chief race engineer, he has the supreme decision-making power in the game, even more than the boss Prost.

But at this time, Junko Takeda walked in outside and said to Zhang Yifei: "Yifei-kun, the pre-game press conference is about to start, you should hurry up to the media center on the third floor." ”

Hearing Junko Takeda's words, Korsell said: "Let's go to the pre-match press conference first, and I'll check the road conditions with Youkyo again, and then make a final decision before the game." ”

Instead of blindly identifying with either side, Korsell chose to speak with facts. Now there is still more than half an hour before the official start of the race, anyway, the team strategies of different track environments have been recorded, and the final decision will be made when the time comes.

Hearing what Korsell said, Zhang Yifei was not in a hurry, but followed Junko Takeda and walked directly through the stairs towards the track media center on the third floor of the maintenance building.

The Circuit Media Center is already buzzing with people at this time, and as the opening game of the new season, the attention is undeniable. And this year's more diverse drivers have led to a greater increase in global influence, which has contributed to media heat.

For example, Zhang Yifei, the first Chinese in history to enter the ranks of the world's top racing drivers. There is also Takuma Sato's foray into F1, marking the return of Japanese drivers to Formula 1 after a hiatus of several years.

In addition, the addition of Helio has made the shadow of an American driver appear in the F1 paddock, and the title of the strongest newcomer in IndyCar history is too loud, which is also one of the main reasons to increase the attention of the opening race.

So today, in the track media center, almost all the mainstream media around the world came to the scene, hoping to get first-hand information about the new season of F1.

Zhang Yifei came backstage to prepare, and found that the other drivers who participated in the pre-race press conference had already arrived earlier than himself. Seeing Zhang Yifei coming in, Massa and Sato Takuma both took the initiative to wave hello to him.

Seeing this scene, Zhang Yifei was a little emotional, when he was a newcomer last year, he was almost ostracized by the entire F1 paddock. Not to mention that other drivers take the initiative to say hello, even if they go to say hello themselves, others don't like to take care of them.

In order to alleviate the embarrassment, Alessi pulled old Verstappen to say a few words to himself.

In just one year, many things have changed, at least the average driver in the paddock does not dare to have any contempt for himself, such as newcomers like Takama Sato and Massa, who have put on a little brother attitude in front of themselves.

It's just that when Schumacher saw him, he didn't have the "friendliness" he had last year, he just nodded to himself, which was regarded as a greeting.

For the change in Schumacher's attitude, the reason Zhang Yifei is very clear in his heart, that is, he threatens him.

Zhang Yifei once read an interview report that when Schumacher made his second comeback, he was teammates with the future world champion Rosberg at Brown Racing.

In the beginning, Schumacher was very friendly to Rosberg, and even instructed him on how to race and pass on his racing experience. But as Rosberg came out halfway through the race and the points were approaching Schumacher, the attitude of the German driver began to become unusually cold.

There is only one reason for this change in attitude, and that is the strength of team-mate Rosberg, who threatens Schumacher.

You must know that Schumacher is not the kind of "legend" who is perfect in TV series or in the series, on the contrary, he is very real, and the championship and results are the only things he pursues in his career, even at the expense of making some dishonorable means.

So seeing the change in Schumacher's attitude, Zhang Yifei knew in his heart that the kind of harmony that he could fight side by side as a "teammate" on the Indy track would never appear again.

Maybe in the future, I have only one identity with Schumacher, and that is the enemy!