How Did I Become an F1 Driver?

In another room, inside a conference room at Ferrari headquarters in Maranello.

Quite a few people were already seated in the conference room at this time.

They were holding a meeting discussing the situation that had just unfolded on the track.

Qin Miao's flaw in rain combat was thoroughly exposed in this race.

Originally, Binotto could still use Qin Miao's current achievements in F2, his astonishing talent and future potential to suppress the internal opposition voices within Ferrari.

But after Qin Miao's mistake this time, no matter how hard Binotto tried, he could no longer suppress those voices.

The people opposing Qin Miao immediately convened this meeting to start discussing the next steps.

Qin Miao's weak rain combat ability is an undeniable fact.

Ferrari doesn't lack drivers, and as long as the news gets out, at least half of the drivers in the F1 paddock would be interested in this Ferrari spot.

So after Qin Miao's severe mistake this time, it provided the opposition within Ferrari with a reason.

A reason not to use Qin Miao but to find a driver within the paddock who has already proven their strength to replace the position vacated by Vettel stepping down.

Those who had long been interested quickly came to a conclusion...

What Qin Miao didn't know was that he had just returned to the team's P room, and on the other side of the paddock, Mekis had already met with McLaren's race director, accompanied by Sainz's agent.

No one knew what they talked about in this meeting, but with the push from some interested parties, rumors emerged in the paddock about Sainz joining Ferrari next season.

...

Perhaps others aren't surprised by the news that Ferrari is in contact with McLaren, as it is considered a normal transaction between teams.

But the problem now is that those who know Qin Miao has already been in contact with Ferrari and signed a one-year driver contract are a bit confused by this news.

The most confused among them is Qin Miao.

While talking to Qin Miao, Roxin analyzed, "Ferrari's tradition of internal political struggle is long-standing, yet it's veiled by a layer of concealment. Everyone knows that Ferrari's internal political strife is severe, but nobody brings the issue to the table.

And drivers are a crucial part of an F1 team, also forming a significant component of internal political struggles. After all, drivers represent a team to some extent, and given Ferrari's current internal situation, Leclerc is considered as someone belonging to Binotto's faction, and you are too since Binotto gave you the contract.

But if a team's two drivers come from the same faction, how would Ferrari conduct political struggles internally? Should other factions just forget it? Should they give up their power? Will Ferrari become a monolith under Binotto? Not only will other factions disagree, but Ferrari's current CEO Benedetto Vegina won't agree either."

Saying this, Roxin couldn't help but utter 'f**k', showing clearly his dissatisfaction with Ferrari's internal environment.

He lit a cigarette and took a drag, calming his mind before continuing to explain, "Ferrari generally doesn't promote drivers directly from F2 to its main team. Usually, they send the drivers they favor to Alfa Romeo or Haas, and once they prove their strength in these teams, they consider promoting them to the main team. So initially, the opposition didn't do anything, as they believed next season's driver slots were up to them to decide.

But Binotto has been silent about needing to find new drivers, coupled with your astonishing performance in F2 and Binotto's closeness and care towards you, they began to worry, fearing you'd enter Ferrari directly.

Checking the documents in the database, and wow, Binotto has already signed you up, intending to make you a formal driver for Ferrari next season quietly; this couldn't be allowed.

Then it's about simultaneously contacting the driver they fancy and using your weak rain combat ability in internal meetings to attack Binotto for choosing you.

Releasing news that Ferrari is in contact with McLaren and interested in Sainz can effectively provoke your relationship with Ferrari, as they all know you've signed with Ferrari, and Binotto promised that as long as your performance is good, you'd be driving Ferrari's F1 car next season."

At this point, Roxin paused again, glanced at the car being checked for damage, and shook his head helplessly, saying, "Now, those who don't want you to join Ferrari are happier because you made a rather low-level mistake during the rain race."

Actually, Roxin didn't know that there was another reason for the faction attack on Binotto within Ferrari, which was that Qin Miao's contract terms were too lenient.

But Roxin only knows that Qin Miao has signed with Ferrari and isn't aware of the specific details of the contract.

At this moment, Qin Miao was genuinely feeling a bit of a headache. He found Roxin's advice quite helpful since the regret of missing out on the championship due to his mistake was somewhat diluted by the complex internal struggles.

His head felt itchy, perhaps indicating some enlightenment?

"So what should I do?" Qin Miao asked.

Roxin glanced at Qin Miao: "Drive well, and as for paddock politics, it's best to avoid them as much as possible, at least for now..."