July 18, 1997, Mexico City Olympic Sports Park, Race Track Pavilion.
The air here was completely different from other venues.
No chlorine smell from the pools, no magnesium powder scent of the gymnastics hall, and no mixed odor of sweat and plastic from the athletics track.
Here, a more primal and stimulating smell filled the air—a unique burnt smell from high-temperature tires rubbing the track, mixed with a slight sweet tang of high-octane fuel fumes, alongside the scent of money and steel.
Indeed…
Watching car races is a cerebral thrill.
The oval track shimmered with a dark sheen under the scorching sun, and the stands were packed, the roar of the crowd almost lifting the semi-open roof of the pavilion.
This wasn't F1, but the first-time Olympic demonstration event "Prototype Car Endurance Race," rougher, more direct, and better at showing a country's industrial design, material science, and team collaboration skills.
