Chapter 242: A Tumultuous Ending
Hülkenberg's accident struck just as the optimal pit window opened—no team would waste such an opportunity, and calls to pit flooded across team radios.
Ferrari called both cars in, but race leader Vettel was too far ahead and had passed the pit entry, forcing him to wait another lap. Only Räikkönen came in immediately. Mercedes executed a clean double pit stop, with both drivers still within range of the entry. Williams also called in both cars—Wu Shi had already lapped Massa, so their stops wouldn't interfere, and Wu Shi arrived first.
Rosberg was first into the pits, switching to hard tires in 3.1 seconds. Räikkönen followed, also taking hards in 2.9 seconds. Hamilton was third, but after his tires were changed, he sat stationary for two extra seconds—his stop time ballooned to 5.1 seconds.
Jonathan: "We recommend hard tires—there are 26 laps left."
Wu Shi: "No, mediums. Debris will take time to clear; the safety car won't end soon. Everyone ahead is on hards—my mediums will have grip advantage! Remember Vettel's mediums lasted 24 laps including qualifying!"
He spoke quickly—every second counted. The team agreed, and with Wu Shi ten seconds behind Hamilton, there was time to prepare the already-ready medium tires. His stop took a solid 3.2 seconds.
"Oh, Wu Shi's switched to mediums," Brother Bing noted. The full radio exchange wasn't broadcast, so few understood his reasoning.
The pit lane was chaos as cars streamed in—Ricciardo also opted for mediums, while Kvyat (who'd stopped earlier) was left at a disadvantage. Vettel finally pitted on lap 44, switching to hards in 2.9 seconds. When he emerged, the physical safety car was waiting at the exit, signaling him to pass before pacing the field from the next lap.
Ferrari TR: "Kimi, your MGU-K has failed—no kinetic energy recovery, battery won't charge, and power output is reduced."
The hybrid system's complexity was showing—even a single component failure could cripple performance. Ferrari's infamous reliability gremlins were already surfacing in 2015.
As the safety car led Vettel into the pits for the field to bunch up, marshals worked to clear debris. Front-runners weaved frantically to warm their cold hard tires.
Bono: "Kimi's car is unstable—power unit issues will slow his restart, and his tires are colder than yours."
Hamilton: "Copy."
His focus was split: overtaking Räikkönen was important, but Wu Shi's medium tires posed a bigger threat to his championship position.
On lap 47, lapped cars cleared the safety car and took their positions. The front five were tightly packed: Vettel (red), Rosberg (silver), Räikkönen (red), Hamilton (silver), Wu Shi (white). Behind them were Ricciardo, Kvyat, and Verstappen—all within touching distance, setting the stage for a fierce restart.
Wu Shi weaved to keep his medium tires warm, even edging slightly alongside Hamilton's rear. The move didn't go unnoticed.
Hamilton TR: "What's he doing? Is he trying to overtake under safety car conditions?!"
The director broadcast the complaint, drawing laughs from the audience.
"Hamilton's clearly worried about Wu Shi behind him," one commentator said.
"Will he attack Kimi first, or defend against Wu Shi?"
"Defend—Kimi isn't a championship threat, but Wu Shi is!"
As lap 48 neared its end, the safety car's flashing lights went out. Vettel held back slightly before accelerating hard once the safety car pulled into the pits. The main straight opened up, and overtaking was allowed.
Vettel pulled clear instantly, while the cars behind charged toward Turn 1 with engines screaming. Hamilton danced around Räikkönen, but Wu Shi clung to his gearbox—medium tires giving him clear grip advantage. Ricciardo was right behind Wu Shi, refusing to be left behind.
The restart demanded a different approach than the standing start—fuel loads and tire temps were vastly different. Räikkönen, limited by his power failure, braked early and took the outside, conceding position. Hamilton cut through the middle to pass, but Wu Shi followed close behind, only to be blocked. His instinct told him to dive for the inside—but he'd misjudged his speed.
Screech!
Tires locked up, trailing white smoke. Hamilton was already past, but Ricciardo had seized the outside line. Wu Shi's entry speed was far too high for Turn 1—the track's notorious "missile launch site" lived up to its name. He couldn't slow in time, squeezing Ricciardo off the track.
Thud thud thud!!
Wu Shi bounced over the kerbs to stay ahead; Ricciardo veered into the runoff but collided with debris before rejoining.
Jonathan: "What's your status?!"
Wu Shi: "Front wing endplate's damaged—lost front downforce, left wheel lifts in corners. I'm okay… just a headache."
Before he could ask about Ricciardo, the Red Bull was already closing in. With compromised handling and sudden discomfort, Wu Shi ran wide again, allowing Ricciardo to pass. Behind them, Verstappen tried to capitalize but was blocked by Kvyat—their cars made contact as Verstappen's front wing scraped Kvyat's rear wheel.
Wu Shi TR: "I can't hold him off anymore!"
Jonathan: "Prepare for a front wing change—you're still faster than the cars behind, hold on a few more laps."
Kvyat overtook on lap 50; without medium tires, Wu Shi would have lost position much earlier. Verstappen closed in excitedly on lap 51, but Wu Shi pitted on lap 52 to change his nose cone—a time-consuming process that dropped him to 13th place behind Bottas.
As he rejoined, race control announced an investigation into the collision between cars 59 and 3.
Falling out of the points zone hit hard, but Wu Shi pushed on—this wasn't a game to restart at will. His fresh medium tires still had life, and he began charging forward.
Ricciardo set a new fastest lap (1:26.508) on lap 52. On lap 53, Räikkönen—who'd planned to run to the end—pitted when his engine stalled, requiring a restart before rejoining in 17th.
At the front, Vettel and Rosberg battled with gaps fluctuating between 0.4–0.5 seconds. Hamilton lurked behind Rosberg, while Ricciardo—despite a damaged sidepod—stayed within a second of Hamilton. He was the only front-runner on medium tires.
On lap 54, race control ruled Wu Shi responsible for the collision, issuing a drive-through penalty.
Race Control: "Car 59 must serve a drive-through penalty for forcing car 3 off track."
Wu Shi: "Understood."
His headache was gone, but frustration burned—this was his first heavy price for overconfidence. Since achieving a near-telepathic connection with his car, he'd felt unbeatable, but the Hungaroring had taught him a harsh lesson: no driver can master every line or brake later than everyone else.
He served the penalty on lap 55, just as Räikkönen reported his issues were unresolved and he would likely retire. When Wu Shi exited, he passed Massa (who was pitting) and quickly overtook Nasr two laps later, moving to 13th.
Then came a stroke of luck: Bottas was penalized for speeding in the pits and overtaking under the safety car, dropping from 10th to 14th. Wu Shi moved up to 11th.
"This is small consolation for Wu Shi right now," Brother Bing said glumly.
"Why isn't Ricciardo's pace affected?" Brother Fei wondered.
"Just the sidepod—bodywork's peeling but stability is fine. Williams already had setup issues, so the front wing damage made things worse."
On lap 61, Sainz—slowing with car troubles since lap 54—dropped behind Wu Shi, who easily passed to rejoin the points in 10th.
Up front, Vettel held steady while Rosberg eased off to defend against Hamilton. Ricciardo waited for his chance, his light-fueled Red Bull surprisingly quick. Kvyat was 20 seconds back in 5th, with Verstappen 6th, Alonso 7th, Grosjean 8th, and Button 9th.
Wu Shi closed in on Button, who put up far stiffer resistance than the drivers before him. But with medium tires and a performance edge, Wu Shi used both DRS zones to pass on lap 63, moving to 9th.
On lap 64, Hamilton launched a bold attack on Rosberg. Using DRS on the straight, he made an extreme late dive to the inside. The two cars crossed paths—Rosberg pushed hard to the outside, forcing Hamilton over the kerbs. Hamilton's front wing endplate smashed into Rosberg's rear wheel, sending the wing flying and deflating Rosberg's tire.
Rosberg lost control, nearly hitting the barrier, and was quickly passed by Ricciardo. He managed to pit for new tires but fell to the back of the field. Hamilton continued with damaged front wing—with only five laps left, pitting was not an option.
The new order at the front: 1. Vettel, 2. Hamilton, 3. Ricciardo, 4. Kvyat, 5. Verstappen. Wu Shi was now 8th after passing Rosberg at the pit exit.
Wu Shi: "How did he end up here?!"
Jonathan: "Collision with Hamilton—his tire blew out."
Wu Shi felt for Rosberg but focused on Grosjean ahead. Even with a Mercedes engine, the Lotus couldn't match the Williams—Wu Shi passed him on lap 67 to take 7th. Alonso was 6 seconds ahead, and with only two laps left, closing the gap was impossible.
Race control announced final penalties—most for errors during the safety car period. Kvyat received a 10-second penalty for overtaking under yellow flags, costing him a podium finish despite passing Hamilton.
On the final lap, no more positions changed. Vettel crossed the line first, with Ricciardo second. Kvyat finished third on track but dropped to fourth after penalties, promoting Hamilton to third. Verstappen was fifth, Alonso sixth, Wu Shi seventh, Grosjean eighth, Rosberg ninth, and Button tenth.