No sooner had qualifying ended than a race steward approached Alex Sun with a notice requesting his presence for a meeting with FIA President Jean Todt, regarding the speeding violation under yellow flags.
Although he was relieved to learn that no points would be deducted from his Super Licence, the three-place grid penalty for the feature race still weighed heavily on him.
On the way to the office, Alex Sun was filled with frustration. In Formula 2, every fraction of a second matters. He had already missed Q3 and qualified only 11th; now, with an additional three-place grid drop for the feature race, the situation felt even more discouraging—though at least the penalty would not affect the sprint race.
Alex Sun knocked and entered the office. Jean Todt was standing by the window, gazing out at the circuit. When he noticed Alex Sun, he gestured for him to take a seat. The FIA President stood tall, his posture upright, his eyes calm and steady—far less severe than Alex Sun had imagined.
The documents on the desk detailed the infraction clearly, yet the look Jean Todt gave him carried more than judgment. There was a quiet sense of appraisal, even appreciation.
"I've been watching you since the Bahrain winter tests," Jean Todt said calmly. "Your rate of lap time improvement hasn't gone unnoticed in the paddock."
He tapped the penalty report lightly. "I've reviewed the footage. You were so focused on your lap that you overlooked a detail in the regulations. That's a common issue with young drivers."
"According to the rules, you'll drop three places on the grid for the feature race. There will be no Super Licence points deduction."
Jean Todt's tone grew firmer. "Rules are the foundation of this sport. But the reason I wanted to speak with you is because I see traces of Verstappen in you."
He recalled his decision in 2015 to approve Verstappen's entry into Formula 1 at just 17 years and 166 days old. "At the time, the paddock was full of doubt. But I saw his hunger for speed and his fearless drive. I see the same qualities in you now. Talent shouldn't be restrained—but it must respect the rules. My expectations for you are as high as they were for Verstappen back then."
After taking a seat, Jean Todt continued, "F2 is the gateway to F1, but fewer than twenty percent truly manage to establish themselves. Verstappen's success wasn't built on speed alone—it required resilience."
"Your qualifying lap here in Bahrain set the highest cornering speed ever recorded by an F2 car through Turn 10—90 kilometers per hour. I've seen the telemetry. That isn't just raw speed; it's precise control of both car and circuit. You're already ahead of many drivers at the same stage. Don't let a small mistake like this overshadow your potential."
He stood and gestured toward a display of Formula 1 team emblems. "Being able to join Prema means you already have strong backing. That will be a crucial foundation for your future in F1."
"You also need to learn how to understand setup changes, read data, and work seamlessly with your team. These abilities will allow you to go further—and faster—in the paddock."
"Formula 1 doesn't lack fast drivers," Jean Todt concluded, his gaze sharp and unwavering. "What it lacks are drivers who combine talent, respect for the rules, and leadership. I hope to see you in the paddock, carving out your own path."
As someone who knew the future, Alex Sun was fully aware of Verstappen's eventual peak—this very year, he would claim his first WDC. That Jean Todt could already see such potential and draw a comparison left Alex Sun deeply shaken.
In his previous life, he had been nothing more than an ordinary spectator, someone who could only look up at the racetrack from afar. Yet now, he was receiving personal recognition from the FIA President himself. His frustration vanished, replaced by restrained excitement and firm resolve.
Alex Sun took a deep breath and spoke steadily. "Mr. President, I understand. Your recognition means a great deal to me. This penalty is a lesson I'll remember. I'll give everything to win the F2 championship, build my strength, and earn my place in Formula 1—so I won't disappoint your judgment."
Jean Todt smiled, nodded, and handed him the official decision. "Go prepare for Saturday's sprint race. The penalty only applies to the feature race. This is your chance to prove yourself. Formula 1's door is always open to drivers with true ability."
Alex Sun accepted the document and left the office. The Bahrain circuit sat on the edge of the city, the night sky above it scattered with stars.
...
Back at Prema's pit bay, his race engineer Mark approached him, giving his shoulder a reassuring pat. His expression was serious, but concern showed through. "I've already heard about the penalty. Don't dwell on it too much. The 2021 F2 season has eight rounds and twenty-four races—one grid drop won't take you down."
They moved to a quiet corner of the pit lane rest area. Mark pulled over two folding chairs and sat down, taking a track data analysis sheet from his folder. "I wanted to talk to you about the lesson you still need to learn."
"In F2—just like in F1—winning is never only about raw speed."
He pointed to the pit stop window analysis on the sheet. "Sunday's feature race has a mandatory pit stop. You have to change tyres at least once."
"Look ahead to Monaco this year. Strategy can decide everything there. If a Safety Car window opens, you can win or lose the race on that call alone."
Mark drew two curves on the paper—one for Silverstone's tyre wear rate, the other for Monza's.
"High-speed circuits demand very different strategies. Silverstone's fast, flowing complexes—like the Becketts and Brooklands sequences—subject tyres to sustained lateral loads. Temperatures rise fast, and medium tyres barely last fifteen laps."
"On circuits like that, you have to pit early and switch to hard tyres, relying on durability to survive the long final stint."
"Monza, on the other hand, is a straight-line monster. Most of the lap is full throttle, with few corners and mostly low-speed ones. Lateral wear is minimal; tyres take mainly longitudinal load."
"There, hard tyres can easily go thirty laps. A late stop works better, using an undercut-style window to take advantage of rivals who pit early and lose lap time."
Mark's tone grew more serious. "More important than strategy is pit stop coordination. You must stop the car precisely on the laser positioning mark—no more than five centimeters off. The 2021 F2 cars all use this system so mechanics don't need to adjust manually."
"That accuracy alone can save the crew at least three-tenths of a second."
"After stopping, remember two things. First, follow instructions and hold the fuel meter reset button so the data syncs with the pit wall. Second, keep light pressure on the brake pedal—don't let the car roll. If it does, the jack and wheel guns can't line up properly."
"At last year's Bahrain feature race, our pit stop was one-tenth slower than UNI-Virtuosi's. The review showed the car was parked three centimeters off. That tiny misalignment cost the left-rear wheel gun precious time—and those tenths can be half a car length on track."
"Beyond pit execution, you also need to understand core strategy concepts—like the overcut."
Mark set down his pen and looked straight at Alex Sun. "When you're stuck behind slower traffic and can't pass, you pit two or three laps earlier than your rival. Fresh tyres give you better grip and less degradation, letting you run faster laps."
"By the time your rival pits later, you've already jumped them on lap time."
He continued, grounding it in data. "At Bahrain, soft tyres drop off sharply after lap twelve—lap times fall by eight-tenths to a full second. If your rival pits on lap fifteen and you pit on lap twelve, those three fast laps on fresh tyres are enough to build a decisive gap."
"Finally—TR communication," Mark said firmly. "In practice, you need to report everything: brake feel, steering play, where grip starts to fall away."
"In the race, listen constantly—rivals' lap times, tyre life, Safety Car status."
"In qualifying, time is limited, so focus on brake bias and tyre choice. In the race, conditions change fast—dirt, oil, evolving grip—and all of that has to go through TR in real time."
Alex Sun listened intently, gripping the analysis sheet in his hands.
In his previous life, he had followed motorsport closely and spent countless hours on simulators. But a simulator was still just a simulator. There, he only needed to focus on lap times and lines. Pit strategy and team coordination were simplified—or automated entirely.
Only now, on a real circuit, did he realize how blurred his understanding had been. He'd assumed that driving fast, as he did in simulations, was enough.
He had never truly considered that in real racing, the details simulators gloss over—pit stops, strategy, communication—are just as decisive.
The realization hit him all at once. Looking up, his eyes filled with clarity and gratitude. "Mark, thank you. I've been applying simulator logic to real races without realizing how different they are. These real-world details—I really need to catch up."
"Good," Mark said, standing and patting his shoulder. "As long as you understand."
"For the 2021 season, only the top ten from qualifying are reversed for Sprint Race One. You finished 11th in Q2, so you'll start 11th."
"That year was unusual—there were two sprint races. The first reversed the top ten from qualifying; the second reversed the top ten from the first sprint's results."
"This is a perfect chance to practice everything we just talked about."
"And remember—the Bahrain sprint race is only 23 laps. The pace is intense, reactions need to be sharp, and strategy execution has to be clean. Drive well. Don't waste that car."
Watching Mark walk away, Alex Sun felt warmth spread through his chest. He knew he wasn't fighting alone.
...
That night, back at the hotel, sleep refused to come.
He opened his laptop and replayed the onboard footage from qualifying, carefully comparing his telemetry to that of pole-sitter Guanyu Zhou.
Early the next morning, Alex Sun headed to the drivers' gym by the circuit for his usual pre-race training.
Neck resistance drills. Core stability work. Every movement precise. An F2 driver's neck endures up to 5G—physical conditioning was his second engine.
After finishing, he rested while observing the other drivers. Then he spotted a familiar figure.
It was Guanyu Zhou—the only Chinese driver in F2, and one of the reasons Alex Sun had followed Formula 1 so closely in his previous life.
He approached a little shyly. "Hey, Guanyu Zhou. I'm Alex Sun, from Prema."
Guanyu Zhou removed his headphones and smiled. "I know you—the guy who knocked three seconds off his lap time."
Alex Sun hesitated, then spoke honestly. "I wanted to ask you something. I don't have much experience handling unexpected situations on track. You've been in F2 for years—how do you deal with them?"
Guanyu Zhou smiled and gestured to the lounge area. "I'm done training for today. Let's sit and talk."
Seated together, Guanyu Zhou opened a sports drink and began to reminisce.
"The 2019 F2 race at Spa really stuck with me. Halfway through, it started raining. Grip dropped instantly, visibility was terrible."
"My first reaction wasn't panic. I immediately asked the engineers over TR which sections were flooded and where the dry line still existed."
"They gave me precise information. I adjusted my lines—lifting earlier on entry, feeding in throttle smoothly on exit. I went from eighth to second."
His eyes gleamed with memory. "That race taught me something important. A driver is never alone. TR is your third eye."
He paused, then added, "Another kind of unexpected situation is other drivers' accidents."
"In the 2020 F2 Bahrain feature race, the car ahead overdid it through Turn 10—a blind downhill corner. Instant oversteer. The rear snapped out."
"I always watch the car ahead closely. The moment I saw that posture, I knew he was losing it. I lifted early and moved wide—that's how I avoided getting collected."
"On track, you can't just focus on your own line. You need to watch at least five cars around you."
Guanyu Zhou patted Alex Sun's shoulder. "Their braking rhythm, line changes, stability—all of it helps you anticipate danger. That's experience. And it's a habit you have to build."
Alex Sun listened with complete focus, his notebook filling with notes. He closed it and said sincerely, "Guanyu, thanks. This helps more than you know. Would you mind sharing your number? I might have more questions down the line."
Guanyu smiled and took out his phone. "Sure. We're in the same paddock—helping each other is normal."
After exchanging contacts, Guanyu Zhou left to attend to other matters.
Alex Sun remained seated, staring at his contact list, strength welling up inside him. Then a clear notification echoed in his mind:
[System: Knowledge Transfer Accepted. Emergency Reaction +3]
[Emergency Reaction 35 (37, Bahrain Circuit Elite Track Proficiency +5% to all attributes)]
Alex Sun took a deep breath and clenched his fist. Standing up, he looked out toward the circuit.
Saturday's sprint race was coming.
And this time, he would give everything he had.