"F1 driver Dominik Corvinus, at 19 years, 6 months, and 17 days old, officially begins his Formula 1 career," the commentator's voice echoed through the broadcast, filled with anticipation.
The green light at the end of the pit lane illuminated. Dominik engaged first gear, the clutch bite point sharp and aggressive.
"Dominik, switch to Long Run Mode, SOC 7. Get the tires up to temperature quickly," Gaëtan Jego instructed over the radio.
For Dominik's first official session, the team had chosen the C2 Medium compound (yellow wall). Since the Bahrain Grand Prix takes place at night, track temperatures would drop significantly for the race, reducing degradation. Therefore, Williams planned to save at least two sets of fresh C3 Softs (red wall) for Sunday, sacrificing some performance in the hot afternoon of FP1.
Dominik rolled down the pit lane, joining a queue of cars. Directly in front of him was the pink and blue Alpine of Esteban Ocon.
"Are they all releasing cars at once? Why is the traffic so bad in FP1?" Dominik asked, watching the heat haze shimmer off the Alpine's exhaust.
"Maintain distance," Gaëtan replied simply. "Let them clear."
In the back of the Williams garage, Yeji sat on a high stool, wearing a team headset over her team cap. She watched the wall of monitors. Because it was the Williams garage, half the screens were dedicated to the No. 45 car.
She watched the onboard camera feed, seeing Dominik's gloved hands adjust settings on the steering wheel. It looked incredibly complex.
Official photographers swarmed the pit exit, lenses trained on the two rookies: Dominik Corvinus in the Williams and Zhou Guanyu in the Alfa Romeo queued just behind him.
The cars filtered onto the Bahrain International Circuit. The 3 PM sun was blazing, baking the asphalt. Inside the cockpit, the temperature began to climb rapidly. Dominik could already feel the sweat trickling down his back.
"Please adjust Engine Mapping to Position 4," Gaëtan requested.
After a steady warm-up lap to bring the core tire temperature up, Dominik began his first timed lap.
"Traffic update," Gaëtan said. "You, Russell, Hamilton, Verstappen, and Perez are on Mediums. Everyone else is on Hards."
Dominik raised an eyebrow behind his visor. They put me in the same run plan as the champions? What do they take me for?
He crossed the line. The timer started.
He mashed the throttle. The FW44 surged down the main straight.
The car, set up with his preferred oversteer tendency, rotated beautifully through the complex Turns 1, 2, and 3. It felt eager, the nose biting into the apex while the rear danced slightly.
He opened DRS on the run down to Turn 4. Ahead, Charles Leclerc was on a slow warm-up lap. Dominik flashed past the Ferrari, the Williams screaming at 320 km/h.
Inside his helmet, Leclerc checked his mirrors. Is he hiding his pace? Or is that just the Williams drag reduction? This kid.
Dominik completed the lap.
1:36.875.
"Copy, Dominik," Gaëtan said. "Well done. Please begin the long-run simulation test."
Yeji didn't understand the lap times. She just saw Dominik's name sitting in P5 on the timing screen, sandwiched between a Red Bull and a Ferrari. She grabbed her phone and took a quick photo of the screen, feeling a strange surge of pride.
Dominik settled into a rhythm. Overall, not bad, he thought. The understeer in the low-speed corners is much better than testing.
"Caution. Give way," Gaëtan warned. "Ocon is on a flying lap behind you."
Dominik checked his mirrors. The Alpine was approaching fast on the main straight. Dominik lifted off and pulled to the right, yielding the racing line.
As the Alpine roared past, Dominik watched it closely. Sparks showered from the floor as the car bottomed out violently. Their porpoising is even worse than ours, he noted with a smirk.
CRACK.
Suddenly, the sidepod of Ocon's car exploded.
A large chunk of pink and blue carbon fiber, like a shattered porcelain plate, flew into the air, tumbling directly toward Dominik's cockpit.
Dominik flinched, ducking his head instinctively. The debris sailed just over his halo, missing his helmet by inches.
"Woah!" Dominik shouted. "He blew up! Debris on track!"
"Red Flag, Red Flag," Gaëtan called immediately. "Box this lap. Keep the speed delta positive."
Dominik slowed down, his heart rate spiking. In just ten minutes, the Alpine had rattled itself to pieces.
He returned to the pit lane. As the mechanics pushed the car back into the garage, Dominik jumped out to talk to the aero team about a minor front wing adjustment.
He looked up and saw Yeji. She looked pale, clearly frightened by the debris incident.
Dominik winked and gave her a thumbs up.
Yeji blinked, then smiled and gave a thumbs up back.
"Still optimistic," Dominik muttered, climbing back in as the session resumed.
He did a few more laps on the used Mediums, then the call came.
"Box, box. Pit stop practice."
Dominik entered the pit lane, engaged the limiter, and stopped precisely on his marks.
Twenty-one mechanics swarmed the car.
Whir-whir-thunk.
In 2.4 seconds, the four old tires were gone, and a brand new set of C3 Softs (red wall) were fitted.
Yeji, standing just a few meters away, dropped her jaw. She had never seen anything move that fast. It was like a choreographed dance of violence.
Dominik rolled out for a final glory run in the last 10 minutes.
He passed George Russell in the pit exit. Russell looked confused, shaking his head at his steering wheel. Dominik waved, but the Brit didn't see him.
"Is this the same car I drove in Sakhir last year?" Russell muttered to himself, struggling with the bouncing W13.
"SOC 2, Attack Mode activated," Gaëtan said. "One push lap."
Dominik took a deep breath. The Williams was now in maximum power mode.
He crossed the line.
Turn 1 (Schumacher Corner): He braked late, turning in aggressively. The soft tires bit hard.
Turns 2-3: Flat out. The car felt light.
Straight 2: DRS open. The speed climbed rapidly.
Turn 4: Williams' weakness. Dominik lifted early to manage the understeer, correcting the slide gently. He sacrificed speed here to save the rears for the final sector.
Turns 5-10: He kept it tidy, not pushing 100%, hiding the true limit of the car's lateral grip.
Exiting Turn 10, he unleashed everything.
Straight 3: DRS open. The Mercedes engine roared. The acceleration pinned him back.
Turn 11: Heavy braking. The G-force tried to rip his head off, but his neck held firm.
Turns 12-13: Third gear, partial throttle, managing the traction.
He flew through the final two corners, the car dancing on the edge of grip. He straightened the wheel and mashed the throttle.
He crossed the line.
1:34.810.
The timing screen refreshed. Dominik Corvinus jumped up the order, slotting into P6—splitting the Mercedes drivers and sitting ahead of Lewis Hamilton.
In the commentary box, David Croft's voice rose in disbelief.
"And look at that! The rookie, Dominik Corvinus, puts the Williams up into P6! That is a 1:34.8, faster than the seven-time World Champion, Lewis Hamilton!"
Martin Brundle chimed in, his tone impressed. "That is a serious lap, Crofty. We know the Williams is slippery in a straight line, but to wrestle that car around the twisting middle sector with that kind of pace? That shows immense confidence."
"And look at the gap to his teammate," Crofty added. "Alex Albon is down in P15 with a 1:35.9. Corvinus is over one full second faster than his teammate in the same machinery. That is a statement of intent if I've ever seen one!"
Dominik slowed down for his cool-down lap, listening to Gaëtan over the radio.
"P6, Dominik. P6. That was a mega lap. Box this lap."
Dominik smirked inside his helmet. "Copy. The car felt good. A bit loose in Turn 10, but we can fix that."
Back in the garage, Yeji stared at the screen, seeing Dominik's name in the top 10 next to names like Verstappen and Leclerc. She didn't understand the technical details, but she understood the reaction of the mechanics around her.
They were smiling. They were high-fiving.
The rookie wasn't just here to participate. He was here to compete.