ABT ### Chapter 91: The Necessary Conditions to Win the Race

Motorsports started relatively late in China, so people usually watch races through television broadcasts. Although this was just a kart race, it drew significant attention because of Alonso’s presence. It was a rare opportunity to watch the race king up close, so the Pushi International Circuit was already packed with more than ten thousand spectators.

In the broadcast center at the circuit, commentators Hu Shuo and guest Wang Lang were chatting in front of the camera. Hu Shuo was an experienced racing commentator, but due to the lack of domestic race broadcasts, he wasn’t very well-known. Wang Lang, a driver who had participated in the Asian Rally Championship, was there to provide technical analysis.

“Alright, we can see that the speed of each car has picked up, and the drivers are itching to find overtaking opportunities!” Hu Shuo announced.

“Alonso is currently trailing. We learned before the race that he’s driving a twin-cylinder, four-stroke kart. Such a car has no advantage in straight-line acceleration. But Alonso is Alonso, and as we all know, racing is about overall speed. Hopefully, Alonso can leverage his skills to regain the advantage in the corners. Wang Lang, as a professional driver, how would you handle the current situation?”

“Well, I haven’t driven a kart before, but in this situation, I would have to find opportunities in the corners, just as you said. After all, racing is about overall speed; both straightaways and corners are equally important.”

“Alright, let’s return to the race. The drivers are now breaking through the current formation. Car number 22 and car number 19 are already battling for position. They are about to enter the first corner; let’s see if there are any opportunities. Huh? What’s car number 6 doing? He’s too close to the inside line, and without the right angle, he can’t maintain his speed! The steering angle isn’t enough. Oh no, he’s lost control!”

On the track, Li Fanyu’s car number 6 skidded, and blue smoke rose from the rear. The drivers behind him thought he had lost control due to poor line choice and quickly prepared to dodge.

But to their surprise, car number 6 didn’t skid off the track despite its awkward posture. Instead, it maintained a perfect angle with the inside of the track, accompanied by tire screeching and dust, and drifted through the corner.

Moreover, after completing the drift, Li Fanyu’s car maintained a considerable speed, allowing him to overtake the car in front and speed away, showcasing a spectacular skill!

Whether in the stands or the broadcast room, everyone gasped in astonishment—drifting through the corner!

Drifting is essentially a state of vehicle loss of control, so it’s rarely seen in professional races. A racer must ensure that the vehicle is under control at all times. However, drifting is also a highly entertaining way to take corners, which is why it’s so popular in stunt driving and action movies—for the thrill!

Seeing this in an official race, the audience went wild.

“Amazing!”

“Wow, karts can drift too? I thought only sports cars could do that!”

“Any rear-wheel-drive car can drift, but I’ve never seen it in a race! Cool!”

“Do it again, number 6! Another one!”

In the broadcast room, Hu Shuo calmed down and asked, “Uh… this cornering technique of driver number 6 is quite unorthodox. Wang Lang, what do you think?”

Wang Lang pursed his lips. “Although that drift was very entertaining, I don’t think highly of driver number 6. Races are about the car’s performance, the driver’s learned and accumulated experience, and techniques. Success is built on the meticulous selection of each shift point, every route calculation, and every brake and throttle timing. Bit by bit, one builds an advantage to achieve victory. This showy behavior is not what a real driver needs. It’s like street basketball—flashy moves don’t hold up in the NBA; they’re just minor tricks.”

Hu Shuo nodded. “Alright, thank you, Wang Lang. I just checked the data. Driver number 6, Li Fanyu, is the oldest driver in this race besides Alonso, at twenty-one years old. He just obtained his national A-grade karting license a few days ago. Regardless, his cornering style is quite a sight to behold. Let’s continue to follow the race. Wow, Alonso has already overtaken three drivers while we were focused on the drift. How did he manage to catch up?”

Despite the increasing distance between the cars, they were still quite close together. Li Fanyu took a moment to glance back and saw that Alonso, with his black and red helmet, had made significant progress, and car number 16 was closely trailing him.

Could this be the power of the race king? Even with a car that lacked acceleration and significant weight disadvantage, he could still overtake!

Damn, Li Fanyu frowned. No time to think, he quickly refocused on the track—the second corner was approaching.

This was a wide U-turn. Li Fanyu adjusted his posture, again applying throttle, brake, and counter-steering. But because of the wide angle, he only drifted halfway. Nevertheless, it still drew cheers from the stands.

In the broadcast room, Hu Shuo and Wang Lang’s attention was entirely on Alonso.

“Now entering the second corner, the camera is on Alonso. He’s a hundred meters away from the corner, with car number 7 tightly ahead. Let’s see if he can overtake. Huh? Strange, Alonso is taking the outside line. What’s the reasoning behind this, Wang Lang?”

“...” Wang Lang hesitated. As a rally driver, track racing required different techniques, so he was unsure at first.

But as Alonso steered and smoothly overtook the car ahead with stable speed, Wang Lang slapped his thigh in admiration, “I get it!”

Hu Shuo was startled, “What do you understand? Tell the audience.”

“He’s using the angle! By taking the outside line, he can use the smallest steering angle to get through the corner. To put it simply, taking the inside or middle requires turning the wheel a full circle. But by taking the outside line, with enough space on the track, he only needs to turn half a circle! And, with a smaller steering angle, it’s easier to maintain the car’s posture, so he doesn’t need to slow down! By maintaining a steady speed through the corner, he overtook car number 7, which had to decelerate and then accelerate after the corner! Beautiful, just beautiful!”

Hu Shuo replayed the corner maneuver in his mind; Alonso navigated the corner like a second hand on a clock, using a beautiful angle and speed to overtake the minute hand of car number 7. Combined with Wang Lang’s analysis, it was truly fascinating.

“The race king is indeed the race king! Using such a method to compensate for disadvantages is truly impressive! I originally thought this was just an exhibition race. Alonso chose that car for entertainment, but now it’s clear he still desires victory. From this perspective, this race is no less thrilling than an F1 race!”

Wang Lang smacked his lips and finally said, “Having a fast car can bring you close to victory. But to grasp victory, you need something more.”

Hu Shuo pressed, “Oh? What exactly is that?”

Watching Alonso steadily closing the gap with the car in front, Wang Lang’s eyes gleamed. “Experience, skill, and the determination to win!”


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