"There are major problems with Chen Xiangbei's pit crew numbers. During both the practice and qualifying sessions, the footage showed tire changes without even the most basic pit crew teams being fully equipped. The overall time spent exceeded one minute."

"I believe his strategy of starting with medium tires is a passive choice made out of necessity, as the pit crew size cannot support the time demands of a single stop."

Hong Kong commentator Luo Feng shared his speculation, noting that Chen Xiangbei's meteoric rise was too rapid, and his professional background information was scant.

Even the media industry couldn't quickly figure out how he is connected with Huasi Sports, Honda's Super Dream Team, and the Brown GP Team.

Who exactly is the real source of funds and technical support behind Chen Xiangbei?

But the issue is, aside from the defunct Huasi Sports, neither Super Dream Team with its "Reincarnation of the Filthy Earth" project nor the Brown GP Team, standing firm in F1, would have any problem supporting an F3 race with their resources and technology.

Chen Xiangbei might seem to be backed by the dual teams from the Honda camp, yet in reality, he's struggling more than even small participating teams. Luo Feng cannot quite make sense of this.

It's not only Hong Kong's commentator Luo Feng who is puzzled. The president of Eastern Shipping, Dong Licheng, also serving as the title sponsor of the Grand Prix, watching from the VIP box, wondered the same.

When he heard the commentary about Chen Xiangbei's situation on FM, he turned to his son and asked, "Wen Xu, doesn't Chen Xiangbei have any team resources to support him?"

The young man named "Wen Xu" is the same individual who drove the Audi R8 in the street race on Australia's night, the brother of Dong Yuanxi.

Influenced by Dong Yuanxi, he had been paying attention to Chen Xiangbei early on and regarded him as his idol. He was far more familiar with the entire career journey of Chen Xiangbei than the average person.

"As far as I know, Xiangbei has signed a self-financed contract with the Super Dream Team, personally covering the costs of the pit crew and race fees. As for the Brawn GP Team's test driver contract, the details are currently unknown, and it doesn't seem to have many support clauses."

"The sponsors on Xiangbei's racing suit are just a few beauty salons, modification shops, and hot pot restaurants, indicating a clear shortage of funding and probably unable to sustain a normal pit crew team operation."

Faced with his father's questions, Dong Wenxu answered very "obediently," devoid of the spoiled demeanor he exhibited during the street races.

After hearing his son's response, Dong Licheng nodded.

He then asked, "Is Yuanxi close with him?"

Just now, when Chen Xiangbei walked from the pit lane to the paddock, Dong Licheng noticed his daughter's figure among the team members.

He knew his daughter and Chen Xiangbei were classmates but didn't expect Dong Yuanxi to agree to go to the paddock to watch the race. For a moment, Dong Licheng didn't know what to say. Why did it seem that both his children were close to this young man?

"I don't know."

Dong Wenxu gave a straightforward answer.

It's best not to get involved before understanding the old man's intentions and thoughts!

Dong Licheng didn't say much more about it, and instead focused on the cars as they completed their warm-up laps.

Twenty cars resumed their positions on the starting grid, and the roar of engines revving up rose and fell in waves.

After being baked under the sun for most of the day, the track temperature at the East Bay Circuit reached 42°C, together with the 6.2-kilometer track length, almost double what Chen Xiangbei had raced in the UK's Donington Park Circuit earlier.

This meant that the soft tires of other drivers had perfectly reached their optimal operating temperature, at the peak of their grip.

"Xiangbei-kun, pay attention to the start torque, the medium tire temperature is a bit off."

Just as they were about to start, a reminder from Sawano Hiroyuki came through Chen Xiangbei's earpiece.

"What do you mean?"

"The internal tire pressure sensors show it has reached operating temperature, but the external rubber melting hasn't met the standard."

Hearing Sawano Hiroyuki's response, the words "stone tires" instantly flashed through Chen Xiangbei's mind.

In the decades-long history of Formula racing, tire suppliers have always played a pivotal role. The world-class brands that could be named, like Michelin, Bridgestone, Pirelli, and others, have all provided tire support for F1 events.

Each tire supplier uses different technologies and formulas, naturally leading to variations in tire performance.

The most noticeable difference is often in "softness."

Race tires are different from civilian tires; the focus isn't necessarily on longevity and wear resistance. In contrast, more emphasis is placed on heating and grip.

However, tire suppliers sponsor F1 events to establish brand awareness, thereby expanding the market share of their civilian tire products. Hence, longevity and wear resistance become crucial factors.

Especially since the famous "Tyre Gate" incident in F1 2005, where Michelin's materials were softer, dramatically increasing blowout rates and endangering driver safety, leading to seven teams boycotting the United States Grand Prix.

Thus, tire suppliers, while learning from past lessons on one hand and aiming for market share on the other, have increasingly hardened material formulas, resulting in these slow-melting "stone tires."

Some new fans aware of the "stone tire" characteristics might think tougher tires with better wear resistance aren't necessarily bad, as they mean longer life without needing a pit stop, thus saving pit stop time.

In fact, the tire lifespan in Formula racing is not only about the rubber's wear resistance but also the air temperature inside the tire. If the internal temperature is overheated, it considerably increases the risk of a blowout!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.