Chapter 391: Chapter 185: Unexpected Event
After confirming that his car was on the tow truck, Qin Miao walked somewhat despondently towards the pit area with his helmet on.
The broadcaster even gave a close-up of Qin Miao’s back, which indeed looked quite desolate.
When he returned to the pit area, Qin Miao saw Barber and Mercedes team’s Chief Technical Officer, James Allison, waiting for him at the entrance.
Over the more than two months they’ve spent together, Barber has become more than just Qin Miao’s physical trainer and nutritionist; he is also serving as Qin Miao’s personal secretary and assistant.
During this period, Qin Miao spent more time with him than Qimeng, and their relationship is quite good. Naturally, after Qin Miao withdrew from the race due to mechanical failure, Barber was very concerned and ran over to check on Qin Miao’s emotional state.
The main reason the other person, James Allison, came over was also to comfort Qin Miao.
He is essentially the second-in-command under Toto at Mercedes team. At this moment, Toto truly couldn’t get away, so he sent Allison instead.
By coming over to wait for Qin Miao now, it’s a signal from the Mercedes team to Qin Miao that he wouldn’t lose his position as the team’s number 2 driver because of this race’s mishap.
Qin Miao forced a smile at the two of them and said, "Being my first time, I’m not quite sure of the process, what should I do after withdrawing from the race?"
Barber pursed his lips, came over, gave Qin Miao a hug, and said, "Go back to the hotel and have a nice meal, then take a hot bath, and sleep comfortably."
Qin Miao thought about it and found Barber’s suggestion quite good.
James Allison also came over, patted Qin Miao on the shoulder, and said, "That’s right, I also suggest you do that. Moreover, I have the authority to give you a day off, allowing you to report in Spain on Thursday afternoon. For now, go home, rest well for a while, and spend some time with your family."
"Thank you," Qin Miao nodded gratefully.
...
After a brief encounter with the two, Qin Miao returned to the team’s garage.
When the members of Qin Miao’s car crew saw him, they had somewhat guilty expressions on their faces.
After all, Qin Miao still had a chance to contest for the championship in this race; although that chance was slim, at worst he was set for a runner-up position.
But due to mechanical failure, he ultimately withdrew. This result was hard for Qin Miao to accept, and also for those who provided him with race car support.
Although Mercedes team follows a no-blame culture internally, they couldn’t shirk responsibility for the issues with Qin Miao’s car, so they were hesitant when they saw him.
Qin Miao himself was feeling very down at that moment and didn’t notice the abnormality in his car crew’s demeanor.
This is the difference between young drivers and experienced ones.
If it were an experienced driver, even though feeling down at that point, they would still be able to notice something off with their crew’s atmosphere and would say something to reassure them.
But young drivers, like Qin Miao now, are too overwhelmed to have the bandwidth to consider others.
After returning to the team garage, Toto pushed a chair to sit beside him in front of Qin Miao and said, "Sit."
Qin Miao took off his helmet and balaclava and sat down beside Toto somewhat dejectedly.
When Qin Miao sat down beside him, Toto, while keeping an eye on Hamilton’s data and the live broadcast, said, "Even though you withdrew from this race, the basic salary after the race will still be counted. I’ll take a loss and count your completion bonus as if you took a thirty-thousand second place."
Qin Miao: ???