Driver and engineer communication between Haas and Mr. Ruben flowed coherently and smoothly through the radio.
Mr. Ruben relayed the order as directed by the Team Principals, and Haas responded positively, his cheerful tone catching Luca off guard.
Not that Luca had expected Haas to oppose the Tiered Pursuit strategy—it was just surprising how naturally and willingly Haas embraced it. He even radioed Luca directly to coordinate better and decide the perfect moment for the switch.
**Oi, Luca? Okay, okay. No problem** Haas said over the radio.
A second later, the one-way transmitter clicked on. **Your call, mate**
"Turn 3," Luca replied, without hesitation, and Haas agreed. Luca wanted to make the switch as swiftly as possible.
Recalling their drills, Luca and Haas smoothly aligned their cars. Luca's machine carried more momentum, closing in quickly as Haas' car was still settling back into rhythm after exiting the pits.
Mr. Grant observed intently from the paddock as Luca closed the gap, now practically in touching distance of Haas' gearbox.
This switch was more akin to a deliberate handover than a relinquishment of position—though, truthfully, Luca would have overtaken Haas and his cold-tired car on this lap anyway.
As they approached Turn 3, Haas maintained steady control, neither slowing down nor breaking momentum, but deliberately leaving enough inside space. Luca pounced on the opportunity like a predator, diving into the gap Haas provided.
Passing him cleanly, Luca glanced over, and both teammates exchanged purposeful nods, a silent acknowledgment of their flawless teamwork.
Haas then tucked back in behind Luca, blocking any attempt from the driver in 16th to try anything funny.
That was one seamless execution of the Tiered Pursuit strategy, one Luca couldn't even remember executing flawlessly with Ansel during training. Yet, he and Haas had danced with their Dallaras on Circuit du Soleil as if this wasn't the first time.
Maybe he and Ansel didn't really adapt to the Tiered Pursuit strategy. Luca began to think about it.
During their drills, unlike Ansel, Haas had never displayed signs of stoicism, detachment, or silence. Perhaps, to make such a strategy work, it wasn't just about physicality—mentality played a crucial role too.
"...and now we're focusing on the middle of the pack! Look at this—Luca Rennick has climbed up to P14! What an incredible moment at Turn 3! Trampos Racing clearly has a strategy in play, and it's working to perfection. Erik Haas just made a brilliant tactical decision, giving way to let the better driver push ahead. What a show of teamwork!"
"WOOOOHH!" The Trampos crowd erupted in cheers, their voices brimming with energy. They hadn't traveled all the way to France for nothing!
[Analyzing Dallara (F2 04) and host's distance from 13th Position]
[You are 2 seconds away, host.]
Luca spotted the Dallara ahead, its number 13 hovering clearly above it.
The single-seater was easy to identify due to the driver's hesitant and uncertain driving style.
This was the same driver who had exited the pits alongside Haas earlier. Now, typical of soft tires, the vehicle still required at least two more kilometers to generate the heat necessary for effective driving—especially under these wet conditions.
This would be an easy push up the leaderboard for Luca. He shifted his focus momentarily to the complete real-time information displayed on his system screen, analyzing the functionality of his chassis and tires.
[DATA DISPLAYED IN REAL TIME:
-Operational Status: 65% (Fair)
-Breathing: Calm & Steady
-Distance covered: 115500m
Sixty-five percent was a figure to be concerned about, and the entire Trampos crew, including Luca, knew it. Similar stats were displayed in the telemetry room, leaving no doubt about the situation.
From past experience, Luca understood that this 65% would last longer than higher values above it. This gave him roughly five to seven laps before he would need to consider another pit stop.
With that in mind, he resolved to push as hard as possible, starting with the driver ahead, who had barely managed to navigate Turn 5's treacherous steep.
Creston RTC—one of the newest F2 teams on the grid. It was surprising to see their driver holding P13, especially when teams of a similar level, like OLAC, had their drivers lagging far behind.
A rush of overconfidence surged through Luca as he locked onto his target, his rear wings cutting cleanly through the wet asphalt.
Approaching Turn 5, Luca executed it with far more precision and skill than the driver ahead, closing the gap to less than a second as they approached Turn 6's apex.
[400m Cliff Straightaway ahead]
**Be careful down the Drop. You're less than a second behind, the spray would blind you**
Luca's system chimed just in time to alert him, but he hadn't realized they were already nearing the treacherous slope straight. The decision came late, and now he was caught between two choices: drop back and let the rival ahead make it midway down before starting his own descent, or stick close and risk disaster.
If he followed too closely—gearbox to front wing—the spray would obscure his vision completely, increasing the chance of sliding off the track like Max had earlier.
Max had been lucky to rejoin on another section of the circuit; Luca doubted he'd be as fortunate if the same happened to him.
But losing momentum here was not an option.
Luca tightened his grip on the wheel, his instincts and training kicking in. He trusted his Attributes and his finely honed skills to navigate the steep slope and emerge safely at the exit. It was a gamble, but one he was willing to take.
If he could handle the descent cleanly and maintain control, the exit speed would give him the edge to overtake his rival before they even realized what had happened.
With determination, Luca applied brakes as necessary, gauging his brake bias to the system's recommendation to prevent any unnecessary loss of speed.
The Creston driver reached atop and began his descent in the same jackleg manner his driving had been ever since.
Luca followed and let go of his controls, embracing the gforce that accompanied the perilous descent.
[System detects loss of speed control.]
[Host is involuntarily moving at 310 km/h.]
[Host hasn't unlocked Skills to adapt to wet weather conditions]
"Not bad," Luca muttered under his breath, barely able to exhale as he tackled the 0.8-second descent.
The spray wasn't as blinding as he'd expected. In fact, he noticed it had been gradually reducing with each lap ever since the rain had started to ease, and the conditions were improving.
The sheer speed and heat generated by the single-seaters and their tires were working like makeshift dryers, evaporating the rainwater accumulating on the asphalt. With the rain's intensity waning, the track was drying quicker than it might have under the heavier downpour.
A very good decision he made earlier not to drop back. Now, he finished his descent with ease and gripped control of his wheel, adjusting the necessities.
[Speed Control Unstable]
[Traction slightly Detected]
[You are moving at high speeds]
Something happened at the front, the commentary yelling, but Luca needed to focus on his car, now that his speed was still slightly not under control.
He exited the foot of the drop safely, swerving into Turn 7 right behind the Creston driver.
Luca quickly analyzed the driver's car and his speed, discovering his own was far higher than the drivers!
Damnit! Luca cursed, barely in control as he drifted to the opposite side to kill the momentum, thereby regulating the speed.
[Calculating host drift exit...]
[... successfully calculated]
Luca almost made a donut!
During wet conditions, two distinct challenges arose when dealing with a damp track.
The first scenario occurred when water pooled on the track surface, creating sprays that reduced visibility. In such conditions, cars were naturally slowed down, their aerodynamics slightly impacted, and the tires cooled directly by the water.
The second scenario, however, was far more treacherous—the track remained wet but lacked pooling water, with the asphalt glistening in a slick, reflective sheen. This was the situation Luca now faced.
This type of wet surface was notorious for causing traction loss, and its deceptive slickness often led to overspeeding, as the reduced resistance could make it feel like the car's speed was amplified. Moreover, it compromised downforce efficiency, making control even more precarious.
Luca would have much preferred being taken out of the race by another driver rather than the humiliation of sliding off the track entirely on his own.
His thoughts raced as his team engineers frantically shouted instructions over the radio—instructions that he needed DOWNFORCE to execute! Perhaps, the crowd was roaring about him after all.
He saw the Creston driver's car at the bottleneck of Turn 8.
Luca had his own tires still donuting through the wet track. A plume of smoke billowed around it, merging with the drizzle, creating a hazy threat that was sliding dangerously to the Creston driver's direction.
Luca then edged the side of his car to fully veer to his rival's direction. He could see the panic in the driver's helmeted face as he approached him from side to side.
With a soft frame touch, Luca used his rival as a pillow to regain control of his car.
It was as if all his problems were a virus and he just handed it over to the Creston driver.
"WOOOOHH!" the crowd was really roaring for what was going on in Luca's sector.
Luca's single-seater just nudged another driver's car and the Creston driver spun off the track!
[Speed Control Detected]
"...at the middle of the pack, LUCA RENNICK HAS JUST PULLED OFF AN ABSOLUTE STUNNER! THERE GOES JOHN ROBERTS!"
The poor Creston driver stopped right in the middle of the soaked grass, tires spinning over wet curbs as well as he tried to run back into the asphalt.
Sadly, the grass was too soaked for that, the earth wet, moisty and tillable.
"...was that a deliberate contact?! Somehow, Luca Rennick comes out unharmed!"
[Distributing Attained Point to Attributes involved...]
[Agility and Intelligence are yet to reach level-up threshold]
[Slipsense & Rainborne Skill Accumulating 4/6]
Luca was now in 13th position, having secured 4 out of the 6 points needed to unlock the Slipsense and Rainborne skills. But at what cost? The cost of another driver's DNF.
As he sped down the straight past Turn 8's exit, Luca stole a glance in his mirrors, catching a fleeting sight of John Roberts' stranded car.
He felt a pang of guilt but consoled himself with the thought that he had made the best decision to save his race.
Luca believed that was a harmless nudge, and if John was a good enough driver, he could have endured it.
However, that verdict was not in Luca's place to say.
His chest tightened as Mr. Ruben's voice crackled through the radio, delivering words that made his stomach drop.
**Luca, race control is reviewing the incident**
A penalty at this stage—when he was laser-focused on climbing to the top of the leaderboard—would be catastrophic for him in this French Grand Prix.