Chapter Twenty One: South Korea

At the stop over in Hong Kong, Jeff reflected on the events of the last two races. On the surface it was pretty good. Two consecutive 1-2 finishes had brought them closer to the Canox team who had two bad races only scoring minor points.

Of course it had to be said that one of those races was because of Devon driving slowly over the line after the first Safety Car restart an action that resulted in a warning and a reprimand from the FIA. Both Canox's had been affected, Lukas finishing 5th and Oscar in 7th.

The return to South Korea following a year's absence was slightly bittersweet for another reason. Last time, Lukas had won his first Grand Prix at the venue when Devon had spun out. In an almost carbon copy of what had happened in Germany earlier this year, Lukas had tried to build a gap so he could retain his 2nd position but this put him in Devon's mirrors and under pressure he had spun off with 15 laps to go.

The mood in the Audi pit afterwards was like being at a wake. And it didn't take Jeff long to realise this was because the 'wrong driver' had won the race. Lukas had been called into Brian's office shortly after his press commitments to have a chat. What transpired Jeff never quite knew but the aftermath was Devon winning every race for the remainder of Lukas's time with the team

And then had come his firing after his spin in qualifying at Spa Francorchamps. Which Jeff had found out was actually due to a glitch in the differential which had triggered as he left the Bus Stop Chicane and spun him into the wall

Knowing what Jeff knew now about Devon, it had been clear that this incident had just been used as an excuse to get rid of him, with the convenient smokescreen of 'under performing' being used as a justification for the decision.

And all this because Lukas had beaten Devon to a World Karting title when they were eight years old. Lukas would go onto win two more, but Devon had been so upset by his defeat he never entered another, even though he could and should have won just as many

Jeff heard the announcement of his flight and went to his gate

The South Korean F1 circuit at Yeongham had completed its city surrounding the circuit. This meant all the drivers and team personnel could stay in a nearby hotel on the grounds and simply walk into the paddock.

The plan for the weekend was as it had been for the previous two to secure another 1-2 finish with Devon on top. Jeff knew that he would also be gunning for another Grand Chelem having failed to do so at the last round when (uniquely) the two Aston Martin drivers had taken the fastest lap by setting the same time on Lap 59

Before he had the chance to do that however they had to qualify well. And it was no surprise to anyone they got their customary front row slot, Devon taking the first step to the Grand Chelem by securing Pole Position. Lukas was 4th, and Oscar in 7th, both McLarens, the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz and the Williams of Robert Kubica qualifying between them

At the start the two Audi's streaked away and Lukas held station behind Lewis Hamilton. Oscar managed to gain a couple of places to stay in fourth behind his teammate.

Robert Kubica though was flying and over the course of a few laps overtook several cars to lie second behind Devon, albeit 19 seconds back

The first round of pit stops took place and everything went well until Aiden suffered an engine failure down the main straight. Jeff should have felt something, anything from this event but he didn't. It was just as well then that this temporary return to the Audi team was just that. Temporary

Lukas was having quite a ding dong battle with Robert. It was certainly a high quality encounter as they were scrapping really closely, overtaking each other at the exit of Turn 3 twice in ten laps. Oscar was behind this battle enjoying the ringside seat

After the second round of pit stops Lukas had got himself ahead and only Devon was ahead of him. He could have turned his engine down but Robert was breathing down his neck again. Finally on Lap 53 he overtook Lukas once more and not wanting to fight and risk his car, the championship leader settled for 3rd. Oscar finished behind him in 4th with Lewis Hamilton leading Carlos Sainz home

Devon got his grand chelem, winning the race some 30 seconds behind Robert in 2nd place. The championship situation was now very tight going into the final two races. In the Driver's the gap was now seven points (95-88) and in the Constructors there was a five point gap between Canox and Audi (127-122)

Aiden had taken the opportunity to point out that had his team let him win the Malaysia and Italian GP's they could be champions at the next round and Jeff whilst he disagreed at the way he put his point across, had to concede that he was right

It was also true that Devon could be champion already if he hadn't made two race ending errors that had given Lukas two crucial wins

But this wasn't a game of if's and but's. They could still win, but they would need to keep winning and time was running out. Jeff was also acutely aware that their title rivals had an update for Brazil. They weren't giving up just yet

Last edited by reptongeek (February 8, 2023 4:09 pm)

Chapter Twenty Two: The Threshold Is The Place To Pause

Lukas stood up on the rostrum gathering his thoughts. Finally he put the microphone to his mouth and began to speak

'A year ago today, I arrived at this team and met you all for the first time' he told them 'I was looking for a fresh start and a new beginning, following my firing from my previous team, for a crash I know now wasn't my fault. And I found what I was looking for in the Canox team.'

He paused, then continued

'This has been an incredible year for all of us. We've all achieved things this year, we could only have dreamed about last October. In Brazil we could win two world championships. And that is all down to everyone of you. Irrespective of what will happen at the final round of the season, you should all be very proud of what you have achieved this year, so thank you very much.'

There was a roar of claps and then Oscar took the stage. Whilst he wasn't blind to the fact that the season hadn't gone quite his way, he was equally complementary.

After the meeting, Lukas went outside for some fresh air. He had some thinking to do. Devon had been posting on social media and none of it was particularly nice.

His championship rival had blasted him for being 'the worst team-mate he'd ever had and if he won the world championship, it would be a travesty of the sport'

'He has no pole positions, no fastest laps and he won't have led the most laps either' the post continued. 'I achieved all those things so therefore I deserve the title, not him'

Lukas heard the sound of heels clicking on the tarmac. He turned towards the sound and saw it was Marianna, wearing the same outfit as she had worn exactly a year ago.

'I liked your speech' she said to him.

'Thank you' he replied. Marianna's eyes filled with tears. It was almost as if she was sharing all of his stress and worry

'I can leave you alone if you want' she told him. Lukas shook his head.

'Devon's been posting on social media. He says I won't deserve the title if I win'

'He's wrong!!' Marianna told him passionately. 'You've driven amazing this year, and what has he done. Either side of doing what he always does which is just zoom into the distance, he's cost his team an unfathomable amount of money in crash damage. You haven't'

Lukas saw her stop speaking, realising that not only was she now crying, her tears streaming down her face, but she had let escape all of her feelings towards him. Embarrassed she wiped her face and her eyes with her hands.

He considered what to do next. It should be her decision Keely had told him in Belgium, when they spoke after Oscar's crash in qualifying. The same crash that had put him out of Italy

'I can't guarantee I'm going to be safe' he told her seriously. Those beautiful eyes of the woman he loved once again filled with tears

'I know' Marianna told him softly, taking him by the hand

'But do you though' Lukas reminded her. 'Justin Wilson, a driver I liked and respected died because a nose cone hit him on the head. He passed away through am accident that wasn't his fault. I need you to be absolutely sure'

Marianna gently kissed him on the lips. It was everything he had wished. After a few seconds, she broke the kiss as another round of tears ran down her cheeks

'I'm sure' she told him softly. Lukas wiped her tears away, her face felt cool to touch.

The moment between the two of them was broken by Simone who informed Lukas (while trying to suppress a grin) that his visitor had arrived

He said goodbye to Marianna and followed Simone back to reception to greet Emma Raducanu. The recently crowned US Open champion had mentioned at Wimbledon that she was an F1 fan and Lukas had decided to invite her as a guest to see him race

After Lukas had received her thanks for inviting him to Brazil, he took his guest around the factory for her tour.

The following week the team made their way to Interlagos for their date with destiny.

Proceedings kicked off with the title rivals press conference. Whilst Lukas was very polite and respectful, Devon just parroted his social media post and got very angry when he was asked any other questions

'Who was the last driver to win the title without a pole' he snarled at Claire. 'You can't tell me can you!'

'Actually I can' she replied. 'Niki Lauda in 1984. And he was a legend of our sport'

Devon stormed out at this comment, leaving Lukas to finish the press conference alone. Actually he remembered Niki Lauda hadn't even started on the front row when he won his third title, just like him. Not a bad club to be in really

Following the press conference, it was time for FP1 and it was during this first session, that Devon came upon Ronny Robinson who was testing the new aero package the Canox team had brought to Brazil

He'd caught up to her rather quickly but instead of simply hanging behind her or waiting for the third driver to move out of the way, he slammed right into her side

Ronny flew over the grass and slapped right into the tyre barrier

Last edited by reptongeek (February 11, 2023 3:08 pm)

Chapter Twenty Four: Brazil, Part II

Lukas was feeling pretty good the morning of qualifying for the last race of the season. Ronny had to be sent to the nearest hospital after her practice crash, to have stitches put in her leg, but she told him not to worry or apologise for the incident

'It's not your fault I'm here' she said. 'It's Devon's'

The championship leader had felt a little down the previous day. He knew he had a job to do, but he was still concerned that people he liked and respected were being hurt by his title rivals constant rages

Jeff however had told him not to be silly

'You go out there and win this championship' he informed him. 'You deserve it, you've driven brilliantly this season and don't let anyone tell you otherwise'

This made Lukas feel much better and he entered the paddock with a new kind of optimism. Ever since his spin in Turkey, he'd done okay but he had by his own admission tightened up and this had affected his performances. But Jeff's endorsement had given him the boost he needed. He was going to win this title and he was going to enjoy it, and hang what Devon or his fans actually thought

In FP3 he'd managed to get second place behind his title rival, who would be handicapped in the upcoming qualifying session by having his top five times deleted. This was the perfect opportunity to get himself on the front row for the first time this season.

And with fifteen minutes to go he was still there, hanging on behind Lewis Hamilton who was on pole position. Oscar was sharing his car so he could benefit from the updated aero package and did a sterling job to qualify 3rd. However in the dying minutes both Canox's were displaced by Sebastian Vettel. Sadly no front row, but Lukas didn't mind

'If it's good enough for Niki Lauda, it's good enough for me' he told the press conference. 'I'll certainly see if I can emulate him tomorrow by winning the championship without a front row start and also see if I can follow Emerson Fittipaldi who won both his titles without fastest lap'

After his press commitments, he returned to the garage to help his mechanics set up his car for the race. It would feel emotional saying goodbye to his car at the end of the season. Ever since the Australian Grand Prix he had driven Chassis #3 in every race, practice and qualifying session. When he had spun in Turkey and scratched the paint, it had been carefully restored for him so he could drive it in Singapore. He had made it a point the last time he had been at the factory to thank every member of the paint shop for their hard work

He was in the middle of adjusting a setting when Keely told him Charlie wanted him on the phone.

'Can I call him back Keels'

'He said he needs to speak to you now' his PA replied. Lukas's hands were a little mucky, so Keely put her mobile to his ear.

'There's been a problem during qualifying' the race director said 'I'm going to need you to stay behind while we sort it out'

'What sort of problem?' Lukas asked, getting very worried

'I'm sorry, I'm not yet at liberty to say' Charlie apologised. 'But I will need you to stay in the paddock'

'Does the rest of my team need to stay here'

Charlie replied that they didn't just him. He hung up and summarised the conversation to his team

'You should go back to the hotel' he told them. 'You need to get some rest for tomorrow's race' Everyone wanted to stay, even Emma Raducanu

'We can't abandon you to your fate, whatever that might be' she said, and a few calls of 'here, here' rang amongst the group

'Please, go back and rest' Lukas insisted. Reluctantly everyone finished up and left, wishing him good luck.

Lukas was now left alone in the paddock. He returned to his driver's room with only Keely's phone for company. The time dragged. His team had left at 5:30 to return back to the hotel, and it was now 6:45 and still no word.

Fifteen minutes later at 7pm, he was startled by Keely's phone. Charlie was ringing back asking for him to come to the media centre. Lukas was sorely tempted to ask what the hell was going on, but demurred and said he was on his way.

As he walked through the darkening deserted pit lane, he saw Claire and her cameraman Andy. They appeared to be ready to record a piece for her television company, whatever that might be.

He carried on and with a sense of dread, pushed open the media centre door. Charlie was waiting for him

'We don't have a lot of time' he said. 'Can you read as you walk' Lukas nodded and he was handed a press release to read. As his eyes scanned the paper and took in it's contents they ballooned like saucers. He scarcely believed what he had just seen. He looked up at the race director who was now ready to give a statement to the waiting press

'Charlie, is this a joke'

Chapter Twenty Seven: Brazil, Part IV

Jeff awoke the last day of the season, glad that it was all over. It had been a hell of a year. Literally

His mind went over the events of the previous day. Charlie had rung him because it was necessary to download the unboard footage from Devon's car because he had transgressed the regulations in qualifying

Brian initially refused to hand over the necessary code that would allow the FIA to do this. He had also not even cared that Aiden had walked out and would not come back

'I've had it up to here with his diva moments' he had said. Jeff lost his temper so badly it scared the entire garage, which was saying something given Devon's behaviour since Malaysia.

Finally the deadlock was broken at 6pm when the FIA president threatened to disqualify the entire team from the season if they didn't cooperate.

So Brian handed over the code and thirty minutes later Jeff dragged Devon up to Charlie's office to hear his fate.

The news that Devon had driven past the weighbridge had made him really cross. He had put his team through so much crap that year, only to do this at the last hurdle.

It was necessary for Devon and a team representative to sign a form authorising his exclusion. Jeff willingly signed it, but Devon even at this late stage was refusing to do so.

'You are going to sign that paper!' Jeff told him, pinning him against the wall. 'And then you are going to apologise to EVERYONE in the team that you have let down' Devon had given him a death glare but did indeed sign the paper.

Fifteen minutes later it became official and Lukas was announced as the World Champion at his press conference. Among the questions he was asked was whether he accepted that his title would come with an asterisk.

'No, because I wanted to win it on the track. I didn't ask Devon to get himself excluded. I was ready for a final battle on track and I was willing to let the racing gods decide what the outcome would be. We can't unfortunately have that, but this situation is not my fault'

Good for you, Lukas Jeff had said to himself. Despite how it ended, he fully deserved his first championship.

There was however the problem of now getting Aiden back. The Constructors championship was tied on 133 points each but Canox was in the lead because it had won nine races to Audi's seven. In order for Audi to win, Aiden needed to finish first and hope the two Canox's didn't finish on the podium - which also gave them 10 points.

'He's not going to come back Jeff' Marc told him.

But Jeff wasn't giving up yet and sent his driver one final message giving him the updated circumstances, hoping that would work

When he reached the circuit, Aiden still hadn't arrived. Charlie said he couldn't give him any leniency. He had to be there for the start of final practice otherwise Jeff would have no choice but to withdraw his entry

Wanting something to do, Jeff asked for a bottle of champagne and delivered it to the Canox garage so they could celebrate Lukas's title. When he got back Aiden had thankfully arrived

He couldn't use Devon's car for the race as it had been excluded along with the driver, but they could use the spare chassis which had Devon's settings. After Charlie had signed the authorisation to switch chassis they were ready to go

In the last practice session Aiden was top and the Canox's just behind in 2nd and 4th. They might just do this. On the grid prior to the race both Lukas and Oscar shook Aiden's hand to wish him luck. The crowds had noticeably thinned out with nearly all of Devon's fans going home after his disqualification, but the remainder would still see a race

At the start everyone got away cleanly, the Canox's made their way to the front and so did Aiden who was leading the race by Lap 5. And then he did his finest Devon impression driving onto the distance. He was so fast that he was lapping nearly the entire field and he needed an extra pit stop for fuel and tyres.

The Canox cars fluctuated in the top 5 but by Lap 60 they had completed their final stops and were lying in 2nd and 3rd places, Lukas ahead of Oscar. Aiden had now lapped everyone up to 4th place and was keeping a 1.6 second gap to the two red, white and blue cars ahead of him

Jeff crossed his fingers, not for Aiden but for Lukas and Oscar. He knew what Aiden was doing. If either of the two cars dropped out ahead of him, so would he giving Canox the Constructors championship. Over the final laps the cars circulated. Aiden had the fastest lap and it was looking that Lukas would complete the final part of his unique triple crown. Winning the WDC without a front row start, fastest lap and 2nd in the rankings of laps lead.

When Aiden took the chequered flag they were still running and then the season that had everything added two more items to the list. Lukas on his final lap suffered a fuel pressure problem and parked on the side of the track - but still on the podium in 3rd. And then Aiden's car started to smoke as he entered the pit lane and burst into flames. The fire marshalls quickly put it out and the podium celebrations began once Lukas had been picked up

In his press conference Aiden didn't budge on retiring from the sport after just one season. He told the press he wasn't sure what he would do next. Lukas and Oscar were happy to have won a second title for their team and said they were looking forward to getting home to celebrate with the workers at the factory

When final scrutineering had taken place and Aiden's trophy had been delivered to him, he just wanted to get out of there

'Help them pack up' Jeff advised. 'Just one more time'