Favourite. Chapter 10 Continuation. Part 2

This novel is fictional, you should not look for intersections with historical events. This is a continuation of Nikita Savelyev’s Racing Action Movie, first published on F1News.ru…

Favourite. Chapter 10 Continuation. Part 2

In the middle of the distance. Marcel Reed

The rivals’ scarlet horses reached out one after the other to change the iron horseshoes, and Neville moved smoothly higher and higher until he came second. And maybe even before the first. Georges literally jumped out of the boxes right in front of him.

The Frenchman bought the Pontini championship in the hope that he could compete for the top places. And the current race served as a good confirmation of that. But according to Neville, a loner will never be stronger than an entire company. During the season at the Pontini factory, no one will be diligent to finalize the car for private owners, and they will inevitably backtrack.

Neville followed in his former partner’s wake for several laps and adapted to his riding style. On the straights, Georges managed to get away thanks to the bike, and Neville came close in numerous corners. But there was not enough power for more. Georges a few times, nervous, smooth turns, but as luck would have it Marcel was too far away to attack at these moments.

Thirty-two laps to go. Bernardo Argilli

He watched with satisfaction as Carbone got ahead of Georges, who had clearly lost his fighting spirit. The Frenchman not only made a mistake under pressure and let Reed go ahead, but also damaged his tires badly and began to fall behind. And there Powell and Fabrio are not far away.

Bernardo quietly hummed a frivolous tune. Everything gets better here. He was a bit despondent when Powell slowed down badly due to overheating issues, but now everything is back to normal. If all his men beat Georges, only Reed will stay ahead. And that would be time for the pits. The Englishman knows how to race on the starting set of tires for a suspiciously long time. But to completely overcome the entire distance – this is already from the realm of fantasy. Yes, and it is very dangerous – if the tire bursts at high speed, you can kill yourself.

Bernardo estimated the gap between Neville and Carbone chasing him and was satisfied – twenty-five seconds. No one has yet learned how to perform such a lightning-fast tire change, especially since Quincy only has two employees at his disposal. Bernardo ordered the mechanics to notify Carbone to keep the same pace.

If only his fiery boys could save the bikes and make no mistakes at the finish. Both Carbone and Powell are good pilots. Both are gifted with real talent. But the problem is that their speed often depends on some intangible factors that cannot be predicted. On a good day no one can keep up with them, but in the next race they can give an ordinary result.

To be fair, Reed is another matter. This man squeezes the impossible out of the car and always fights to the end. And most importantly, he doesn’t do it recklessly, like many hotheads, but clearly and professionally. And now, how did he manage to last so many laps?

Bernardo took a closer look at the adjacent boxes – Quincy’s mechanics are taking out new wheels. It’s time. Their brief bath of glory has come to an end. Just think that some private traders on an incomprehensible design managed to take first place for so long. Unseen things!

Twenty-eight laps to go. Marcel Reed

It was evening, but the saving coolness did not come. The cockpit was sensationally heated to white, the rider was swimming in sticky sweat, and his throat was dry. Neville clearly imagined dropping a bucket of cold water on himself.

Wow! His men are ready! Interesting, by the way, why? If they saw obvious trouble, they would show him a sign. Neville himself hasn’t given them a signal yet. Out just in case? Do you think the rubber will finally float at any time?

I listened to my gut, during these hours you merge with the technology into one whole – while the car pulls. Of course the tires are quite worn out for so many laps, yes, he’s not showing fast seconds, but he’s not losing much pace either. So – we have to go on, the stopper will throw him infinitely far from the first place. Let’s not miss such an illusory opportunity to fight for victory.

It’s decided – Neville again flies along the starting line, leaving the guys with their puzzles, and most importantly – the coveted water. Let’s quench our thirst after the finish, it’s not that far away. You’ll have to be patient a little longer.

Sixteen laps to finish. Bernardo Argilli

He ran furiously down the starting line. Just think, some amateurs managed to circle him, an experienced racing wolf, around his finger. While in Quincy they pretended to wait minute by minute in the pits for Reed, Bernardo held onto his pilots, believing victory was already in his pocket. And now time is hopelessly lost and it works against Monetti. When Bernardo saw through the ruse of rivals, Carbone and Powell, obeying the command from the pits, increased the pace considerably. But the finish is very fast, and twenty-three seconds to Neville now seems a distance to America.

Bernardo frantically pondered everything he knew about Thomson’s clumsy design. Frankly, before the start he was more concerned about the strong pilots on Pontini and did not consider the British at all. What do they have? Weak engine: these craftsmen mounted a special gasket in the block, but still did not reach the standard two and a half liters.

The gearbox is designed almost pre-war. Old-fashioned rear suspension. Engineers at the Monetti factory struggle for months to create the most technically advanced machine. And here? The better weight distribution seems to have resulted in an incredible power-to-weight ratio. In a shabby garage, without people or resources, could Thomson find the right solution?

All one on one! Powell pulled back into the pits. The engine overheats mercilessly. Well, what are we going to do now? Shall we put it in a block of ice? As long as you can go! At least let the fourth place be yours.

All hope rests in Carbon. With each round, the gap is a little, but smaller. The optimistic numbers on the information board and the proximity of victory should give Piero strength!

After the next lap, Bernardo grinned vengefully – Reed passed him without any interest. Rubber is no good anymore. And Carbone, as a fast cheetah chasing an antelope that loses its strength, added! Unfortunately, too late. Bernardo was wrong, he completely ignored the Briton and his car. Little consolation that everyone was wrong. But this is a race, not a rehearsed performance, you can’t do without surprises here.

Eight laps to go. Marcel Reed

Loyal ties have served him for a very long time, but there is a limit to everything. Now Neville turned all his attention to the rearview mirror – if the tire bursts, have time to react and keep the car up to speed, otherwise this crumb will be smeared on the asphalt. The moment of arrival in the pits is hopelessly missed, now he is going to lose a lot of time. There’s nothing to do but clench your teeth, ignore the unbearable thirst and hope for a lucky star.

Neville found a few gently sloping places on the track, covered in withered grass, where he deliberately jumped to the side of the road without damaging the suspension, and at least cooled the long-suffering tires a bit. It helped a bit. Or is it pure self-hypnosis?

Three laps to the finish. Bernardo Argilli

Too slow. Carbone reduces the precious meters of separation too slowly, in this insane pursuit he exhausted the rubber himself. And Reed, on the tightrope of worn tires, maintains an incredibly acceptable pace. For five rounds, Pierrot wins back from him for no more than a second. If it continues like this, a few laps will not be enough for the Italian to overtake the opponent.

Bernardo spun off the track. It’s a pity, almost to tears, but on the other hand, the whole trio of Monetti’s pilots follows Reed. And Ronald, in addition, managed to show the fastest time of passing one circle among all participants of his problems, for which they also give an extra point. And this means that their car turned out to be quite fast and reliable. And Quincy was just lucky – with warm weather and with a winding track, where you really can’t rev the engine. We do not take it into account.

But the next step is Carnall. It is possible that the British can spoil Bernardo’s nerves, but on the other hand, beating opponents for a clear advantage is not as interesting as taking victory in a bitter battle.

Bernardo liked to solve difficult problems. For example, when he worked as a manager of the autodrome in the harsh post-war years, he restored it after the bombing. Or when you had to fill up race cars with alcohol instead of petrol to start the race, otherwise they wouldn’t see any prize money and the equipment could just be taken off for debt. Now he has all the power of the racing division of the legendary company at his disposal, and amateurs, albeit talented, play against him. Isn’t he going to make it?

After the finish. Marcel Reed

On the last lap he almost lost consciousness from heat and fatigue, and when he finally stopped the car, he poured delicious life-giving moisture into himself without stopping, he thought he would never get drunk. He passed the award ceremony with difficulty. It seemed that the wreath around his neck weighed a whole ton, and the national anthem played endlessly. But even then it will be necessary to go to the exit through the whole joyfully excited crowd and endure dozens of congratulations. The chores were undoubtedly pleasant, but he was so tired.

Mr. Quincy glows with happiness. Not only did he wipe his nose at the cautious Thomson, his tactical cunning also worked and the car managed to beat three Monetti at once.

Neville himself never started the season with a triumph. And the driver of a private team has never won an official race. Yes, and the rear-engined car won for the first time. We’re making history, gentlemen, Marcel thought cheerfully.

And then he vividly pictured Mr. Carragher’s face. Before the match, he toyed with the idea of ​​protesting the stage’s result and removing it from the official calendar. How surprised leading motorsport officials would be if Carragher came to them now with demands to exclude his own racer’s result.

Neville laughed against his will, but immediately returned his impassive expression. You must be ceremonial!

== To be continued…