Friday 14th April, 2094
Rifugio Capanna Piz Fassa di Bernard Guido
Piz Boè, Dolomiti, Italia
1700 CET
The interviews got all manner of chuckles from the pilots and the pundits alike, including Paul and Bea's various antics. But, as the main batch finished up with thank yous and goodnights, the next batch came in. The other pilots had been trickling into the rifugio, Max rubbing shoulders with Astrid, Amy with Harrison, and all of them passed by the other pilots. Perhaps they weren't talking to our crew of pilots, the cameras following various conversations and interviews, but, they'd be in direct contact, and would see it, there and then. Cue the hypercut.
"Strada Alpina? Yeah, it's an absolute menace of a circuit. So, so unrelentingly fast. It's a pilot's favourite for a good reason." Harrison replied, a smile on his face, the next interview cutting in from Ava.
"Thoughts on the team's growth? Sure, we have got more to do in the R&D department, we know we haven't got the resources. But like Valkyrie and Zygon are showing this year, sometimes you need small. We're a tight knit bunch, not sure I'd call us a family, much more a bit more a dysfunctional set of siblings but uhh....yes, it works!" Ava replied, a smile forming on her face- perhaps even her iron cold heart warming to Bea's approach of being more open. Like Lando Norris being opened up by Carlos Sainz, she was actually growing even beyond her history.
"For the race? Hmm...I would say we maximise the ship. As Paul says, we have an incredible handling ship, but we need to make the most. People underestimate those hairpins!" Dorian spoke in near perfectly fluent Italian- the European of the grid showing his mastery, no Earworm needed to verbalise what he wanted to say, he just said it in a near impeccable tone.
"Well, Tokyo proves our ship can make it work when we have to. We'll just attack in the race. And I expect if some mistakes happen, we can take advantage." Astrid seemed actually more upbeat than usual. Like for some reason, getting a podium had lit a fire under her normally stoic demeanour, yet she still seemed very matter of fact.
"I mean, we can't say what'll happen. Our ship is a good balance, so here we might not dominate, but, I've done well on the grid and I think I can take us higher. Forza Zygon!" Cassie smirked, candid to camera, her qualy result actually quite positive considering everything.
Kofi seemed to be shivering. "I always get cold here! Why do we come here, I say, it's too snowy and wintery up here! Haha, I joke, but yes, I do have the heater on in the ship, even with all of the systems connected, nothing really prepares you for it!"
Then the American, in his teal blue puffy jacket and his cool blonde hair, manicured like he was out here shooting an advert of his own. And cool as Max would like to be. "Yeah, I guess we were not sure either, I mean our pace in practice so far isn't great but we can make that up in the race. We have some ideas to counter pure speed, and here, it rewards talent a hell of a lot. So better make that work, am I right?"
"It's a lot of nasty rumours, and look, I want to dispel now, we're still hiring, we are still functioning as always, and I wouldn't believe everything you read, Aurora." Henry's reply seemed drilled, and once again, absolutely none of the pilots on the veranda believed it.
"Losing my streak? Nah. I think we just hit upon a bad tune at the end of practice, but that's just from trying to make up positions that would fit us both. We risked and failed. It happens. You only get points on Sunday, and we'll need to qualify well tomorrow. We'll see what happens then." Amy's smile was almost a threat, like a "we are coming", sort of look, one that never faded with how competitive she was.
Round 4 of Formula Anti-Gravity Racing
Saturday 15th April, 2094
Qualifying
Italian AGP
Strada Alpina
Marmolada, Dolomiti, Italia
1400 CET
Episode Four: Azzuro Alpina
Sitting in his teal-blue suit inside the MMR cabin, Max was going through his telemetry, pouring over data on the lap with Carl, his engineer, sitting inside the start-finish adjacent pit box, parked on top of a mountain. The heating was on full blast, warming up the cabin to a degree that would feel toasty compared to the polar-like cold outside.
"Right, so we haven't got the power here. Or handling. What have we got?" Max asked, Carl nodding, looking at the same glass tablet and wall of AR-enabled data as he was, but seeing something else.
"There's going to be a lot of gain you can make here. Deployment is good here too. And, Sector 3 is where you can make it up. You are posting good times in the glacier section, and overtakes can happen there. So let's target that." Carl added, running the footage back again. He was supportive, that much Max could say about Carl- like an adoptive dad almost, and if Max knew he got any offers from anywhere, he was going to follow him. Carl continued, going through the next bit.
"See, here you can tailor your line in a bit tighter. The ship can give. Think you can do that tomorrow?"
"Sure."
With it, Max once again ran through the numbers, and with it, made his tweaks, using the other pilots data to find their weaknesses, and like a game of chess, unpick them.
Cue the montage, and running it back, and then paired that up with some physio, and some light augment review, MMR's doctor checking his heart, vessels and neural link, all of which were green light and good to go.
It was repetitive, but soon, he had what he wanted. And walking outside, all finished for the day as the sunset came in, he took in the view once more.
Racing was beautiful, but in a place like this, it was cinematic. Stunning, if not even more like a drama than usual, then here, it felt like it. Sometimes, he reminded himself just how lucky he was.
Staring into the horizon, the sight of Dorian coming in between the cabins up to the snowbank caught him by surprise, the esteemed gent of the grid standing by Max's side, wearing the team's grey with yellow, featuring pink-stitches puffy jacket. A whiteout had hit on one side of the mountain, creating an empty void of absolute grey nothing- with features barely visible beyond it.
"Enjoying the view? Or what is left of it?" Dorian asked, Max shirking a smile, shaking his head, seeing Dorian come to join
"Yeah. And with what we did....what do you want me to say. Future isn't now, old man?" Max chuckled, shoving his shoulder gently in response to the qualy results, Dorian shrugging in return.
"Well, I did speak to you and Ulrich a lot back when you were in the Junior AG leagues, so yeah, I knew you guys were coming after my position. Now look at you both. How's he doing?" There was an element there that may not have been as visible, but well, it was clear Dorian at one point had been involved in their development. A mentor of sorts, even if that meant things had changed now, and he couldn't talk direct, he was always interested in them. Now he had to go toe to toe with them.
"Ulrich? Yeah, he's....he's okay. Got a lot of issues with debt. But, he worked out a payment plan. Poor guy told me back in Tokyo, broke down to me completely. Shit, it was bad, Dorian." The American's usually chirpy demeanour seemed to bare all, Dorian shaking his head in response. He knew, deep down, something wasn't right. Even from that first chat in Auckland.
"Dammit. I knew he had something going on. He never told me. Explains a lot, actually. His father was the most stressed looking man I have ever seen." Dorian added, leaning against the cabin, looking across to Max.
"Yeah, well, it's not looking like such a problem now. Ulrich is doing what he has to, he's got enough money in this contract of his to pay it back, but he's crashing in Montreal in a place I helped him find until it tides over, far as the people he owes money know, he's under contract and it's being paid out. You know, doing the right thing and all that, keeps his head down. So, tell me. What's it like being under Alexander? Like, really. Come on. Don't give me a media response." Max's American drawl curled, the Colorado-bound native not really cold up here on top of a mountain in the early spring.
"It is uhh....different. He wants different things. He's read a lot of books on marginal gains, I can tell you that much. Forgets sometimes you know, pilots are still human. And it's weird given we raced together, it's hard to listen to a boss who was on the other side of the grid you know, it's a strange voice and I still can't get used to it. But he is a breath of fresh air. Good even compared to last year's shitshow. Cassie and the Principal made it a mess. No idea how Felix bailed our asses out then." Dorian mused, thinking that year over. It was still a solid constructors finish, but not exactly amazing.
"And Paul? He was a machine in the Junior AG league. Dude was relentless." Max joked, Dorian again, shrugging.
"He's like you. A lot like you. A talent, but, he has a lot to learn. I think you picked it up faster, but we'll see. And between me and Paul, we can wrap up a podium on the constructors for the next few races, and...yeah, we'll make it work." Dorian cooly replied, Max chuckling in reply.
"Yeah, well, this retirement tour you can enjoy old man, but after, we'll be coming after you. MMR has big plans. Serious money being thrown in. And, turns out that engineers are just running from Fitzroy are coming in."
"Really?"
"Yeah, a lot of them are leaving. You heard the rumours, right?"
"I thought their engineering department was terrible?"
"Yes, but not the ones that kept them afloat. I think there's going to be some serious changes in the grid. Lot of people want to go join other teams. And there's gonna be some changes."
"You took to paddock rumours like a duck to water, Max. Careful."
"Well, you gave me some juicy ones on your boss. But I respect you too much to tell anyone else. That stays with us. But...you know. Gossip is fun."
"Always is." Dorian smirked, as Max let there be a break in conversation, before asking what next.
"So, when you retire this season, then what? You aren't exactly going to go have a family. What are you gonna do?" Max asked, Dorian shrugging.
"Not this. I've done this for at least 20 years. It's all I know. Maybe I'll try endurance. Or classics racing. Or something else. Find someone permanent. I mean, there's a guy I'm talking to at the moment. Really cool. Laurent."
"You're actually going to settle down? Woah, Playboy 2080, you're gonna stop?"
"Maybe." Dorian mused, Max shaking his head in return.
"Nah, you're addicted. I bet you'll sign for another team again. Maybe go ask Silver Apex if they want to kick Hart out?" Max replied, the two laughing as Dorian's lips turned to a curling smile.
"Well....who knows really. Or perhaps someone else will. I don't see him staying long." Dorian seemed to speak what every pilot was thinking, as he looked into the horizon. "You know what they do to their pilots. Amy is harder to work with than any pilot I know, and that ship is even more tricky. This time though....maybe they'll rethink their approach. Right now, it's their championship to still win. If they want to take it, Amy alone will not win that for them. Not with the other teams hunting them the way they are. Even if Southern Cross slip, Al-Saqr have their cyberwoman and their supersoldier to keep the heat on them." Dorian added sighing, as he went somewhere with this.
"So you don't know but....Cassie wanted that seat at Silver Apex badly this year. That's why she was so difficult. They picked Jamie over her early in last season, because he was like Bea, a talent that just consistently scored points and followed orders even when Astrid didn't get it quite right. So, Cassie got mad. She was under the belief the team biased the ship to me. They didn't, it just prioritised a high level of grip and corner stability over speed. Cassie is just impatient. Talented, but she wants the top spot now. And no amount of PR hides it." Dorian commented, tapping his feet into the snow, Max looking even shocked to hear that from his mentor.
"Shit. Didn't realise it went that badly between you two. I thought it was all just hype?"
"Nope. She decided she wanted out. Nobody stopped her. And she picked Zygon of all places. Literally the worst call she could have made for who she is as a person. She's not a corpo, she's a free-wheeling environmentalist who'd be out as much as Harrison is. I mean, is she gonna modify herself like Layla is to do what's gonna get her the top spot? She's placed well in that ship in qualifying. But in the race, I know how to pick her lock, she goes for flashy, not for smooth. I think I'm not alone." Dorian was open, almost as if in retirement, he didn't care he was telling a rival this, given that was how deep the rift was between them. Deep like the crevasse in the glacier ahead.
"You two not even going to talk it out? Man, I've never seen you like this. Thought you were Mister Cool, you know." Max commented, Dorian shrugging like he did not care a bit.
"What is there to discuss? She could have made something more of herself at Valkyrie. And instead, she wanted the glory. This is not about just you as the person, Max. Learn that from me. It's about the team you are in, that takes you places. The bigger whole. A lot of people at the factory rely on you to do well not because they want some extra money after their Universal Basics (a modified version of UBI that includes food, water, most housing, as well as a small volume of relevant currency for goods/services based upon small, contract-like piecemeal fixing works now present in most sectors), but because they believe in you, they tell their kids about you, and they want to be part of that story of you taking the top spot. Least you can do is take the big paycheck and make sure their hard hours of paid off, because they are the reason you go anywhere. Even if I don't agree sometimes with how management may do that." Dorian wisely mused, as Max looked into the abyss again, at the closing in whiteout.
"I know. You told me before....yet what's the point if you don't make something of yourself on talent? You don't become champion by being selfless. Not like you know. No offense." Max replied, Dorian shrugging. A lot of P2s would be a stain on his career, but, the sheer amount suggested Dorian was once the very top level, even if a tiny bit shy of it.
"None taken. But you can't become a champion without a team that will make sure your team-mate helps you. Or will give you upgrades, and most of all, believes you will do it and will work 80 hours in a week to rush an upgrade to make you gain half a second in a lap. And belief is more powerful than an engine we can make. You'll find out soon when MMR upgrade. People leave. Things change. And belief, belief that you're not a committee but a cohesive unit of people willing to do what is necessary to win, that changes more than you ever know. I still want Valkyrie to be like that, but, changing all the time is going to stop that. So don't listen what they have to say. Come on, let's get out of this cold. And away, before cameras catch us."
With that, the two headed out of freezing cold whiteout that hit the top of the mountain, and back to their huts, as if the conversation never happened.
Round 4 of Formula Anti-Gravity Racing
Sunday 16th April, 2094
Race Day
Italian AGP
Strada Alpina
Marmolada, Dolomiti, Italia
1300 CET
The Overtakes You Don't Make
"Are we going to try our launch strategy, see if we can run the ELS heavy?" Astrid asked, merely wanting confirmation.
"Go for it, Astrid. Let's snatch some positions, hold to the end. You know what to do. Go get them, Asti." The reply from Magnus Vagurson, her Race Engineer was a definitive one.
Sitting inside the cockpit, the canopy shutting in, Astrid looked across to her side, more regular programming than Tokyo, given that she was 12th on the grid, and behind an ascendant Carrera Condor that now seemed to be hogging the share of points Nordic Call usually took. This far back, she had to take some risks. And as the red came on, the ice queen zoned into what she had as a strategy. Same as what Max did. Push hard in the first lap, and take risks in the glacier section.
The sky was lightly clouded, the tempurature at 3000m was -4, and down in the valley below, a balmy 4C. The ship hummed, and the neural link gently burned into Astrid's mind, her literal psyche as if she was a sprinter in the blocks, about to accelerate like a bullet from a gun. Quite literally, AG ships accelerated close to that.
And the lights in sequence, went out one by one.
Four.
Three.
Two.
One.
Rushing through Sector 1, they were accelerating fast- Dorian and Cassie arguing over position after the latter's poor start letting by Paul and Ava, and the former now tangled up. Astrid took it for all of what it was, flying past the two in the Rifugio Padon section, using a nice ELS leech to latch onto Han who had escaped that, with an even better overtake, nailing down the overtake in Sector 3, almost carting the ship upside down through the most recurved bit of the glacier run, the whine echoing even inside the cabin of the AG ship.
This was some incredible flying from Astrid, but she was flying the ship with an incredibly volatile setup, the usual stability of the ship traded for what looked like a more unstable, shaky setup that was making every corner horrible to run out of and demanding everything of the ship's ELS system. No other pilot was going to bare something like this, but Astrid knew it was her only way of keeping ahead. Another lap passed, and the toll of that was showing, because she had nothing left to steal, and nothing left to defend in Sector Two.
The speed was closing. It was neck and neck. And Han was going to take that position back, dogfighting with the Faroese the entire way through, the two close together in such a way that they were merely feet apart. If Han took it back, the others would stream through, because once that fight was lost, Astrid may as well have not bothered. Astrid put the ship in a place knowing at the best, she could leech Han on the way past, and at the bottom of the jump, slingshot at Rifugio Pordoi. A risky move, but one that had to be made, and she'd have to repeat, a lot, to keep her very inferior ship in position. The ship was not going to go faster than hers, and if she wanted even a vague chance of points, she had to master her ELS here, to the full. And as they crested, and went into the sky, Astrid made her move to leap back forwards from their side by side position, Han on the brink of overtaking before but Astrid in front.
It should have been a nice move, if on landing, the two were split and Astrid would hold the rest of the lap on ELS alone, ready to repeat a difficult move one more time.
But that was not how it played out. It was a bad error, but Han attacked in a way that Astrid wouldn't have expected over the crest. This would be a massive point of contention. Had Han just made a rookie error of overtaking at an exceptionally risky spot, with nowhere to go? Or should Astrid have realised in a slower ship, she was going to get gapped here?
At the jump, the contact with the circuit again had an larger effect towards the ships already just too close to each other and playing too hard, correction just not enough when the two ships hit the MAG tracking, instead actually flinging them into each other given Astrid was looking to shut the door into the long hairpin and force Han on a bad line, not to make her crash, but to at least maximise her own attempts, as any racer might have done- but in this instance, led to them closing on each other. The repulsor field couldn't do anything to stop the two closing speeds from interacting. Astrid's eyes turned to horror, realising what was next.
The impact may not have been like Bea's in Cape Town, but at this speed, nearly flat out completely, shielding wasn't going to do enough but merely act like a magnet getting thrown at another magnet, just slowing it down before the inevitable happened. The repulsors at the side of the track were not in place here given the open layout and the fact the mountainside was just too exposed and was devoid of spectators, so the crash was actually more spread out, paint being rubbed and the impact sandwiching them into each other. That meant that instead, the clatter sent the two ships into each other, and rubbed along off circuit, spraying snow and ice everywhere and beaching the ships as they separated apart from their sandwich like crash.
"Fuck!" Astrid yelped, the nausea building as the AI tried to correct, but the ship feeling weakened, the engines nearly totally dead, as the anti-gravity unit at least held firm, keeping the ship level, but the side of the ship taking a massive gash, ripping out nearly a good chunk of the hull in the process, ripping one of the airbrakes to pieces. Power was dying, fast, and the ship went from top speed to nothing, a crawl, instantly, buffered by the internal safety systems of the ship. The AI disconnected her neural link nearly instantly, but the feeling right in the end, as the ships rubbed was like getting a really bad cut in your finger.
The ship did not have a soul, but the soul inside certainly felt that one.
"Astrid, are you okay?" Comms chatter replied back in turn from Magus, Astrid shaking her head, pulling her ship to the side of the track, the immediate sight of a recovery drone rushing over, alongside a camera.
"Yeah, I'm fine. All power loss, lot of the chassis is broken, so is Hyeon-Ae's. Do we try and make it to the pit and recover power?"
"Negative, stop immediately. Hull integrity is compromised, stop immediately, repeat, stop immediately, ship is not suitable on circuit. That was a big one, thrusters are dead and the AG matrix and power output is in Code 12, backups. Shut it down and let it cool, or else you'll trash the ship."
With it, Astrid sighed, huffing, but realising that it was time to get the hell out. With a pull of the oxygen supply from her throat and a pop of the canopy, she pulled herself out, and threw herself down the steps, the extent of the damage now visible as the ship barely sat a millimetre off deck, the anti-gravity unit in a emergency function, a parked stasis as the heat dissipated and sizzled the snow below it, the energy shielding of the ship's cockpit barely holding the structure together, given how much in the way of Gs had gone through the thing. Unlike Bea's crash, where it took a lot more work to put it together and it had nearly been reduced to a safety cell, this was a chassis that was in damage, but if not for her deactivating it, the ship would have burnt up its composite shell and ruined it to a similar level.
But they were right. Astrid's ship was half ruined. Han's looked even worse, and it had clattered her down the hillside in the snowfield that made up the Rifguio Pordoi sector, barely 20m away from Astrid's. She looked across from her own purple-like aurora ship to Han's, across at the red and blue of Zygon, the cockpit opening at least indicating that Han was mobile, and not injured. Astrid had a certain death stare on her. Like she just couldn't believe Han.
Helmet off, the drone checked on Astrid's state as she walked and confirmed yes, she wasn't concussed or injured, as she walked over towards Han's ship, a scowl on her face, the cold not really stopping her. Seeing she was okay, Astrid didn't stop. She kept going towards Han's ship. Not running. Just a slow, pissed off, angry, walk through the deep snow up to her thighs. She was okay in snow. And she was cleverer than this. Normally the Icewoman did not react to things like this, but that was stupid, and at that speed, even more insanely dumb in her view. Astrid felt she could have easily had a much, much worse accident there if it wasn't for a lot of luck and the ships rubbing off track- and in her view, Han should have been more careful.
It was a rare moment from Astrid, as she saw Han get out, and with no regard, just emptied her adrenaline filled, immediate thoughts, right there and then.
"Next time, are you going to push in the worst part of the track and take us both out again?! Or are you going to fly thinking nobody defends because you're spoilt generally? Unbelievable!" Astrid barked, disdain as she walked back, a recovery ship coming along and offering a lift, with an actual medic riding aboard. She took the ride and stayed silent, and hoped that Han would take hers coming out towards her and go a separate way.
"Astrid, calm down. We need to be careful on optics. Don't do anything too silly like that, keep it to a minimum. Please." Her radio called in her ear, of her race engineer begging for a bit of calm right now. This was not looking good from a PR perspective. Cameras had followed all of it. Astrid was known for not giving a shit, she had a cult following for that after all. And she'd said something aggressive in a presser sure, but like that? That was new.
"When she learns to race properly, we can talk optics because she needs them to see where she is going. Forget it. Get me out of here. This is bullshit." Astrid said, sighing, the truck bringing the ship safely into tow, the energy systems deactivated wholly as it was levitated up onto another lift, making the ship inert and the volatile AG system inside.
With it, Astrid sat inside and waited for the automated truck to leave and take the safety road back down the mountain track and to where it could be hauled back to the pits, knowing that fuck it, all of Korea could be angry right now. She lost points because of Han's stupidity, in her mind. The cameras however, would portray precisely how it happened, for what happened. Penalties? Probably. Astrid would probably regret it later regarding that. But not what she felt right there and then, the metaphorical Faroese's ice snapping like a glacial outburst.
Soundtrack: The Qemists- CrevasseThe race was yellow flagged, given the ships were off the racing line almost 200m in the snowfield, and were recovered fairly quickly- ships ordered to slow to a relative crawl of 80kph over the jump until all the shrapnel, parts and ships were collected, before it went green again, completing a lap under a Virtual Safety Ship as a hologram on their AR displays that quite literally, bunched the field up and vanished the moment the incident had been completed. Astrid and Han's incident had been flagged as a racing incident, albeit Astrid's remarks were under investigation.
And what a shake up it had made, the yellow locking in the advances and losses made.
Max's strategy to push some riskier overtakes early in the race had now paid off, putting him higher in the chain, and his ELS management and talent in the corners meant he could hold off Dorian and Cassie, the latter of whom having an awful start again had absolutely pushed her out of contention. The two rivals nearly looked like they were about to detonate each other on every other corner, but it seemed that rivalry had paid off massively from Ava, Max and Paul- all of whom now were building gaps and out of ELS distance, able to sit comfortably and in a rare moment for an AG race, actually build good lap times on pure pace alone without any hull to hull racing.
Jenny Lowry had somehow taken the utter trap of a Fitzroy ship through the order into 13th, capitalising on mistakes from Ulrich and Kofi, and Jamie Hart had barely made any progress himself either- he had the pace to just roar past most ships but in a photo for the ages, got stuck behind Jenny who defended like a lion, over 13th. That just about surmised the back half of the grid, and the photo there would probably be iconic for Jamie Hart's career in general at Silver Apex.
The front remained remarkably unchanged. Kais had lost a position to Harrison after a very, very long duel, Harrison finally getting him in the glaciers where the Australian's comfort in flying upside down got him the jump, whilst further down, Amy got Layla back in the lakeside road on Lago Fedaia, pushing a risky overtake of her own, but having the ELS to make Layla almost look like she was going backwards. Nora had pulled away. If anything, it was possibly one of the most uneventful races of Nora's career, apart from the track itself.
In amidst all of this, Bea had somehow actually managed to benefit from Amy fighting Layla, and stayed within a few seconds of Layla, but given the extent of the track, gaps built massively. It was easy for it to become a time attack, and focus was crucial. Nobody wanted to follow Astrid and for that reason, the racing became a bit less overtake driven, a little more simple....safe even. A few changes had happened, of course, like the leap of Ava and Max, Cassie falling out of the points making a bad day for Zygon truly awful after losing her fight with Dorian, and the remainder of the field picking up what they could. The sight of craft pacing through the tunnels, the glacier walls, the tops of the ridges and over the Forcella jump were always a sight to see, and even if it didn't produce the best race, it had produced a really good spectacle.
And in the final lap, the chequered flag dropped down on the racing in Italy, waved by Valentina Amara, five-time Gold medal winning Italian Winter Olympic ski racer.
It was a victory for the pole sitter, Nora Kelly, followed by Harrison and Kais on the podium in 2nd and 3rd. Amy was off it for the first time in two years in 4th, a shock to many, but then again, a bad tune and just the sheer dominance of Al-Saqr and Southern Apex here had set the marker down. Layla in 5th, followed by Beatrix, a record high for her, was followed by Paul Mulder, Ava Villarosa, Max Wedgewood scoring important points for MMR, and lastly in the top ten, Dorian.
The Pilots all had gone through a race that whilst not dramatic, had seen a big order shake in the first few laps, had mostly died down with a couple of overtakes and catch ups in the last sectors. What did they see? That's left to them...The final results are below:docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1qF6cn…
Post Race, Italy: Warm Room and Podium
The "Cooldown" room had been replaced with a pop-up ski lodge like room, that was covered in heaters. More like a Warm Room.
Of the three podium finishers, Harrison was happy to keep his streak going.
Two rookies were here, and Harrison, even though he was a little repelled by Kais's rumoured past, not exactly hidden by his sheer capability, was still bubbly as usual, watching back the footage of the crash, and overtakes throughout. He was a bit concerned about some of Kais's flying it looked....well, that must be a hell of a neural connector, because that looked almost too twitchy, even to his trainer eye.
"Ooo, that is a nasty crash for them. Yeah, Han pushed in an area Astrid wasn't looking, but not like Astrid was going to hold her back.....I mean that's a dirty move, but they probably both didn't help each other." Harrison's take was balanced, playing back the rest of the race, smirking at his overtake on Kais, and hoping he didn't get decked for it. Instead, he turned to Nora, happy to be joining her team-mate up here. This was it. They were clear of Silver Apex by 28 points. Championship lead.
"This is your moment, Nora. Enjoy this, you deserved it with that pace. Now you've got your win though, don't forget I'm gonna get you next time, yeah?" Harrison smirked, giving her a gentle bump on the shoulder, looking to Kais, who was probably still stoked for his third place
Stepping outside, the podium looked down on the major grandstand up here at the Strada Alpina, and the swathes of glacier on the mountain beyond, the cheers ringing out for a new race winner, Nora Kelly, flanked by Harrison and Kais. The latter could hold his head high that he'd fought well, and Al-Saqr because of his efforts were clambering up the points leader board against Silver Apex and Southern Cross at a much faster rate than before. They were merely 9 points away from P2. That was one more Jamie Hart level windowlicking incident from dethroning a team most people considered the holy grail of the sport.
Heavy is the Crown? The trophy definitely was for Nora, but for a moment, doubt was put to rest if Nora was streaky in her first two races, here, she'd proven herself in the gauntlet. But Kais on the third step had now stepped very much into the light. If their initial fight in the beginning of the race had anything to say about it, it was that they would be fighting for some time to come.
Post Race, Italy: Interviews
Back to the booth. The pilots knew the drill, you knew the drill, but inside the cable car station out of the cold, in the glass-fronted building with the snow behind, an opportunity to interview each pilot came up.
@Enzayne[b]"Han, that must have been a gutting result for Zygon after both you and Cassie qualified so well. How are you feeling after that crash, and anything to salvage from this weekend?"[/]
@LadyAmber"Paul, congratulations today on your result, it seems like another reliable points haul for Valkyrie. Do you think you got lucky with Cassie dropping back and the crash playing into your favour?"
@MrSkimobile"Kais, what a race it was from you and Nora! How did it feel going toe to toe with another rookie?"
@Starlance"Bea, an outstanding result today! It seems like you managed to put down some impressive bankers- and are putting Carrera firmly into the midfield. How do you feel that this projects for the rest of the season?"
@Sylvan"Nora Kelly, what a win! You must be over the moon after so many close attempts, and pundits are now labelling you as a new wonderkid in the sport. Many are talking about this more and more- do think you have what it takes to go all the way and challenge Amy Stirling this season for the title?"
The others trickled on through. To say the reactions were mixed would be an understatment, but AG racing never let people down when it came to drama.
Amy was up first.
"No, not happy at all with that. We compromised the ship too heavily and Jamie didn't really make any inroads. Not a great weekend. We move onto Portugal. We have more in the pipeline and I think we'll be back to where we need to be then, because we need to shut down Southern Cross, and Al-Saqr."
Harrison followed.
"Well, Amy seems pissed! Amazing weekend. Genuinely in disbelief about that. We did an amazing job start to finish, and the icing on the....uhh, icing, was overtaking Kais."
Layla had a smile once again, the Jordanian upbeat about the outcome.
"Well, a shame to lose a spot to Amy, but no shock considering her talent. We did well today. We are 9 points off Silver Apex. We are close in their mirrors now!" Layla's response was more chirpy than her usual self would be, actually upbeat rather than gravel. Beating Silver Apex would be satisfying as all hell on that chart.
"Yes, this is a great result. Really, really happy with how far the team has come. When I joined Carrera two years ago, we were still fighting for points, and now we have managed to get into joint P5 this early in the season! I am hoping that we can continue this, but yeah, we'll have to see." Ava seemed chirpy too, a comment not really followed next.
"Seriously awesome, yeah we did amazing- a few mistakes by ships ahead and I just cut through, I love that tunnel and glacier run so much, honestly it's the coolest part of any track....hahah, no pun intended! But yeah, great fun and good to get points on the board." Max's two points may not have been much, but for a team with poor speed, this was a hell of a result.
"I know you are trying to ask that question about us two, but no comment. Cassie and I raced well, absolutely fair, in rules. That is all." Dorian's comment was cryptic- but you could probably read into it and realise he wasn't happy to talk about his dogfight with Cassie, not that it would have any impact on him getting to anyone else, but right now, after the show with Astrid blowing off some steam, it was best to keep shut.
Astrid had vetoed an interview. This was considered, by pretty much everyone, a very smart call. Remember, this bit is televised, so damage limitation was considered best by the Nordic Call, and even FIAR's own brand. Probably best not to have someone who just verbally abused another pilot on.
Cassie was, however on to at least defend Zygon and she was under strict orders to not do anything stupid herself. Controversy made clicks, but controversy also got you cancelled, or your sponsors in an incredibly upset mood. This included the Formula AG sponsors themselves, who did not take kindly to childish behaviour.
"Yeah, really disappointed this weekend. We started off promising in qualy but honestly, it just didn't happen just due to bad luck- my start was compromised and I had nowhere to go, got stuck and that was it, nothing I could do. Did what I could but Dorian got me, and I'm sure I'll get him back for the next. And uhh yeah, really sad to hear about Han, she's alright from what we can tell, no injuries but we'll bounce back for next race. Portugal is home so I know that circuit, and I'm sure we can improve!" Cassie tried to strike a positive tone, but even her usually fiery attitude had a lump in its throat.
Like she was getting taken down a peg by the racing gods, or perhaps, just really, really bad luck.
Jenny was up, instead of Henry for this interview, the now pink pixie-short haired Yorkshire lass having a smile on her face. Quietly, she was impressing even in an utter shitbox that was the Fitzroy ship- she was averaging a slightly higher rating than Henry, and she had only been there for a second year.
"Yeah, nowt wrong with 13th and really happy. Beat a Silver Apex ship too, and yeah, that picture is doing the rounds on social media right now, me mam was over the moon with it!"
Kofi seemed a little more like he wanted to chuckle at the situation, 12th being so close yet so far to points this season. SuperCat were not developing well, but, he never stopped with his optimism.
"Not our day, but we are closer, we are closer. More corners please, that's where we thrive, so we will see you in Portugal. Ciao Regazzie!"
Analysis with Rory Andrews
"So, thoughts this far into the season on the teams?"
Rory shook his head, shrugging, looking to Aurora's off camera presence.
"I guess it's the commentator's curse, isn't it? We all expect Amy to just sweep things. Yet something's stalled at Silver Apex. All a lot of talk, but they must have a pipeline of upgrades fit for later in the European leg, because they have been caught up by Al-Saqr, who, let's not forget, have proven an incredibly capable team. And Southern Cross. What a demonstration. We thought they were a one hit wonder, but they have taken P1 in the constructors, and I bet that Silver Apex are feeling that now."
"And what about the other midfield teams? And Zygon's woes at the moment?"
"Zygon are doing terribly this season. Nobody's going to be feeling more bitter today than Jinwoo, he had an opportunity to get the team clear into P4 and both of his drivers have let him down there, Cassie's performance in particular being absolutely shocking. That top midfield fight is incredibly tight, Nordic Call's shock result in Tokyo suddenly puts Valkyrie, Zygon, and even Carrera Condor are in contention at most races and Zygon are hurting because of it. I think Cassie looks unsettled, she was not flying today in a way that showed confidence, Dorian seems to just be hunting her because of it. I think she's just not a fit at that team right now, and Han must feel annoyed not to bring home points today either. Whatever will be said of that crash, I think Han had the opportunity to wait out Astrid because she was eventually going to lose that position, but sometimes, rookies make errors."
"As for Miller Motor and Nordic Call? The former seems to be consistently stealing points, really well run, compared to Nordic Call, who just can't find anything beyond Astrid's seemingly magical ELS capabilities and Bjorn Waldgard is not developing at all. And Carrera? Blimey. That is a success story. Beatrix Ward was not hyped at all in any of our estimations, but, her and Ava seem to be making quite the team, and they are clearly getting the upgrades done after a lackluster season last year, and off-season recently. We knew Ava Villarosa was a late bloomer too, but the two of them seem to be an unlikely partnership that seems to balance risk and reward."
"What about the pilots in general that stand out to you right now?"
"Hmm, that would be harder to say. Some standouts now, like Beatrix Ward, who people are now beginning to notice after her crash and weaker start in Auckland, she seems to be finding her home with the craft and making the most out of it. Nora Kelly seems to have her demons, if you listen to all the paddock gossip there is a lot of baggage with her old self, but she seems to fly faster than anyone right now and act as if it doesn't exist. We've never seen a rookie this good since....maybe Helen Starcross, for sheer impact, she's just racing without any fear, any restrictions, her style is so ragged it's like she's almost drifting the ship in hairpins and that style is immensely fun to watch. And Kais Zenix, from starting the season slow to now doing what he's doing, he has found his feet. He's monstrous when he wants to push on people, just relentless and watching him behind Nora, you can tell he just doesn't let go and with refinement, he'll be an incredible pilot. Paul Mulder too- not a lot of people talk about him outside of his family link, but he is doing a very serviceable job in that Valkyrie ship, very collected, calm, but ultimately, fast. He is contemplative, you can tell, he just seems to have that patience about him his father did. Lastly, Jenny Lowry. She put an incredibly uncompetitive ship into 13th today. Holding back Jamie Hart in his Silver Apex ship, now that takes some doing."
"And the pilots that don't stand out?"
"On the other hand, Cassie Neves is really not proving herself at the moment. And neither is Jamie Hart. What an utterly terrible finish. I can't imagine he lasts till the end of the season like this, watching him fly that ship is utterly difficult, it's like watching a stag on ice. Literally! And of course....Astrid did not do herself any favours. What an opposite race for her, to go from a podium to a FIAR mandated penalty for the next race, due to her behaviour, and they are still reviewing severity. Not the smartest move from a pilot we sometimes think is one of the geniuses of ELS on the grid."
"A broad insight there! What do you think about the next races? Do you think that order will change?"
"I think Amy seemed bitter in her post race interview. She seemed to want to get back at the rookies, and her compromised setup for Jamie did absolutely nothing to help him- I wonder if it was hubris thinking they'd sweep Southern Cross and Al-Saqr here. And whilst she hasn't had the strongest start, Silver Apex must be looking to now target Portugal, Luna and the European leg with upgrades, because they need to win again. Valkyrie look to have made slow progress so far this season, but that ship handled incredibly through Sector 1 and 3- posting some very impressive times. I wouldn't be shocked to see them climb, and given the team's stability, even at tracks that don't suit them, they seem to be consistent, even if it's quiet. Carrera will likely struggle unless they begin targeting those tracks too, and that might take some time- and Southern Cross might need to work out how they keep their momentum going. It's a difficult call- but right now, the Constructors looks fluid among the top three, and I wouldn't be shocked if we see even more movement soon."
