Unexpected

Part 42

Thursday evening I make myself comfortable on the couch and call Sangil.

He picks up after five rings. "Moshi moshi."

"Good evening, Sangil. What's the verdict for Monaco?"

He sighs. "It's a no go."

I nod even though he can't see me. "That's fine. Don't feel bad."

"I'll see you in Canada then."

"Uh-huh. I want talk about something serious."

"I'm listening."

"It's about Formula One."

"I thought that was going good."

"It is, for now. Not that I'm anticipating it going bad. But being good has its own problems."

"Such as?"

"The pressure to stay good or get better. When I was signed, of course there was the expectation from Nissan that I would be as good as I was in F3 and F2. And they understand that will take some time, though they're hopeful it will happen before the middle of the season. I won't be finishing on the podium anytime soon. And they also understand that a driver is only as good as her car."

"But...?"

"But now that I've been in five races and got points in four of them, and haven't crashed yet, the team is thrilled. But the pressure. Not really from Nissan, at leasing not verbally, but from the press and the fans."

"Oh yeah, I watched the press conference. They asked why you haven't crashed yet. Your answer was funny. But isn't a million dollars too much to repair a car?"

"Not really. A couple hard crashes will cost a million dollars easy. Especially for a team like Red Bull or Mercedes."

He whistles. "Wow."

"I know I'll crash sometime. Probably soon. And before the end of the season, most likely more than once."

"But like you said, that's to be expected."

"Oh, I know. Usually every driver crashes at least once per season. If you're lucky it's during practice and not qualifying or the race."

"So why the pressure?"

"Because I'm supposed to steadily get better. And I don't know how much improvement I have in me."

"More than you think."

"I flubbed a pit stop the other day. Luckily it was during free practice and not the race."

"That's not bad."

"And then I mixed up the buttons on the steering wheel."

"Well..."

I draw circles on a cushion with my finger. "Have you heard anything about Pierre?"

"Pierre Gasly from Red Bull?"

"Yes. There was much hype about him last year when he was in Toro Rosso, so he was promoted this year. And he's doing badly."

"I have heard. Some people say that he should be dropped back and get replaced by either Kvyat or Albon."

"I've known him for years. He's a great driver. I don't know why he hasn't been doing well. He's mentioned something about the car not handling like the Toro Rosso and taking a lot of time to get used to." I sigh. "I've only signed a one year contract. I know it's early to talk about 2020, but soon it won't be. Plenty of contracts get signed mid-season."

"Do you have a desire to go to another team?"

"Not at the moment. I really like Nissan. Even at the end of the season I think I'll feel like I need another year to mature as a driver, and Nissan is a great place to do that. Being Japanese in a Japanese team is great. Not that they treat Esteban different than me."

"Sochi, you're doing an amazing job. I believe you'll only get better. Every morning look in the mirror and tell yourself so."

I laugh. "I already do something similar. And both my manager and trainer have taken it upon themselves to be my moral support. You know, you're right. At Nissan we always end our debriefings with what we all did right. There's lots of positive reinforcement after we go over what we did wrong or could have done better."

"See, you're surrounded by great people who will help you on your journey."

"The mental part of F1 is one I haven't been paying as close attention to as I should. Speaking of that bad pit stop, I have to think about what to do differently, but forget the botched part. My performance coach has had me visualizing perfect pit stops for days."

"You utilize visualization?"

"Yes. And my sisters got a hold of data and let me know some of the other drivers' tendencies and driving styles."

"Which sisters?"

"Mirai, the mathematician, and Maika, who likes to call herself a hacker."

"And what did they do?"

"They analyzed data and let me know things like, Magnusson has a tendency to hug left side turns, but not right. Then when I'm battling one of the drivers, I can make better decisions on how to proceed. Except for Perez. He doesn't seem to have consistency, except for crashing into Ocon. When they were teammates they had several skirmishes. In fact, I had a reporter ask me if I was prepared for contact. But he and I have not touched yet."

"That's great that they were willing and able to help you out."

"I'm grateful. And thank you, Sangil, for listening to me."

"I'm always here for you when you need me."

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Yes! Coming soon (Drive to Survive). And winter testing is under way. (By the way, I have no idea if Magnusson hugs curves or not. Just an example). And I didn't name Sochi's brother after the F1 driver. When I started writing this he wasn't even in F1. I just wanted a Russian name that was easily pronounced in Japanese as well. 

Wish I had news about Snuper to share. Now that only the 2 rappers are active, this would be the perfect time for that hip-hop song Sebin's been wanting for a long time. 

Sorry about not updating much. I had wanted to write about every race as the 2 of them spend time together, but I may have to condense. 

Love behind when money ends. Unfortunately the drama didn't get finished because of the passing of the male lead, but I love the female lead's character and her relationship with money and material things.