Racing For Love

Chapter Eighty Eight

Brazil was the most incredible place, but I saw little of it beyond the hotel and the racetrack. After the press release, the consortium's presence at the track was mandatory and I was photographed arriving alongside Sylvie, Pete, Gio, Maria and Bobby each day we were in The Paddock. On the first day after the announcement, we posed for awkward photos before being enveloped the press, desperate to find out more details about the team.

Whilst the team had all been told that their jobs were safe, we still had not announced our driver line up for the following year and this was the talk across The Paddock. Would we keep the line up of Lorenzo Bianchi and Gareth James, or would we drop them? Surely the team wouldn't keep the son of the previous disgraced owner of the team? Speculation was rife, but Sylvie as the new head of Primo Rosso Racing remained tight lipped, confirming to everyone that an announcement would be made at the end of this season.

The announcement after the season wasn't just to create intrigue - we were in a complex logistical and legal battle surrounding contracts and team names. We were required to keep operating as Bianchi Racing until the end of the season as a name change at this point could potentially void any points gained during the season, as it would technically be a new team entering. Since we were keeping the team, this meant that Lorenzo and Gareth's contracts still stood until Bianchi Racing was dissolved at the season end.

I had learned the details of this during our consortium briefing on Tuesday morning following the announcement. As promised, Pete led the discussion about who our driver line up was going to be for the following year, and the options we had. It was not simply a consideration of drivers, but also finances - we needed to look at sponsorship the drivers could bring along with the salaries we needed to pay. In each iteration of drivers, Lorenzo's name was never considered - the decision had already been made that we couldn't keep him on.

At the moment, our main option would be Gareth James and Genevieve - if she was able to keep her lead in F2 and win the final race. There was still hesitation with Gareth - his links to the Bianchi family through his girlfriend, Francesca De Luca would be questioned, and it would also only be his second year in F1, but his manager continued to push, telling us his personal life wouldn't be an issue and he was ready to step up. We really wanted an experienced driver, but there wasn't anyone available. Of course Jono's name had been mentioned, but he didn't want to break his contract with Aerial Racing, and we all respected that.

I interrupted Pete mid-flow as my mind went back to the summer party we hosted. "Pete - we need to speak to Lars Blom! This narrative around him retiring - I think he'll only do that if nobody offers him another seat - he really didn't seem ready for it when I spoke to him back in the summer. I'm pretty sure his wife is pregnant though, so maybe he's already got plans..." The group turned to me, agreeing at this prospect - I felt pleased that my personal connection with the drivers enabled me to help with a potential solution, and with this information, we formulated a plan.

Of course all the drivers were asked about the announcement of Primo Rosso Racing during their media interviews. Whilst most remained vague in their answers, Gareth was vocal about his signing with Bianchi and that he believed this would be transferred to the new team - his manager had obviously briefed him and he was trying to force our hand, which only caused more hesitation. The plan to speak to Lars was even more necessary - if we were able to finalise the line up we could tell Gareth's manager either way - I didn't like the idea of stringing along anyone when it came to something as important as their careers.

The rest of the week went by in a blur of plans and meetings and suddenly, we were witnessing Friday practice sessions as the race weekend began in earnest. Pete and I waited outside the driver's briefing on Friday afternoon. We looked around, checking there were no cameras to catch us in our compromising spot. As a girlfriend of a driver, my presence could be explained away, but Pete's wasn't so simple.