Since Day One - Max Verstappen X Male Reader

Chapter 10

“Welcome back to another Formula One race weekend where we are anticipating another thrilling race in the triple header of the season. Lewis Hamillton is leading the championship by just 18 points with Y/N L/N just falling behind. And Y/N leads Max Verstappen by just 16 points. It is of course a sprint weekend so drivers will be looking to take home maximum points. Let's hope that the drivers in the top 3 can avoid contact, unlike they did at Silverstone.” 

Over the course of the past few weeks things really haven't been going my way. I have spent nearly every waking minute trying to arrange the moving details to my apartment in Monaco but since Monaco doesn't have an Airport it's been difficult to arrange all the shipping - it's also made me have a lot more respect for the team in logistics who have to move an entire F1 paddock to another country within 1 to 2 weeks.

Max and Kelly have been confirmed to be a couple which I can't say surprises me. But I haven’t been focused on them. I have made sure to spend loads of time outside in the natural environment, I have started reading again and doing relaxation tasks. Additionally the past few weeks I have spent a lot of time with Kimi. Everything I have done has been alongside him. It has felt strange hanging around with Kimi without Ollie as he is the whole reason we have met each other, but it has allowed us to get to know each other without Ollie exposing both of us, and as much as we love him he's a lot more talkative than we are so it's allowed us to open up to each other at our own pace rather than having Ollie catalyse everything. 

Sauber have also taken note of mine and Kimi's friendship and have invited him to sit in the Sauber garage over the race weekend. Obviously we had to ask Toto for permission and reassure him that Kimi isn't betraying Mercedes and that we are not trying to steal his young academy driver. 

Just before I get in my car I go over to Kimi and give him a fist bump and he reassures me I will do well. 

As It's only the sprint I can't lie I'm not that bothered. Now I know a racing driver who doesn't care about winning a race is no longer a driver. But what I mean is this is really a test for the new upgrades the team have put on the car. So I'm seeing it more as a test for Sunday. 

The track, unlike Silverstone, is dry and the weather is much warmer which makes driving a lot more uncomfortable. The stands are surprisingly full for sprint qualifying. As it's the Austrian Grand Prix weekend the crowds are dominated by a sea of Red Bull merch. As a driver your home race is the most pivotal thing of the season even if it's only your team's home race, but for the other drivers they always feel a little intimidated by the support the home fans have for home driver's and team's but at the end of the day we are racers and have to beat them regardless of the hate from the home fans. 

“Y/N Green light, we are good to go” 

Heading into any session there are always these nerves festering inside you and as the Sauber garage is at the end of the pit lane I don't have much time to take in my surroundings when coming out of the garage. 

My first lap is absolutely abysmal but I manage to improve drastically on my second lap excelling through to SQ2. The upgrades have started to show their limitations and in SQ2 I feel like I'm sitting on a bouncy castle as the car is bouncing up and down the straights. And it obviously impacts my performance. 

“Have we been bumped?” I ask my engineer.

“Yes Y/N we are P11” 

I would say I'm upset but I'm also not surprised. The car hasn't been at its best all weekend and it feels like we have gone back to square one. The team have only made one change to the car so we know exactly what it is, but we can't change it as Parc Fermé rules state teams can't change the cars before a race.