Race Engineer - Daniel Ricciardo

Chapter 1

The annoying sound of my alarm clock wakes me up. I groan and roll over in my bed, turning the alarm off. I sit up, sighing to myself. I can never get used to the early mornings.

I quickly check my phone, seeing some texts, mostly from team members, one from my mum.

Mum : good luck today, sweetheart. You can do it. I'm so proud of you xxxx

I smile, before throwing the covers off of me. I walk towards my closet and grab some clean underwair. I make my way to the bathroom, turning on the shower. After letting it heat up, I jump under, letting the water run over my body, relaxing myself.

I stay under the shower for about 10 minutes, before I dry myself off and putting on my underwair. I walk back into my bedroom, searching for clothes to wear. I go for a pair of grey jeans, along with my usual team polo.

I put my hair up in a high pony tail, getting it out of my face. I apply some light make-up as well, making me look somewhat presentable.

I grab my phone and staff pass, before making my way into the kitchen. I grab a bowl and fill it with milk and cereal. I sit down for a few, replying to the texts and eating my breakfast.

I start to prepare for today, it'll be a long and hard day. I am meeting Max for the first time. I am supposed to have a simulator session with him as well, to collect some data and start preparing for Barcelona.

Yesterday, after I had gotten the news, I was allowed to skip the Russian Grand Prix data. I had recieved the data from Max's race, so I went through that, trying to learn as much as possible.

I put my now empty bowl in the sink, grabbing a glass of apple juice and finish it in a few seconds. I put in my sneakers and grab my keys. I lock my front door and get in the car, getting ready to drive to the Factory.

-

I am walking through the hallways of the Factory, on my way to the team. Everyone who will be working with Max in his garage, will be meeting him today. We thought it was best to do everyone at the same time, so Max and I can go to work right after.

"Ah, there she is!" one of the pitcrew members, Jacob, yells. I smile widely at him, waving at everyone. Rocky is here as well. He is the Head of Engineering, he has got to know Max as well.

"Hey, Kenz!" my favorite voice says. I smile widely at my best friend from the team, Evy. She was Daniil's Press Officer, so she now will be Max's.

"Hey, Evy! How are you, love?" I ask her as I give her a hug.

"I'm well, you?"

"Tired, stressed, restless. But good" Evy giggles and nods. Just then, the door opens again and Christian walks in, followed by a boy wearing a Red Bull shirt. He smiles at everyone, or atleast tries.

"Max, this is your new race engineer, Mackenzie Reed. Mackenzie, this is Max Verstappen" Christian says, approaching me first. I smile widely at the young Dutchman, extending my hand to him. He shakes it and nods.

"It's good to meet you" he says, his Dutch accent only slightly hearable in his voice.

"It's great to meet you too. Are you ready for this?" I ask, hoping that I don't sound judgy. Luckily, Max just smiles widely.

"I am, ready to start working" he answers. I nod, letting him meet the others. His team members all smile at him, making me happy to be a part of this team. Each and everyone is extremely nice and helpfull. Evy shakes Max's hand as well, introducing herself as his PR. The two talk for a bit.

"Max? We are supposed to have a sim session later, but I have some work to do. Could you meet me at my office later?" I ask him. Max nods but frowns.