It is the day after the first race in Puebla and for some weird reason, I have decided to wake up early. There is just one tiny problem. The problem is, that Nyck is fast asleep with his arms wrapped around me. I get to work on nudging him awake. I notice his eyes opening. He releases a groan as he reluctantly lets me go. I check the time via my phone to see how early I woke up. It turns up that I woke up an hour and a half before I really had to. I am quick to change out of my pyjamas and into some fresh underwear and workout leggings. I check the label of one of the team shirts to make sure it is mine. If you are wondering, I am a couple of sizes bigger than Nyck. I slip the top over my body. Now that I am changed I have decided to go for a run to kill time. I let Nyck know as I left with my phone in my hand. Something tells me that he will sleep in. I am quick to find my running playlist. With that sorted, I set off. I let my thoughts wander. For some reason, I start to think about the possibility of more drama. I hope not as I was really out of it yesterday after the race finished. Nyck even called me out on it. After an hour of running, I made it back to the hotel room where Nyck and I are staying. I find him in the kitchen putting breakfast together.
"Morning," Nyck greets me.
"Hey, Nyck. I'm sorry about waking you up early," for some reason I find myself apologising.
"Don't worry about it. Anyway, where were you?" He replies as he places the bowl of cereal and yoghurt in front of me. It is the typical race car driver breakfast.
"I told you that I was going for a run to clear my head but you were half asleep when I told you," I retorted. It looks like something has clicked in his brain.
"Did it work?" Nyck asks.
"To be honest, not really. I'm overthinking the race again," I admit. There is no point in hiding my worries. Nyck knows me too well for me to be a good liar. I shove a spoonful of cereal into my mouth so that I don't have to talk about it. Yes, I know. I should talk about it but I am worried that if I do I will jinx the race for me and I don't want to do that. I need some good points. Thankfully Nyck is smart enough not to push for information. After an hour and a half of getting ready the time has come for us to head to the circuit. I am not surprised to find it crowded with fans. Even the garages are hives of activity. Nyck and I soon part ways so that we can get ready for the day. It doesn't take long for me to get to my driver's room where I quickly change into my race suit. There is a knock on my door. There are only two people that will want my attention.
"Come in," I say as Molly, my trainer enters the small room.
"Are you ready for the warm-ups?" She asks.
"Yup," I responded as I joined her outside. I am not really looking forward to it as I asked her to go hard on me since I was exhausted more than usual after the first race. Molly is quick to walk me through what we are going to do. After twenty minutes of work, I am let go.
"Thank you, Molly," I say.
"Don't worry about it," She responds as she sends me off with a good luck pat on the shoulder. After a quick walk, I made it back to the garage. I realise that I have a nasty feeling in regards to the race. I will see if it is justified when I talk to Kai. Speaking of Kai he approaches me with a look of apprehension. It doesn't take him long to explain the situation. Based on the way that he is talking, my weekend has gone from bad to worse. To be honest it is out of my control.
"Look Kai we will see what the car is like after free practice," I say. Yes I know it is near impossible to reassure Kai but I am going to try.
"Ok. Just don't worry if you have to retire early," Kai replies. It won't be his fault if something annoys me during the free practice session. It will be Robin's as he was the one that crashed into me. I will have to see what happens to the car after the free practice session. With that out of the way, I turn my attention to getting ready. As per usual I am quick to get my helmet and balaclava on. Now for Kristy's turn at telling me the bad news. Thankfully she is optimistic about the whole situation. It's a breath of fresh air compared to Kai's doom and gloom. With some help, I get comfortable in the car. After a minute-long wait that feels like forever Kristy gestures for me to leave. It doesn't take long for me to get back into the rhythm. Be careful down into turn one. Watch out for the grass and last of all try my best to carry enough speed around turn fifteen. That checklist is the only thing that is going through my head. Yesterday proved that this tack isn't for fools. As I go to change a few things on the steering wheel my attention is caught by an unfamiliar warning.
"Kai, there is something wrong," I use the radio to inform him of the warning.
"I'll keep...eye...," Kai's response is crackly. Great. Another problem that I don't need.
"You might want to consider using the pit board," I say. The truth is I won't know if he's gotten my message till I get to the start/finish straight. Thankfully my message got across as I spotted Kristy who is poking the pit board through a small gap in the fence. Well, it looks like I am going to have to use the Regen on instinct. After fifteen minutes the team made the decision to bring me in early. I don't mind as I am struggling to do everything manually. The truth is I rely on Kai more than I should. There is a part of me that is a little frustrated but I know that Kristy and her team are going to need as much time as possible. I soon brought the car back to the garage. Well, that was a waste of time. The good thing is Kristy and Kai have time to work out what went wrong. It doesn't take long for me to rescue myself from the car. Kai joins me as I get my helmet off.
"Jess, can you tell me what happened?" Kai asks even though he has the telemetry data open on the tablet in front of him.
"Well, the radio went dead. Then I went to arm attack mode which wouldn't work no matter how hard I tried and last but not least but not least the car was sluggish as I came back to the pits," I give my version of events. Kai nods along with my report. It seems his doom and gloom attitude was justified. I'll find out the full story later. I excuse myself as I shed the last of my gear. I have decided that I am going to watch the rest of the free practice session in the comfort of the hospitality area. Thankfully I am able to slip in unnoticed as the VIPs that have joined us have their faces glued to the broadcast. I don't understand why as the free practice sessions are normally uneventful. I stop and listen for a second.
"One of the Mercedes drivers has retired. According to our information, it was Jess Bianchi," One of the commentators remarks.
"I would guess that there was something wrong with the radio as the team were using the pit board to communicate with Jess," The other responds. I find it interesting that they haven't thought about damage to the car. To be fair I have only thought about it just now so I can't guarantee that Kai thought about it. The reason why the thought crossed my mind was that the car was fine yesterday. Well, that was until the collision with Robin. I want to get mad at him again however the fact that he was locked up was out of his control. With that realisation I head back to the garage just in case Kai hasn't come to the same conclusion. Thankfully I am quick to make it back to the garage.
"Kai I have a theory," I announce as I join him. I take the seat that was vacated by Ian who has chosen a different vantage point.
"What's your theory, Jess?" Kai asks as he looks up from his screen. Based on his reaction he hasn't come to the same conclusion as me.
"I think it might have something to do with the damage that Robin caused when he collided with me," I explain. Something tells me that there is a strong possibility that I could be right. Kai seems to consider my theory. He glances at the data.
"Maybe...," Kai trails off as he gets lost in his thoughts. Well, it looks like I am not going to get anywhere for now as Kai has his head back in the data. After an hour and a half of waiting, I have the nasty feeling that I will not be partaking in qualifying. I find myself taping on the table that I am sitting on while I await the dreaded news. If I don't score any points today Edo Mortara will close the gap even further. As those thoughts creep through my mind the tapping gets worse. It doesn't take long for me to be joined by Nyck who seems just as bothered about the situation as I am. I put it down to the fact that my good luck has come to an end. Don't get me wrong I knew it was going to happen but still I wanted it to be when I was a substantial amount of points ahead. Oh well, there is nothing that I can do. I just need to remain optmisitc.
"Jess I'm sure Kai will find a solution," Nyck gets to work on reassuring me.
"He will but I am not sure if he will find it before qualifying," I reply. I do have faith in Kai but the car was behaving weirdly. It doesn't take long for my suspicions to be confirmed. Kai joins us with a grim look on his face. Yup, my day has gone from bad to worse. I release a sigh. This is not what I need.
"Ok give me the bad news Kai," I remark as he sits down.
"We found the issue but we won't have it fixed before qualifying. So the plan is to gain as many positions as possible," Kai gives me a mini briefing.
"I'll try my best," I mustered some enthusiasm even though starting last is not the best. Oh well there is nothing that I can do except cheer for Nyck. Speaking of Nyck he looks utterly disgusted but he chooses not to say anything. Instead, he gives me a playful peck on the cheek. I can feel my face flush with embarrassment. I wouldn't normally mind but we are in public.
"Nyck you should get ready for the qualifying session," I playfully shove him away. I know he is trying to be helpful but still. Now is the time for public displays of affection. Nyck has things to do. Thankfully he gets the message. He gives me puppy dog eyes as he leaves. Now for the most boring part watching the qualifying session. To be honest I am just hoping that Nyck can score a good position. I head back to the garage so I can watch over Kai and Albert. I take the seat in between them again because Ian has chosen another spot. After what feels like an eternity the time has come for the super pole shootout. The good thing is Nyck was able to get sixth which means he has a chance to improve.
"Come on Nyck," I utter as he gets to work on setting a good lap time. Thankfully it doesn't take long for Nyck to set a decent lap. Now we have to wait for the others but I have a good feeling about it. It doesn't take long for the other drivers to set their times. It looks like Nyck might have stolen all of my luck for today. He has qualified in second place. A small ripple of cheers makes its way through the garage. At least something is going the team's way. After a long two hours of waiting, the time has come for me to gain as many positions as possible.
"Jess, here is your reminder to be careful. So be careful," Kai remarks via the radio. At least I know the radio is better. I just hope that means the car is better.
"You know I will be. I want to finish the race," I responded.
"I'm just reminding you. Anyway good luck," Kai retorts. It doesn't take long for the radio to fall silent. I take a deep breath as the single red light comes on. I stomp on the accelerator to get some heat into the tires. It only takes me a couple of seconds to slot into the proper grid slot. Now that I am in the right place the lights come on for real. Ok, I just need to gain as many places as possible. Lights out and away we go. As soon as the lights go out I launch the car. Thankfully I am able to jump past the NIO that was starting in front of me. After picking off some of the other backmarkers I hit an interesting problem. His name is Sergio Sette Camara. For someone in a slower car, he knows how to defend.
"I think I'm going to have to get past Sergio with the attack mode boost," I announce via the radio.
"Ok. Just do what you think will be best," Kai confirms. I use the attack mode activation paddle to arm the system. I peel off to start the small joker lap for the attack mode activation. It doesn't take long for me to go through the activation zone. As I complete the joker lap I notice that I came out painfully close to Sergio. At least he is smart enough to give me the right of way. It's starting to look like I owe Kristy a lot more. Not that I mind as I know what it is like to be in her position. Anyway, I need to get back to work. After what feels like an eternity I have made it up to the fourteenth place. Right now I am trying to get past Norman Nato. Like Sergio, he is defending well. I just have to bide my time. I don't have to wait long as Norman peels away from me. That means I will be able to take my last attack mode on the next lap.
"Jess I want you to take the attack mode on the next lap," Kai confirms my feeling, however, there is not going to be another lap. I have to take evasive action to avoid Norman who is rejoining the track. Unfortunately, there is nothing that I can do as I am forced into the wall.
"Dammit. Nato forced me off. I was in his blind spot," I announce as I try to drag the car to a better place. Despite my best efforts the car refuses to budge. It's official. I hate Puebla. Don't get me wrong, the fans are great, it's just the track that I hate.
"It doesn't matter so long as you are fine," Kai responds. Fine is relative. Physically I am good but I am beyond pissed at myself. I should have been extra careful but alas I was not careful enough. Thankfully I am given the go-ahead to rescue myself from the car. It is a short process. With that out of the way, I head back to the garage. I am quick to find a hiding spot. The media are going to lap up this incident because Edo will now have the championship lead. I soon made it to my driver's room. It is there that I rescue myself from my helmet and balaclava. I toss my helmet and HANS device on the small table in front of me. After a couple of minutes of calming down, I decided to face the media. The paddock reporter is quick to find me.
"Jess, can you tell me what went wrong?" She gets to work on getting the information out of me.
"I was in Norman's blind spot and the only place I could go was into the wall," I explained.
"It must be frustrating," She prompted for a response.
"Yeah well, there is nothing that I can do as we were having issues with the car and the contact from Norman only made things worse," I responded. I am trying not to be visibly annoyed but I don't think it is working.
"Thank you for your time, Jess," She replies.
"No problem," I retort as she leaves. Now I can enjoy the rest of the race in peace. I soon find a seat next to Kristy who is staring at the broadcast intently. After fifteen minutes and no other dramas, the race has come to an end and unfortunately, Nyck just missed out on a podium because of the way that attack mode works. After an hour of various debriefs the day has come to an end and I am glad as that means we will have much-needed downtime before the E-Prix in New York. I am about to leave when I am stopped by another French accent.
"Jess, I need to apologise for putting you in the wall," Norman says as he catches up to me.
"Honestly Norman I don't think you were at fault. I should have been mindful of your blind spot," I counter. At least he is apologising.
"Let's just agree that Puebla's race track isn't the best for Formula E," Norman confirms my feeling. We may not agree on who was at fault but at least we can agree that Puebla wasn't the best location to hold a Formula E race. It doesn't take long for us to part ways. It doesn't take long for me to find Nyck who seems relieved. I put it down to the fact that he was worried about me.
"I think we are going to have a relaxing night tonight," Nyck reads my mind. To be honest I need a relaxing week. Just so long as I can relax before New York I'll be fine. Sure there will be some sim work that I have to do but I think Nyck and I can make it fun like the last time.