Chapter 176: Restarting the Race
The pit lane was in complete chaos.
Aside from the five drivers who had stayed out, every other car had dived in for fresh tires under the Safety Car.
Because Wu Shi had pitted early and the pit lane was still relatively clear at that moment, he wasn't delayed and rejoined in P6, with Hamilton right behind him.
Rosberg, who should have exited just behind Hamilton, was far less fortunate.
After his stop, he was stuck at the end of the pit box in the inner working lane, unable to rejoin.
Cars on the fast lane—closest to the pit wall—kept flashing past one after another, leaving him nowhere to go.
By the time he was finally released, he had lost several positions.
When he rejoined, he was already down in P10, behind Massa.
By Lap 5, all pit stops were completed, and the order had been completely reshuffled:
1. Vettel
2. Hülkenberg
3. Grosjean
4. Sainz
5. Pérez
6. Wu Shi
7. Hamilton
8. Ricciardo
9. Massa
10. Rosberg
11. Merhi
12. Kvyat
13. Verstappen
14. Bottas
15. Alonso
16. Button
17. Nasr
18. Räikkönen
The Safety Car remained out front, and once Vettel began to bunch up the pack, several drivers started complaining that the pace was too slow.
Wu Shi felt the same problem immediately—his hard tires were struggling to generate temperature. He weaved aggressively left and right, trying to put some heat into the rubber.
At the end of Lap 6, the Safety Car peeled into the pit lane.
Lap 7.
Green flag.
Vettel punched the throttle and accelerated hard, pulling the field with him.
Wu Shi reacted instantly and got on the power, but Pérez ahead of him hesitated slightly, disrupting his run out of the final corner.
Still, it didn't really matter.
This straight wasn't ideal for overtaking, and on cold hard tires, the grip felt almost like street rubber.
He checked his mirrors.
Hamilton was already pulling out, looking for a way past, but Mercedes was clearly struggling for tire temperature as well. The car simply couldn't commit to a proper move.
Only just before Turn 1 did Hamilton finally manage to draw alongside, aiming boldly for the inside.
Wu Shi hadn't expected such an early attack.
But there was no chance he would simply hand over the position.
He moved decisively toward the inside, leaving barely three-quarters of a car's width.
From the cockpit, it looked like there was space—but that space led straight over the curb, and the curb at Turn 1 was high enough to unsettle the car badly.
Hamilton recognized the risk instantly.
He backed out slightly, choosing not to gamble his front wing against Wu Shi's rear tire.
Any damage now—regardless of fault—would be catastrophic.
But having abandoned the move, he still voiced his frustration.
Hamilton (radio): "He closed the door very aggressively. There was no space."
The reply from the pit wall was brief.
Mercedes: "He's a rookie, you need to allow for his positioning. But you should pass him quickly, otherwise you'll be losing too much time."
Almost at the same moment, Wu Shi was also on the radio.
Wu Shi: "He shouldn't be attacking right now. Our target is the same—we need to clear the cars ahead as fast as possible and get back to the front."
Jonathan hesitated for half a second.
Why did it sound like the two of them were arguing through different radios?
But he answered quickly.
Jonathan: "He has slightly better pace than us, but overtaking around the outside is difficult. You still have a few clean laps.
"And you need to pass the car ahead as soon as possible. They are costing you a lot of time."
The strategy team had already run the numbers.
If the four slower cars ahead weren't cleared quickly, Wu Shi would be losing nearly nine-tenths of a second per lap.
"Copy."
The cars surged forward.
Just after exiting Turn 4, Wu Shi saw his chance.
Pérez's Force India didn't have great straight-line speed, and with the slipstream, the Williams had enough momentum to pull alongside before Turn 5.
Knowing Hamilton was stalking right behind him, Wu Shi chose the outside line.
Pérez defended toward the middle of the track—
and then suddenly noticed another silver car attacking on the inside.
Instantly, he was caught in a pincer.
As Wu Shi drew level, he kept one eye on Hamilton. Seeing that Hamilton had also launched his move, Wu Shi decisively squeezed inward, narrowing the gap on Pérez.
But Hamilton had already forced Pérez outward even earlier.
For a split second, the Force India was about to be crushed between a Mercedes and a Williams.
Pérez flinched, dabbed the brakes, and yielded, letting both cars blast through.
Over the radio, he exploded:
Pérez: "What are they doing?! Are they trying to sandwich me like bacon?!"
The moment the inside cleared, Wu Shi snapped the steering left.
In the blink of an eye, his car was glued to Hamilton's gearbox.
Hamilton's plan was actually very smart.
The outside line through Turn 5 would be slower, and he was setting up to pass two cars at once.
But Wu Shi had already anticipated that.
He had chosen the outside deliberately—because Turn 6 was a reverse corner.
He carried the outside line through Turn 5 and immediately converted it into the inside for Turn 6.
And Turn 6 was narrow.
Wu Shi seized the apex, shut the door, and completed the pass in a single, perfectly timed sequence.
Out onto the next straight, the Williams was clearly ahead.
Hamilton had no choice but to lift.
Behind them, Ricciardo and Massa also cleared Pérez two corners later.
Then came Rosberg, Verstappen, and Kvyat.
Pérez's brief stay in fifth place lasted only two Safety Car laps before he dropped all the way to P12.
Meanwhile, Massa was feeling the pressure.
Massa (radio): "The Mercedes behind is very fast. I'm under a lot of pressure."
The Williams pit wall hesitated.
Both drivers were in the same car, yet Wu Shi was managing to hold off Hamilton, while Massa was struggling badly against Rosberg.
In the end, the instruction was simple and direct.
Williams: "You need to delay him. Wu Shi is fighting Hamilton ahead. He needs your support."
There was a short pause on the radio.
Then:
Massa: "Copy."
Immediately, the veteran began placing his car aggressively, sacrificing tire life to protect his teammate's race.
Up front, Wu Shi noticed something strange.
Hamilton wasn't attacking as hard as expected.
Wu Shi (radio): "I feel like he's holding back."
Jonathan: "What?"
Wu Shi: "He seems hesitant to attack me."
Jonathan: "Ricciardo is behind him. You're slowing him down, so he's waiting for a better opportunity. And the hard tires aren't working well yet."
Wu Shi considered it.
If he could pressure Hamilton harder, maybe Ricciardo's threat would buy him a few safer laps.
But he immediately abandoned the idea.
Once DRS was enabled, even on hard tires, the Mercedes would still be faster.
He needed to attack now.
His driving style changed instantly.
The car became sharp, aggressive—like a blade pulled from its sheath.
Before Turn 9, he braked impossibly late.
White smoke burst from the front tires as he dove into Sainz's inside, then forced his way into Turn 10.
But Sainz, despite being a rookie, was no pushover.
He defended fiercely, squeezing the track inch by inch, leaving barely enough space for two wheels.
Overtaking here was nearly impossible.
Wu Shi had no choice but to back out.
He tucked back in behind the Toro Rosso.
From practice and qualifying, it was already clear:
Toro Rosso had a very competitive midfield package.
This wouldn't be a simple power pass.
Until the end of Lap 7, Wu Shi remained trapped behind Sainz.
Hamilton, likewise, couldn't find a way past Wu Shi and was stuck in the same traffic.
Jonathan updated him:
Jonathan: "Gap to Vettel is now five point eight eight seconds."
Over at Mercedes:
Mercedes: "Gap to Vettel is six point two three seconds."
Further back, Rosberg was growing increasingly frustrated.
Rosberg: "Overtaking feels very difficult. What's the situation with the tires?"
Mercedes: "You're on hard tires. Most of the cars ahead are on medium compound."
Rosberg fell silent.
Now he finally understood why the restart had felt so powerless.