The continuous flips saw the caravan enter Turn 3.
Braking, downshifting, Lin Yan knew Reissna was right behind him, so his line was flawless.
Reissna's front wheel was already touching Lin Yan's rear wheel. This track didn't have many straights, and the elevation changes were significant, still giving the Ben Tian a slight advantage.
Before leaving Ben Tian, Reissna still wanted to try if he could challenge Lin Yan.
In any case, the championship was probably out of reach this year, so he wanted to go all out and see his own limits.
Turn 5, a series of corners, Reissna was ready. As soon as he exited the corner, he pulled away, tucked into the inside line, and then smoothly overtook.
Exiting the corner, the line was flawless. The entire overtaking maneuver was textbook perfect, a complete defense of an old veteran's dignity.
"Phew, Reissna overtook Lin Shen in Turn 5."
Hao Dong exclaimed excitedly from the stands.
Lin Yan being overtaken was a rare occurrence during this period of the race. Hao Dong couldn't help but be excited. It seemed Reissna was truly determined this time.
Lin Yan's fans were different from others; they enjoyed seeing their idol being overtaken.
It made things more exciting; otherwise, it would be too boring.
Sensing Reissna's aggressive state today, Lin Yan also became interested. Mediocrity was boring; whether in life or in racing, one should always be passionate.
A heavy brake into Turn 6, the car moved to Reissna's side, a leg out, blocking the line, and their positions were swapped back.
Offense and defense alternated, Lin Yan returned to first place, but Reissna didn't back down. It looked like he was preparing to offend his new boss before his transfer.
Reissna was in his most aggressive attacking state today. The two constantly swapped positions, fighting all the way, not holding back even at Turn 8, known as the "bottle opener."
"Look, it's shaking so much."
"What's wrong today? Reissna looks like he's riding really fiercely."
"Fiercely? This is exciting. It's been a while since we've seen Lin Shen in a dogfight."
Planning to leave Ben Tian completely, Reissna decided to let loose and show that old guy Tesuna.
The wheels bounced violently, but everything was within controllable limits.
In the flip between Turns 8 and 9, Reissna exited ahead this time. Lin Yan didn't let him stay in front for long, making a move in Turn 10.
The frequent exchanges between the two also gave Gna behind them an opportunity. He followed closely, not thinking of picking up scraps from behind; he wanted to join the fray.
Taking advantage of Reissna overtaking Lin Yan again in a corner, Gna followed Reissna's car, preparing to overtake Lin Yan along with him.
This was exactly what it meant to fish in troubled waters.
Before Turn 12, in the braking zone, Lin Yan sensed someone on his side and instinctively eased off the throttle. Someone was overtaking, and that someone was naturally Reissna.
The opponent braked late, coming alongside you and blocking your subsequent line. The most correct approach was to ease off the throttle, pause entering the corner, and then enter the corner after the opponent's car had moved away.
After the late braking overtake, as Reissna passed, Lin Yan began to tilt his car, preparing to enter the corner.
Suddenly, just as Lin Yan's car was about to tilt down, Gna also moved up, tailgating and overtaking. This kind of overtaking was like using the ETC lane on the highway; it was all about speed, accuracy, and ruthlessness. Of course, this was nothing for GP riders; as long as they could follow closely enough.
Facing the car suddenly appearing on his right, Lin Yan still evaded normally, waiting for the opponent to pass before entering the corner.
"Good heavens, Gna actually dares to overtake Lin Shen. Doesn't he know his own limits?"
"What is this kid trying to do? Come here to be a pushover?"
Reissna could overtake Lin Shen, but Gna couldn't. Lin Yan's fans showed their double standards vividly.
Gna passed, but it was of no use. The gap between Gna and Reissna was still huge. Lin Yan regained his position almost immediately upon entering the next corner.
Then, as if with great tacit understanding, Reissna and Lin Yan stopped fighting and accelerated, with Lin Yan using Reissna's slipstream to set lap times as if in qualifying.
After two laps, they had pulled away from Gna by nearly a second, and then they started their duel again.
Gna watched from behind, completely bewildered. It seemed they thought he was superfluous.
During the time they were fighting, Gna was not without pressure. After following for two laps, Qionghai behind him began to attack. On this track, Yamaha was no worse than Ben Tian, and perhaps even a step stronger.
Qionghai handled Gna with ease. However, this time Gna was more desperate than before, refusing to give up his position easily. The two fought fiercely.
Seeing this, Tesuna showed a look of satisfaction. Although Gna couldn't compare to Reissna, he had the advantage of youth and talent, which were not problems for the future.
Reissna, on the other hand, had long passed his peak. How many years could an old veteran's prime last?
The race entered its third lap. After three laps of battling with Lin Yan, Reissna finally began to fall behind. However, even so, he was still the only one on the track who could keep up with Lin Yan.
At full throttle, even Qionghai found it difficult to achieve this now.
"This is boring. I feel like Lin Shen is going to pull away again."
"Yeah, maybe. Reissna seems to have reached his limit."
"..."
The audience guessed the outcome with some certainty, and the reality was indeed unfolding in the direction the audience predicted.
Once Lin Yan opened up a gap, that distance would continuously increase. This was why Reissna had to stick so close to Lin Yan in the early stages; he knew that if he let go, Lin Yan would pull far ahead.
Below the stands, Zhang Mingzhi was monitoring the car's data while occasionally glancing at the thermometer beside him. Today's race was indeed at a disadvantage for Ducati.
The powerful straight-line horsepower meant heavier braking at the end compared to other manufacturers' cars. This was why Ducati's race cars were more prone to brake fade than others.
In the blink of an eye, the race reached lap ten. Lin Yan had already opened up a five-second lead. At this point, Reissna behind had completely given up chasing and began to focus on defense.
Looking at the leading Lin Yan, Tesuna frowned repeatedly. At this moment, he shared a peculiar question with the previous chief engineer: how could this twenty-one-year-old young man be so strong?
A Hall of Fame rider, truly extraordinary!