Leaving the ward, Zhang Yifei and Prost did not speak for a moment, but walked silently for a while.

All the way to the elevator, when the door closed, Prost spoke: "Fei, what do you think of Alessi's suggestion?" ”

"You're the boss, you have the final say."

Zhang Yifei replied casually, to be honest, he hadn't considered changing teammates before, unless it was Alessi's injury, which really couldn't support his future career journey.

But think about the 34-year-old Kubica, who can still drive F1 with one hand, and Alessi's injury is far from this level. Coupled with the fact that we are in better shape now and will have stronger cars in the future, it shouldn't be a problem to continue running for a year or two.

It's just that now Alessi has put it forward, and the practical problem is in front of him, but Zhang Yifei doesn't want to make his own decisions without authority, which is the scope of the boss's authority.

Hearing Zhang Yifei's words, Prost hesitated for a moment, and then said: "Now that the season is over, there are many drivers whose contracts have expired, and F3000 newcomers will also come forward for test drives." ”

"In addition to the main drivers of the major drivers, the other No. 2 drivers and newcomers basically have the opportunity to negotiate. Are you a newcomer or, like Alessi, a seasoned veteran wingman? ”

Prost still gave Zhang Yifei the opportunity to express his opinion, and it is not an exaggeration to say that Zhang Yifei's status in the Prost team is like Schumacher of Ferrari, and he has enough power to influence decision-making.

And more importantly, Zhang Yifei is, in a sense, an indirect shareholding in Prost Racing Team. Although he never asked for treatment as a shareholder, the fact is that there is still no change.

"Newcomer."

Alessi is finally willing to become a wingman, but not every veteran is willing to become a wingman, and completely subduing the other party is also according to the character, and when you meet a more scheming person, there is really no way to gamble or not admit defeat.

In comparison, newcomers may have weaknesses and dishes, but it is easier to crush them with strength, and they get along more directly.

Zhang Yifei has no effort and energy, what kind of team infighting to play, and he signed a three-year contract with Prost, a veteran at the end of his career, and his state is going downhill, will he change another partner when the time comes?

"Sato ponders what you think, a couple of F3 champions, and showing dominance, even trying the car in the Anglo-American team. What's more, he's also a yellow Asian, so he's likely to be more comfortable with you. ”

Prost recommended Japanese rider Takuma Sato, because he had already tasted the sweetness of this kind of national star in Zhang Yifei.

Although Japan is not directly a desert area like the Chinese formula, but now the Japanese F1 drivers are out of gear, with the rise of the leader Zhang Yifei, they also need a strong F1 driver to maintain their status as a powerhouse in the automotive industry.

Zhang Yifei's example has shown how much capital power is hidden behind the national superstar. If Takuma Sato can be recruited into the team, then it will be able to absorb Japanese advertising and sponsorship capital, which is very necessary for the long-term development of the team.

After all, the current budget of the Prost team is less than $50 million a year, and the Big Three team has no less than $100 million. Especially the local tycoon like Ferrari, even as high as two or three hundred million US dollars, and Schumacher's salary has to be sixty or seventy million US dollars.

In the future, if you want to make Prost Racing Team the fourth giant, or even squeeze out one of the three giants, without a team budget of $100 million, it will not be able to support the subsequent research and development of the "Mars rover".

So for the sake of the team's future, or more bluntly, for the money, Prost intends to recruit another underdog national driver.

Takuma Sato?

Suddenly hearing Prost say this name, Zhang Yifei was still a little surprised, he didn't expect the boss to recommend Takuma Sato, a Japanese driver.

Objectively speaking, Takuma Sato's strength is not too bad, at least his career performance is not inferior to Alessi. The main reason for his poor overall performance is that the team he joined is too bad, from the British and American teams at the beginning, to the later Suzuki Ajuri team, it is not too much to say that it is a generation of tractors.

If you want to drive amazing results in a car of this level, then you have to go against the sky.

Obviously, Takuma Sato is just a hard-working mediocre driver, and there is still a clear gap between him and the world's top F1 drivers. However, his ability to win the Indy 500 World Championship in later generations also proved that he has a certain potential, which may not have been played out in the F1 paddock.

For Takuma Sato's impression, Zhang Yifei is not bad, although the two have played against each other in the Ao Island Grand Prix F3 event, and the process is not very pleasant.

But Takuma Sato is the first driver in F1 to show the bloody nature of an Asian driver, and he can lose, but he will definitely not slow down and admit it! As a result, like Zhang Yifei, who first entered the formula field, he suffered a lot of criticism and even ostracized the entire F1 community.

The only difference is that Zhang Yifei finally used his strength to stand firm and followed the path of Hamilton in later generations. And Takuma Sato finally had no way to prove himself, so he could only go to India with the bankruptcy of the Suzuki Yakuri team.

To be honest, if you partner with Takuma Sato, Zhang Yifei is acceptable in terms of strength alone.

However, Zhang Yifei knows that behind Takuma Sato, it is actually the capital of Japanese automakers such as Honda. This is in a state of opposition to the background of China's automobile industry that he represents, and if he really gets rid of the alliance between Prost and Japanese automakers, he and Huali Group may become the shrimp that is eaten.

Of course, this is only a possibility, but there are many things Zhang Yifei must guard against in the future, and he does not have any capital to lose!

"You can consider, are there any other candidates?"

"This year's strongest newcomer, F3000 champion Massa, is also in the test phase, but he has a lot of teams to watch, and he may not be able to recruit the Prost team. There are also several newcomers and test drivers who have entered the transfer market in advance, but none of these two are suitable. ”

"The rest are the drivers whose contracts have expired for other teams, and it is possible that Jenson Barton and Fernando Alonso will become free drivers and are also negotiable targets."

When he said this, Prost suddenly thought of something and said to Zhang Yifei: "By the way, there is also a very important newcomer who will enter the F1 paddock, and he may attract a lot of drivers to scramble." ”

"Who's so famous?"

According to Zhang Yifei's historical experience, entering the F1 paddock this year, the biggest newcomer should be Massa.

Hero Senna and Tragic Massa, the Brazilian driver, will become the last world-class driver in Brazilian motor, supporting the glory and hope of all Brazilian fans.

To be honest, Massa's strength is really good, and if he drives a passable car at his peak, he has a chance to compete for the F1 world championship.

It's just that he regretted that he met Hamilton, who drove a stronger Mercedes-Benz car, and won the world runner-up title by one point. Later, he suffered a car accident and was hit in the head by a car fragment, which became a turning point in his state decline.

Since then, Brazil's last driver to compete for the world championship has also fallen from the world of motorsports, and the country that gave birth to the car god Senna has finally declined.

But Prost had already said about Massa before and did not give him such a high rating. So Zhang Yifei is really a little curious, among the newcomers this year, whose fame and strength can surpass Massa?

"Indy World Champion, the strongest newcomer of all time, Helio Casestrong!"

Helio?

When he heard this name, Zhang Yifei opened his mouth in surprise, he really didn't expect that Helio would come to F1.

"Doesn't he run the local program?"

"Since they have already chosen to come to F1, they naturally don't run local programs. But this is also a very normal thing, such as Villeneuve and Montoya, both of whom only ran IndyCar for a year or two, and chose to come to F1 after winning the annual championship. ”

"After all, both in terms of technology and income, Formula 1 far surpasses the Indo-local program. To use an old Chinese saying, people go to high places. ”

Now Prost has been at the team headquarters for a long time with a group of Chinese engineers, and he has slowly learned a lot of things, and even this kind of colloquialism, he knows.

"Very good, that's interesting."

Zhang Yifei said with a playful smile on his face, Helio chose to come to the F1 paddock this year, probably because he was unwilling in his heart and rushed to take revenge.

When Prost saw the smile on Zhang Yifei's face, he knew that this kid must have guessed Helio's intention to enter the F1 paddock this year.

"You're right, according to the rumors that are circulating right now, you are the first target for Helio to enter the F1 paddock. And since the U.S. Grand Prix, it is said that this super newcomer, who has a very frequent test process, is crazy to familiarize himself with the performance and track of the F1 car, and seems to be prepared. ”

"Then let him come, the Indy 500 can't win at home, and you still want to win me in F1?"

Zhang Yifei said in a disdainful tone, what is the strongest newcomer in history, it is not to crush himself. Indycar drivers should understand where their strength is capped, and not every champion is Villeneuve, or Montoya, who can become the top player in the F1 paddock.

Most IndyCar drivers, in fact, are in the F1 paddock, which is really not worth mentioning!

"If you recruit him to Prost, it will be interesting to be your team-mate."

Looking at Zhang Yifei's attitude, Prost teased that it is curious to think about what kind of sparks two arrogant newcomers will collide with in a team.

"Forget it, I think it's good to be an opponent."