ALICE Ch 172

Bright lights shine on the simple chair.

Will Buxton wears a complicated expression.

“Where do we begin?” he asks rhetorically. “Not to take away from the achievement of Valeria Flores, but let’s talk about the crash. Let’s be absolutely clear: this was not a Romain Grosjean situation.” He blows out his breath. “Although it certainly came close.”

Bright lights shine on the simple chair.

Christian Horner gestures with his hands.

“The relief, when Alice Wilde came out of the car, was considerable,” he says, showing enormous restraint. “Everyone had flashbacks to Romain. And other crashes as well,” he adds with a slight wince. “Really, we need to remember the realities of this sport. It wasn’t the race that Red Bull wanted, but it would be uncivilized to make that the issue. We’re all just glad that Alice Wilde is more or less all right.”

“Hardly a bad race for Red Bull,” the producer notes.

Horner merely shrugs.

Bright lights shine on the simple chair.

“I choose to focus on Valeria’s victory,” Matt Berry states bluntly. He crosses his legs and clasps his hands on his knee. “The crash is quite unnerving, but it has nothing to do with Valeria. I recognize that we were all very lucky that it wasn’t worse.”

“What about the fact that FUTA now leads Freedom in the Constructor’s Cup by a single point?” the producer asks.

“A small barrier. Trifling. Easily overcome,” Berry says confidently. “After all, nobody knows how long it’ll be before Alice Wilde is fit to drive again. Faye Darcy isn’t the one we have to worry about, charming though she may be. Who will drive for FUTA now? That’s the question people should be asking.” He narrows his eyes and leans forward. “That, and what really happened out there? We all saw it. We heard the radio. Curious business indeed,” he adds with a sly smile, leaning back.

Bright lights shine on the simple chair.

Zak Brown rubs his chin.

“Lando hit her,” he says. “Clear as day. What we don’t know is why. He was focused. She suddenly lost pace as he was attacking.” He moves his hands together in a gliding motion. “Miracle of physics. And safety engineering,” he adds. “Lando wasn’t at fault. And the fact that he could finish on a podium after that is incredible. I’m glad Alice Wilde is OK, and I know she’s popular right now, but have you looked at Twitter lately? People want to crucify Lando. He didn’t do anything.”

Spanish Grand Prix Results:

P1 – Flores (Freedom)

P2 – Verstappen (Red Bull)

P3 – Norris (McLaren)

P4 – Sainz (Ferrari)

P5 – Perez (Red Bull)

P6 – Darcy (FUTA)

P7 – Woodcock, S. (Williams)

P8 – Russell (Mercedes)

P9 – Hamilton (Mercedes)

P10 – Woodcock, M. (Williams)

P11 – Ricciardo (Haas)

P12 – Ocon (AlphaTauri)

P13 – LeClerc (Ferrari)

P14 – Dunham (Freedom)

P15 – Pattinson (McLaren)

P16 – Bottas (Aston Martin)

DNF Alonso (Aston Martin)

DNF Wilde (FUTA)

DNF Magnussen (Haas)

DNF Laakso (AlphaTauri)