In the car, Andi''s lips curled into a sly grin, his eyes under the helmet as cold as ice. Plenty of racers who had squared off against him had been taken down by his cunning tactics.


    Trailing behind, Jack Monroe gripped the steering wheel so tightly it seemed it might shatter. Watching the drama unfold at the uing bend, he was shocked that Andi had gone after the lead car so early. Everyone knew Andi''s car was a fortress with its endless modifications for safety. No ordinary racer''s car could handle a hit like that.


    With his eyes zing, Jack couldn''t help but mutter a curse, urgently advising Mirabe through the headset to steer clear. If Andi''s car collided with his, disaster was certain.


    Back in the control room, Curtis watched the drone footage with a sinking heart. Andi was tantly ignoring the basic rules of racing, acting like the Shepherd family''s team was nothing but roadkill beneath his tires. Ranked third in the world, he had the swagger to match.


    As the ck car seemed set to ram the red one at the bend, Curtis pressed a hand to his forehead, bracing for the worst for the red car. The guest racer might just learn the hard way not to underestimate a formidable opponent.


    But then, one of Curtis''s men gasped, "Did you see that? That driving is unreal! How did they dodge it?"


    Curtis''s head snapped up, his eyes fixed on the screen. To his amazement, the red car, once thought doomed, was now leading by a long shot. Meanwhile, Andi''s car had crashed into another car from his own team.


    Curtis''s eyes widened as he paused the footage and rewound a bit, finally seeing how the red car had pulled off the impossible. It had drifted around the ck car with a bizarre yet brilliant maneuver, sidestepping Andi''s vehicle entirely.


    Andi''s car, driven by inertia, collided with his team''s car. As soon as the red car''s tires gripped the asphalt again, it shot forward, leaving Andi''s car trailing far behind. By the time Andi tried catching up, it was already toote.


    In racing, even a second''s dy can change everything.


    Curtis''s shock gave way to realization. Moments ago, he had underestimated the driver of the red car, only to be proven wrong. It was a lesson in keeping an open mind.


    The first race ended with the red car crossing the finish line hundreds of meters ahead of Andi''s, untouched by any other vehicle.


    "We actually won the first race," one of Curtis''s men murmured, staring at the screen in disbelief.


    Just half an hour earlier, they had doubted their chances.


    "This driver is amazing, evading Andi so wlessly. How have we never heard of them before?" another of his men wondered aloud.


    Curtis, however, wasn''t too concerned about that. He stared at the screen, silent for a moment, then spoke with a serious tone: "Andi lost this round because he got careless. In the next race, he won''t make the same mistake. His car always holds a major edge!"