I can only imagine his frustration at not being able to do the overtake.
Caleb tries again as they exit the famous tunnel, but again, he can’t get the position right to do it.
Damn it.
I manage to shift my attention to Romeo, who is still holding on to sixth—but Daan Jessen, the Dutch driver for Hoffman, is closing on him.
I can picture the strategies being sorted out. When will the leaders pit? How will they manage the use of soft tires versus hard tires? Will there be a yellow safety flag?
The race continues on, with one safety car called when a Vipera car ends up in the wall. Luckily, Luke Larson—the Aussie driver—is fine and walks away from it. Then Adrien gets a puncture from debris from that collision, as he was following behind Luke.
The yellow flag allows for Romeo to come in for a pit stop, and Collings Motors gives the first pit stop to Mason, then Caleb comes in next. Romeo has a brilliantly planned stop, and with an aggressive overtake laps later, he finds himself in fourth place! It’s a huge win for Vitesse. The pit wall cheers as he makes his move, and the energy in this room is electric right now.
For me? It’s electric because Caleb has held on to third place, with Romeo continuing to close on him.
The drama continues between the top four as the laps continue to fly by. Then Mason brushes against a barrier, and I wonder if he’s caused some damage to that front left tire.
With six laps to go, Xavier has closed on Mason—and now Mason is struggling with his tires. The top four cars are bunched together, racing through the narrow streets of Monaco, fractionsof a second apart. The distance from Mason to Romeo is a mere 2.1 seconds.
The tension is incredible now. My eyes are riveted to the screen showing the race.
Mason continues to lose grip. Xavier is all over the back of him.
And Caleb is closing on Xavier.
But putting pressure on Caleb is Romeo, who is ready to challenge for third place. The anxiety I feel right now is unreal.
But if Xavier makes a move on Mason, and if there is any kind of a mistake, Caleb will be there to take advantage of it.
Three laps left. Time is running out for Caleb to challenge Xavier for second place.
Come on, Caleb,I think as I stare at the screen, watching the top four cars go around again.
Caleb continues to push. Somehow, even on tires that are struggling, Mason gets out farther ahead. Xavier continues to chase him, and while Caleb is close to Xavier, he can’t get close enough to attempt an overtake.
Two laps left. The four cars remain in the same position.
I’m back to digging my nails into my palms, trying to manage my anxiety in a way so that nobody will even notice I have a massive case of it right now.
Last lap.
Around they go, and Mason begins to slow a bit. I hold my breath as Xavier tries to challenge him in one of the few favorable spots on the track for an overtake, but Mason fights him off. Caleb can’t get into a spot to challenge Xavier, and the cars finish in the order they started on the grid as they pass the checkered flag.
I smile as cheers erupt on the Vitesse pit wall and among the guests in the viewing area. This is Romeo’s highest finish allseason, and both Vitesse cars were in the points today. They will definitely be celebrating tonight.
So will Collings Motors, as it is a double podium for them with a first and third place finish. After Caleb asserted himself in Miami, Mason has come right back and made his case to be the number-one driver.
And now it’s up to Caleb to respond to the challenge in Spain next week.
* * *
I walk out of customs in Miami on Monday afternoon, dragging my suitcase behind me, and I’mexhausted.My travel was split into two days this time—I left Nice at nine on Sunday night, landing in Paris at ten-thirty-five. Today, I traveled from Paris to Miami, leaving at ten-thirty in the morning and touching down in Miami at two-twenty in the afternoon.
Meanwhile, Caleb stayed behind in Monaco. I watched him get his trophy on the podium and spray the champagne, and then I made my way back to the hotel so I could get ready for my flight. Caleb did his media interviews—always joyful for him—and then debriefings. He didn’t go out to celebrate at the lavish Monaco nightclubs like Mason and Xavier did. He said he has to prepare for Spain and is already thinking about the next race.
And I’m thinking about my move to London.
I look around the Miami airport for my dad. He left work early today to pick me up. As I think of him, my heart catches a little bit. Yes, I lived away from Mom and Dad when I studied at Georgia, but I was home at regular intervals.