Disclaimer: All recognisable characters belong to Pixar. All OCs belong to me.

Chapter 45 – Day 1 at Queensland Raceway

Ipswich Supersprint, Day 1 – Queensland Raceway, Willowbank, Queensland – 53 Kms west of Brisbane – Saturday, 1 August, 2015

Lightning smiled broadly as he entered the Redbulldozer pit garage. He'd had a great day the day before, topping his two practice sessions in the Development Series, and the commentators were already saying that he was very likely to take out the Development Series Championship. Lightning knew not to dwell on such speculation. Even though they were halfway through the season, it was still much too early for him to worry about the championship.

"Morning, Speedster," Leyland greeted him cheerfully.

"Morning, Leyland. Before you ask, yes I am ready to race. Especially since it's so cold this morning. It's nice being able to go back home after a hard day of racing, and fall asleep beside my gorgeous wife."

A general chuckled arose from those who'd heard Lightning's statement.

"And some people wonder why we always do so well at this racetrack," Dutto sniggered. "We at least get to return to our cosy homes at the end of the day. Most of the other teams have to put up with staying in a noisy hotel while they're here."

Jamie and Craig entered the garage then. They were about to start their third and final practice session of the weekend.

"I think I'll go and see Doctor Anderson now," Lightning said. "If anyone wants me, I'll be in the transporter."

Twenty minutes later, Lightning returned to the garage after undergoing his physiotherapy session. Jaime and Craig had put in a reasonable performance for their final practice session, finishing tenth and twelfth respectively.

Kori and her camera car approached Lightning as he was being prepared for his qualifying round.

"Lightning, can I talk to you for a moment, please?"

"Sure."

"I haven't had a chance to interview you properly for a while now. Last time we spoke, you were very upset by Jimmy's death. How are you feeling now?"

"I think I've started to move past it," Lightning replied. "I've come into this event knowing that I just need to maintain my consistency, and then I should be well on track to putting in a decent challenge for the championship."

"Some of the commentators are already saying that you'll win the Development Series Championship. What do you make of that?"

"For me, it's still much too early to speculate about the championship. Paul's still a serious threat to my championship hopes, and Pither's starting to look strong, so I'm not to stress about it yet. Ask me about that after the Enduro events, and I'll be able to give you a more realistic answer."

"Your lovely wife, Sally, is here today. She doesn't often come to your races, does she?"

"I don't pressure her into coming to watch me. At least when she's at home, she's able to switch off the TV if she sees me doing something that frightens her. So far, that hasn't happened yet, but I know she'll support me whether she's at the track or not."

Outside in the pit lane, an air horn sounded.

"Sorry, but I've gotta go now," Lightning apologised.

"Okay. Thanks, Lightning. Good luck out there today."

"Thanks."

The racetrack at Queensland Raceway was exactly to Lightning's liking. It was known as 'the paperclip', because that's exactly what it looked like. Following Leyland's advice, Lightning went out hard and fast around the first sector of the racetrack, which resulted in him securing yet another pole position. He wasn't even puffed when he returned to the pits.

"Excellent work, Speedster," Leyland congratulated him upon his return. "Keep racing like that, and we should have a good race later this arvo. You can go chill out now, but make sure you're back here by three o'clock at the latest. Your race starts at three-thirty."

Lightning spent the next few hours with Sally in the VIP area. He had a great view of the racetrack, so he could watch the other support races, and enjoy a delicious lunch in the meantime.

"I'm glad you didn't tell Kori our news," Sally said as they watched the Championship Series racers batting it out in qualifying.

"It's none of her business," Lightning replied with a shrug. "I want to keep my personal life as private as possible."

"Good. After all, we should keep some aspects of our life together out of the media."

Lightning planted a small kiss on Sally's lips. "At least my DNA has been frozen now, so if anything does happen to me out there…"

"It won't though. Leyland won't let you do anything stupid."

Lightning kissed her again.

"Oi!" a familiar voice said loudly. "Find a room!"

Laughing, Lightning turned to face Paul. "If that's what you want. Sal? I think the transporter's empty right now…"

"Oh!" Sally exclaimed. "You are impossible, you know that!"

Lightning and Paul laughed heartily.

"Jamie told me you're about to start a family," Paul said once the laughter had died down. "Congratulations."

"Thanks. The baby's not due to be built until mid-April."

"Are you hoping for a boy or a girl?"

"Boy," Lightning and Sally replied in unison. They grinned at each other. Paul rolled his eyes.

"Let me guess. He'll be raised as a future Piston Cup racer?"

Lightning shrugged innocently. "Considering our baby will be an Australian citizen, he could just as easily end up racing in the V8s."

Craig and Jamie ended up qualifying in 5th and 10th place for Race 18, but then Craig won pole position for Race 19, with Jamie qualifying in 8th. Leyland looked rather pleased with everyone's results, but he didn't say that aloud.

Race 18 for the Championship Series began at 4:25 that afternoon. Lightning watched the race from the pits, in the hope that he might pick up some extra tips. He watched closely to see when Craig and Jamie chose to brake, and where they chose to accelerate. Everyone was pretty pleased to see Craig take third place on the podium, while Jamie finished a respectable eighth.

"Tightening his antiroll-bars before each race seems to be doing the trick," Leyland mused afterwards, while the Championship racers made their way back to the pits.

"We can't keep doing it forever though," Dutto pointed out. "I want Jamie to have that surgery after the races at Sydney Motorsport Park."

"I know." Leyland turned to Lightning, who'd just removed his headset. "Are you ready to race, Speedster?"

"Yup! Let's do this."

Lightning managed to get a brilliant start off the line for his first race of the weekend. Clearly, all of the practices he'd done in his driveway at home had paid off. He had no idea what went on behind him, but he didn't care. By the second corner, he'd managed to establish a solid lead. He knew that all he had to do was stay ahead of Paul.

He did, and he ended up with yet another solid win, putting him well ahead of Paul on points.

"Great work, Speedster," Leyland praised afterwards. "You can head on home now, if you like, or you can stay and watch Craig and Jamie race."

"I think I'll head home," Lightning replied. "I'll see Doctor Anderson first though. I don't want to wake up stiff and sore tomorrow, and not be able to race properly. I'll phone Craig after the race to see how he and Jamie went. See you all tomorrow."