The race was hit by rain, and tire strategy played an important part in deciding the final standings.

But in Chengdu, Xiong a 'bing, a chef who runs a chain of restaurants called Rustic Impressions, specializing in robustly traditional dishes, said people would tire of the race toward spicy novelty.

If not for his safety car mix-up in the first race and the blown tire in Chengdu, he could have been sitting comfortably on top of the driver championship race.