Zhou Guanyu will get his first chance to race in front of his home fans this weekend in his fourth season of racing. F1 is heading back to the Shanghai International Circuit in China for the first time since 2019.
The event hasn’t featured on the calendar in the four intervening seasons because of the Covid-19 pandemic, but it returns this year. Sauber driver Zhou has had to wait patiently.
Appearing on the F1 Nation podcast, former driver Pedro de la Rosa was left stunned by what his fans had done ahead of the race. Zhou is the first Chinese driver in F1 history, so it’s very much a landmark occasion.
But even taking the emotions out of the equation, he’s in need of a big result. As it stands, the 24-year-old is one of seven full-time drivers yet to score a point this year.
He’s started at the back of the grid in each of the last three races and failed to finish higher than 15th since round one in Bahrain, although Sauber’s much-publicised pit-stop woes have hampered him. Last time out in Japan, he had to retire with a gearbox issue.
Pedro de la Rosa stunned by Zhou Guanyu news ahead of Chinese GP
Zhou has his own grandstand for this weekend’s event, positioned opposite Sauber’s garage on the main straight. According to podcast host Tom Clarkson, it sold out rapidly when tickets went up for sale.
As such, he will expecting quite the reception when he takes to the track for the opening practice session on Friday. De La Rosa can’t quite believe the scale of the interest.
Clarkson said: “The appetite of the Chinese fans for Formula 1 – we’ve got Zhou Guanyu on the grid, the first full-time Chinese driver. How is that going to going to affect things? He’s got his own grandstand opposite the Sauber pit garage. It sold out in four minutes.”
Upon hearing this, De La Rosa simply replied: “Wow.”
Will Zhou lose his Sauber seat for 2025?
Like teammate Valtteri Bottas, Zhou is in the final year of his contract. His underwhelming performances so far this year, together with the imminent Audi takeover, leave him at risk.
Indeed, the German brand very much appears to be shopping round as it prepares to enter the sport in 2026. Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz is at the top of the list ahead of Lewis Hamilton’s arrival, and Haas’ Nico Hulkenberg is a target too.
Journalist Scott Mitchell-Malm has described Zhou as a ‘pay driver’ who brings added value to Sauber through his unique commercial ties. But with the backing of a giant manufacturer like Audi, that will naturally be less important.
Zhou himself has said he never expected to be in Formula 1, let alone rack up nearly 50 race starts. Meanwhile, 1996 world champion Damon Hill feels he’s been quietly solid since his arrival.
Nonetheless, he stands ‘on the precipice’ of losing his Sauber seat. And as respectable as his performances have been, he may not have done enough to earn a drive elsewhere if he does receive the axe.
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