Guanyu Zhou will become the first Chinese to drive in the Formula 1 Grand Prix. His tenure alongside the Finnish Valtteri Bottas completes the starting grid for 2022.
“It is a pleasure to welcome Guanyu Zhou to Alfa Romeo Racing. He is a very talented driver, as his results in F2 have shown, and we are looking forward to helping his talent flourish even more in Formula 1.” Alfa Romeo Team Principal Frederic Vasseur said.
“We are proud of our line-up for 2022 and we are confident Zhou will form a very successful partnership with Valtteri.
“We are also looking forward to welcoming all the new Chinese fans who will join the team: Alfa Romeo Racing is a historical brand and one that embodies the spirit of Formula 1 and we will do our utmost to make the experience of our sport a great one in China.” Vasseur added.
The 22-year-old driver took part in his first F1 free practice session this year, during the Austrian GP, reserve driver at Alpine for the second consecutive season in 2021.
Zhou’s journey to the premier class of motorsport began in 2012, when the teenager, born May 30, 1999 in Shanghai, arrived in Sheffield, in the north of England, to join a karting team.
After good results in karting and in various categories of single-seaters,he joined the Renault Sport Academy in 2019, the branch of the French manufacturer now Alpine responsible for supervising young drivers to help them progress towards F1.
“I dreamt from a young age of climbing as high as I can in a sport that I am passionate about and now the dream has come true.” Zhou said.
“It is a privilege for me to start my Formula 1 career with an iconic team, a team that has introduced so much young talent into Formula 1 in the past. Now the dream is reality.” he added.
Ma Qinghua was the last of his compatriots to have taken part in these tests, in 2012 and 2013, with the HRT and Caterham teams. But no Chinese took the start of a Grand Prix.
