Zhou Guanyu has stepped aside for Valtteri Bottas in the race for a seat with the newly rebranded Audi F1 team, previously known as Sauber.
As the team prepares for the 2025 season, they are looking to finalize their lineup alongside Nico Hulkenberg.
Zhou, who has been with Sauber since 2022, is accepting of the situation and understands the competitive nature of the driver market.
He talked about it all in a conversation with Crash.net .
He acknowledges the possibility of not retaining his seat and is open to whatever outcome arises.
“Of course. I think there are two options. The reality is we might stay in the seat in Sauber or I won’t be having a seat next year," Zhou admitted during the Italian Grand Prix weekend in Monza.
“I’m completely open in this topic. I don’t feel like if I don’t have a seat I will be very upset about it. Fighting for a seat with Valtteri, either one of us have it, I’m more than happy if I lose the seat against him.”
Zhou’s understanding of how competitive the current driver market is could be telling.
“Yeah, I could accept the fact. Either way, we need to see what happens after that,” he continued.
Despite the uncertainty, Zhou remains focused on his career in Formula 1 and is not considering other racing series at this time.
“I won’t go to any other championship yet,” he firmly stated, "I want to have another opportunity in the future and hopefully have another shot at it [F1].”
He aims to stay involved in F1, potentially as a reserve driver, if he does not secure a full-time seat. His priority is clear: he wants to compete for the Sauber seat next year.
“If you don’t have a seat then the only way is to be a reserve driver and wait for opportunities,” he admitted. “It really depends on what they have and what seats other teams have available maybe for the future. But now I’m just purely speaking about the [Sauber race] seat for next year. Of course, that’s the priority.”
Zhou's 2024 season has been challenging, marked by struggles to advance in races. He has consistently started from lower grid positions and has only managed to finish 11th at best. With two retirements this season, his performance has been a mix of lower midfield finishes, making it a tough year overall.
As the Audi team looks ahead, Zhou's future in F1 remains uncertain, but he is determined to explore all possible avenues within the sport.
“There are people already contacting me wanting to do other series. At the moment I don’t want to be in other series yet.”
Most Popular
Comments / 0