No Formula 1 for Zhou and he can no longer enter this class either!

For weeks, Guanyu Zhou said the same story. In short, his entire focus was on finding an F1 seat for 2025, and he was not looking at options in other classes. It is now fairly clear that there is no place for the Chinese driver in Formula 1, as almost certainly Valtteri Bottas will get the seat Zhou was aiming for at Sauber.

Meanwhile, Zhou has realised that his F1 adventure is coming to an end for the time being and so he is now looking around. Formula E - long seen as the most logical next step, as China's electric car market is the largest in the world - is also no longer an option for Zhou, according to GPblog. All seats for next season have been filled, apart from the two seats at ERT. However, this Chinese team plans to extend the contracts of Sergio Sette Camara and Dan Ticktum for another season.

Zhou wants to keep the door to F1 open

Time is slowly running out for Zhou anyway, as top seats are currently being filled in most classes. "Wherever I go, I need to make sure that the door in F1 doesn't close at that time because I think a lot of drivers still make their comeback," said Zhou, who realises a decision has to be made. "I am not worried about my racing career. I'm thinking about my Formula 1 career more than that, which is really nice to have. As a kid growing up, to get other very top teams in other series poaching, I think was a good thing," Zhou added before saying living the dream changed that view. "I want to stay here many more years."

Zhou might be willing to spend a year on the sidelines if he is guaranteed to drive Grands Prix again in 2026. "But then if I waited more than one or two years, then I'll probably take my exit in this championship. But at the moment, I'm just focused on a Formula One drive."

This article has been created in collaboration with Matt Gretton