Zhou wants to go to Formula 1 and seems to have to hope for these two teams
General
- GPblog.com
Guanyu Zhou is very keen to compete in Formula 1 in 2022. The driver currently second in Formula 2 is aiming for a permanent seat in the premier competition, but most teams have already finalised their line-up for next season. Williams and Alfa Romeo seem to be the best bets, and according to the Italian branch of Motorsport.com are the only two remaining options.
Zhou is part of the Renault Academy, but at Alpine there is no place for the Chinese driver. Fernando Alonso and Esteban Ocon have been confirmed to be driving for the French formation in 2022.
Williams and Alfa Romeo the options
At Williams and Alfa Romeo there are still two spots to be allocated, however. Zhou can not only drive fast, but he is also of commercial interest for the teams as the 22-year-old driver could bring a lot of money from Chinese sponsors. Not only Zhou himself would benefit from a move to the premier class of motorsports, but Liberty Media would also like to see the talent make the transition. In this way, the owners of F1 would be able to reach the Chinese market of almost 1.4 billion people better.
Zhou would not like a role as third driver in Formula 1, however. Currently that is Daniil Kvyat at Alpine, but that does not seem to be an option for him. Alpine would be willing to let Zhou go to another team, even if they do not drive with Renault engines. There is still a big chance that Zhou will stay connected to Alpine, so that he can succeed Alonso in the long run.