Jordan's Track Talk

Tag: Zhou Guanyu

  • Zhou joins Cadillac as Reserve Driver

    Cadillac have announced that Zhou Guanyu has joined the team as their reserve driver ahead of their debut season in Formula 1.

    Zhou – who raced for the Alfa Romeo/Kick Sauber outfit between 2022 and 2024 – is the latest name to be confirmed as part of the American squad’s line-up, with Valtteri Bottas and Sergio Perez acting as the team’s race drivers while former IndyCar racer Colton Herta will fulfil the role of test driver.

    During his time on the grid, Zhou competed in 68 Grand Prix and scored points on seven occasions, including on his debut at the Bahrain Grand Prix in 2022. The 26 year old also claimed Kick Sauber’s only points finish of 2024 in Qatar.

    After leaving the team at the end of that season, Zhou – China’s first and so far only F1 driver – joined Ferrari in a reserve role, carrying out trackside and simulator work as well as participating in their Testing of Previous Cars (TPC) programmes.

    I am delighted to join the Cadillac Formula 1 Team as a Reserve Driver ahead of its Formula 1 debut. This is one of the biggest and most exciting new projects that the sport has ever seen. I have worked with both Graeme [Lowdon] and Valtteri for many years in various capacities, so joining the team feels like rejoining family. Having had recent experience on track and in developing the cars off track, I know I can add huge value to the Cadillac Formula 1 Team, and I am looking forward to supporting them the best way that I can.
    Zhou on the news.

    Our process for selecting a Reserve Driver has been as thorough as the search for our Race Drivers. We wanted a candidate who had recent F1 driving experience, is prepared to work hard as part of a team and understands the challenges of developing a car throughout the season. Zhou fits the bill perfectly. He will be a great asset to us as we go racing in 2026 and we look forward to him being an integral part of our team.
    Graeme Lowdon, Team Principal.

    I’m excited to welcome Zhou to Cadillac Formula 1 Team. He will be an excellent addition to complement Valtteri and Checo; talented, personable and respectful of the hard work and commitment it will take for us to achieve our ambitions. I’m excited by our complete driver line-up – alongside Colton, we have a hungry, fast and collaborative group to make our 2026 debut.
    Dan Towriss, CEO of Cadillac Formula 1 Team Holdings.

  • Zhou returns to Ferrari as reserve driver

    Ferrari have announced the return of Zhou Guanyu as a reserve driver for the 2025 season, adding to the team’s back-up pool alongside incumbent Antonio Giovinazzi.

    It officially ends the speculation over the Chinese racer’s immediate future, following Kick Sauber’s decision to overhaul their driver line-up and part ways with both Zhou and teammate Valtteri Bottas.

    Zhou spent four years as part of the Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy from 2015 to 2018, rising through the Formula 4 and Formula 3 single-seater ranks with the Maranello-based operation.

    He progressed to Formula 2 after leaving the academy, and having won multiple races, secured promotion to Formula 1 with Sauber’s team then backed by Alfa Romeo for the 2022 season.

    He remained there through the 2024 campaign, when the team transitioned to their Kick Sauber guise, reaching 68 Grand Prix starts and topping up his points tally to 16 before leaving the grid.

    Zhou will provide support to Ferrari’s full time drivers in his new role, with the famous marque this year fielding a revised lineup as seven time World Champion Lewis Hamilton joins Charles Leclerc.

  • C43

    Alfa Romeo have presented their new car for the F1 season, the C43 with a bold red and black livery taking over from the red and white colour scheme used during recent campaigns.

    Described as “aggressive on and below the skin” the car was unveiled to work in a joint presentation in Zurich and at the outfit’s headquarters in Hinwil, Switzerland by continuing team mates Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu, who combined to secure P6 in last year’s constructors’ standings.

    At the same time, a series of CGI images and videos released on Alfa Romeo’s social media channels showed the C43 coming together piece by piece, whilst Augmented Reality enabled fans to bring the launch experience into their own homes.

    C43_Front-Dynamic-Left-V4_LM_BOT_4-5.jpg

    New title sponsor Stake take centre stage on the livery, which will be the last to feature Alfa Romeo branding as the company prepare to end their sponsorship deal ahead of Audi joining forces with the Sauber-run operation.

    Alfa Romeo’s new car is set to hit the track for a shakedown session in Barcelona this week, before heading to Bahrain for pre-season testing.

    Bringing a car to life is a long process which touches every department of a racing team, therefore it’s a moment of great pride to see it unveiled today. We chose to do it in front of our fans, close to our home, because the launch of a new car is not only a moment to state your objectives for the season ahead; it’s also a time to give back to the people who have supported you, be it in the grandstands, in front of the TV or back at the factory, and express our gratitude for their passion and their belief in our project. Our new car is the result of months of work, but today is just the beginning of a journey. We need to keep working hard, with humility and dedication, to bring performance to the track. Everyone in the team is committed to this target and I am confident we will reap the rewards of our work.

    Alunni Bravi, speaking of the launch.

    I am very proud of what we have achieved over these last months, because creating a new car is always a massive effort from the team. This car is an evolution of last year, reflecting the new regulations and introducing major changes in the areas where we found improvements to be needed. I hope it’s going to be quicker than the successful car we had last year, that’s what matters most, and more reliable as well. We have put a lot of effort in this direction. Now, it’s time to get to the track and see how this car performs. I’m happy to get back to racing and I’m confident there will be much more to come from us soon.

    Jan Monchaux, Technical Director.