‘At least 10 years’ for another Chinese F1 driver
Zhou Guanyu said it could take at least another 10 years before the next Chinese driver makes it into Formula One, adding the sacrifice and hard work needed behind the scenes always meant that very few reached the elite level.
The 24-year-old will make history this weekend when he becomes the first local driver to race at the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai, and having already blazed a trail as the country’s only F1 racer, knows what it takes to reach the top.
However, with no Chinese drivers competing in the F2 or F3 feeder series, there appears to be little prospect of Zhou’s compatriots joining him on the F1 grid soon – a fact the Shanghai native puts down to China’s relatively short involvement with top-level international motorsport.
“I think, mainly, the history and culture with motorsport [in China] only started 20 years ago,” Zhou said at the Chinese Grand Prix drivers’ press conference.
“To be able to have more [Chinese] drivers on this grid is going to be very difficult for the next five, 10 years.”
While Zhou is F1’s only Chinese racer, there have been gseveral drivers from Japan in the championship over the past 30 years, and Zhou cited that country as an example of a much longer-established history in top-level motorsport, with wellfinanced corporate programmes that single out talented youngsters and support their careers.
“A perfect example is Honda. They have this ‘Honda Dream Project’ and you have young drivers who get picked up from a very young age, and the culture of motorsport in Japan is very high,” Zhou said.
“But for us [in China], we need to build that, and 20 years is not enough. It takes another probably five, 10 years to build to a similar level, then you can reach out to Europe, hopefully, and put them in the feeder series.
“If they can do well, winning races, finishing top in their championship, they can [find] their way to Formula One, but I don’t think it’s a very easy job for the next few years for any [Chinese] drivers to be here.”
Zhou was also asked whether the economic downturn in China might prevent the next generation coming through, given the high cost of starting in the sport.
While he said he did not want to “get into too much on the politics side”, he pointed out that unlike other sports, motorsports did not normally receive government backing financially.
“I don’t think in China we have enough families, people that have the budget”, Zhou said, but added he hoped there were those interested in getting involved.
“It’s easy to be a racing driver as a hobby. But to take this professional journey, only 20 of us drivers to be here, it’s not an easy one. The amount of sacrifice and also the hard work behind the scenes for every individual driver to be there, it’s very complex.”
A fearless “all-or-nothing” lap from McLaren’s Lando Norris in wet and wild conditions yesterday denied Lewis Hamilton pole position for the Chinese Grand Prix sprint race today.
Hamilton thought he had claimed Shanghai pole in his Mercedes when Norris’ lap of 1 minute 57.940 seconds on intermediate wet tyres was deleted for exceeding track limits, only to be dramatically reinstated a minute later.
Fernando Alonso in an Aston Martin showed his experience and guile to come third in the treacherous conditions with championship leader Max Verstappen fourth.
It was a second career sprint pole for Norris. “It was tricky, you are always nervous going into a session like this,” the Englishman said. “You just have to risk a lot, push and build tyre temperature and what not. You only get three laps. The first two I aborted on both, so it was all or nothing.”
Verstappen’s Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez was sixth, splitting the Ferraris of Carlos Sainz and Charles Leclerc, who survived a big spin. “It was just like driving on ice,” Verstappen, whose final lap time was deleted after a trip across the gravel outside the final bend, said.
Hamilton has endured a poor start to this season but was clearly looking forward to starting from the front row.
“So happy, as soon as I saw the rain coming I was getting excited. In dry conditions we’re not quick enough.”
Alonso was also thankful for the late rain. “We were not super competitive on the dry,” he said. “In the wet it was difficult to judge the level of grip and risk we wanted to apply but in the end I am happy.”
Fifth-placed Sainz said the rain and cool conditions made it very difficult to get his intermediate tyres warmed up. “We didn’t manage to switch on the tyres so we couldn’t push,” he said.
Formula One is back in China for the first time since 2019, when Hamilton won. A big crowd at the Shanghai International Circuit let out a huge roar when Zhou Guanyu made it into the third qualifying session. He will start the sprint from 10th for Sauber.