Zhou Guanyu Reveals Emotional Struggle Behind His F1 Journey - "My Family Sacrificed A Lot"

Zhou Guanyu reveals his story and the passion for racing that made him what he is today.

Reflecting on those challenging yet optimistic times, Zhou Guanyu enters his third Formula 1 season in 2024. Opening up about the journey, the 24-year-old driver shared the efforts his family and he invested to train and reach the pinnacle of motorsports, a dream he aspired to be a part of.

Zhou signed a contract with the then-Alfa Romeo team for his debut Formula 1 season in 2022 after spending three seasons in F2. The current year with the same team earned him a chance to race in 2024 alongside teammate Valtteri Bottas.

Next season would be the first time Zhou would be taking part in his home race since the Chinese Grand Prix is set to make a comeback to the F1 calendar in 2024. Looking forward to the upcoming season, he told Formula1.com:

“To be the first ever Chinese driver in Formula 1 is a breakthrough for Chinese motorsport history.

“I know a lot of hopes will be resting on me and, as ever, I will take this as motivation to become better and achieve more.”

Only a month ago, Zhou shared with The Players' Tribune his inspirational journey in Formula 1, highlighting how he disregarded critics and idolized racing driver Fernando Alonso. He revealed:

“That winter, in November of 2021, when Alfa Romeo announced I’d be in the seat, I knew what people thought of me.

“It was impossible not to hear it. And it’s hard, right, because I worked my entire life for an opportunity like that. My family sacrificed a lot. We moved from China to Sheffield when I was 12. It took everything. Some luck, too. And then before I ever get a chance to race, it’s, ‘he doesn’t deserve it, it should be so-and-so, he’s only there because of money’.

“I understand. People are allowed to have their opinions. And there’s a lot of politics in F1, of course. I know that just as well as anyone. From the outside it’s hard to see everything that’s going on. And I’m beyond thankful to be where I am — it’s not lost on me what a privilege it is. But I’m still just a person, a guy with a phone who can hear the noise.

“I think it was hard at the beginning for me because I felt such a connection with F1. I was a fan for so long. I still am. I went to every Chinese Grand Prix, and I still would if I weren’t racing. It’s who I am.

“If I could take you back in time with me and show you my room from when I was a boy, you’d laugh your head off. I had Fernando Alonso posters all over the walls. It looked like the room of a teenager idolising their favourite pop star. I sat in front of the TV at all sorts of weird hours, with the volume turned all the way down, as my parents slept a few rooms over. And I would just dream.

“I’d pick my favourite little toy cars off the table and push them around the carpet as I watched Michael and Fernando and Kimi win races. I knew that’s all I wanted to do.”

Despite the challenges, Zhou made it to his destination- Formula 1. Expressing the pride he experienced for being the first F1 driver from his country, he recalls his debut Formula 1 race in Bahrain in 2022. He said:

“To be the first Chinese driver in F1 history… it’s everything to me.

“I’m so proud of where I’m from — the support I’ve received from everyone back home. I race for them. I want to show that, even though we aren’t known for motor sports, we can still be great. That we can be fast. That we are a racing nation.

“That desire, that passion — that’s what made the first lap in Bahrain so tough. In the grand scheme of things, it’s just one lap of more than a thousand over the course of the year, but I wanted to prove to everyone, to myself, that I belonged there. So I just put my head down, and I followed my instincts.

“Our team had a great strategy and we battled all the way back. It was a crazy few last laps and when I came across the line in 10th, scoring a point… it felt like a win.

“I hugged my mum in the paddock that night, and I think we both just felt this incredible sense of relief. Like, we’re here, and we’re doing it. Those countless hours going to and from sessions hoping one day something like this might happen, and we were really there, racing in F1. I thought of a little boy or girl watching back home in China and it made me a bit emotional. It still does.

“That weekend meant so much to me. Every single one does. I hope the fans know that.”