Zhou Guanyu is doing the one thing that matters when the music stops in Formula 1: he’s keeping his face in the room and his hands on a steering wheel.
A year removed from the grid after his Sauber stint ended in 2024, Zhou has re-rooted himself at Ferrari as reserve driver, logging long days in Maranello’s simulator and grabbing real mileage whenever the Scuderia opens the garage. He’s driven Ferrari’s 2023 car in a TPC programme, turned laps in the SF-25 for Pirelli in June, and, crucially, he’s already knee-deep in the 2026 development model. For a driver plotting a return, that’s not busywork — it’s currency.
“I think it’s very important to work with different people, different teams, so they understand your abilities,” Zhou told PlanetF1.com. “When I came here [to Ferrari], a lot of people didn’t know the driver I was… it’s important just to stay in the paddock, but let more people understand the driver you are.”
Zhou’s exit from Sauber came as the team reshaped itself toward Audi’s 2026 entry, with Nico Hülkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto signed as the future pieces. That left both Zhou and Valtteri Bottas out in the cold. Each found shelter in familiar colours: Bottas as Mercedes’ reserve, Zhou back in Ferrari red, where he’d once been an Academy junior.
There was even a shot at the new Cadillac project for 2026. Zhou, managed by Graeme Lowdon, stacked up well against Bottas across their three seasons together and was in the frame. Experience won the day, though, with Sergio Pérez returning to take the final seat. Not a dead end for Zhou, but a reminder of how unforgiving the timing game can be.
He’s not defeatist. In fact, he’s banking on timing. New technical rules in 2026 mean churn, and churn means openings — sometimes late, sometimes unexpected.
“Obviously, I think this year or next year are the big two years, especially next year, when there’s new regulation changes,” he said. “There are a lot of drivers that will be a question mark for their future as well. So that’s where I think the opportunities will come.”
There’s method behind the optimism. Zhou’s 2026 prep isn’t just simulator laps; it’s correlation work that teams value, because it shortens their learning curve later. “TPC is very important… until you jump in the car, you don’t understand what’s different,” he said. “We’re already building up from the beginning of the year to now being a step up simulation wise… I’ve been doing multiple sessions every month… you understand what you need to make the car go faster in the next two years.”
Translated: if a team needs someone who can jump in, speak the 2026 language, and not burn weekends climbing a curve, Zhou is positioning himself as that guy. Hülkenberg returned after three years out and didn’t miss; Pérez rebuilt his stock; Bottas has effectively kept himself on speed at Mercedes. The paddock remembers competence, even after time away.
Zhou also speaks with a candor that suggests unfinished business. His time at Sauber began brightly in 2022 but frayed as the team reorganised and reset. “I’m not so happy with how, the last year, I’ve been pretty much treated from that perspective,” he said. “There were too many changes in the background… people floating around and making changes like a race engineer, which really makes the difference.”
He’s careful to be fair — “I learned a lot. I improved a lot.” — but equally clear that circumstances often set the ceiling. Cooling issues, technical gremlins, and a car that drifted from the points made the final campaign a slog. That’s probably why his time at Ferrari feels restorative. Stability. Feedback loops that matter. A chance to show more of the driver he believes he is.
“I still feel like there are opportunities. We’re speaking to people,” Zhou added. “I’m focused on the role I’m doing with Ferrari… the door is always open when they need me.”
It’s easy to forget how thin the line is between “out” and “in” in modern F1. A driver can spend months as a reserve and be one phone call from a Sunday start. If the regulations shake the tree next year the way many expect, the sport will need drivers who’ve been paying attention — to the tyres, to the sim deltas, to the quirks of hybrid deployment in the next ruleset. Zhou is doing exactly that.
Will it be enough? No guarantees. But he’s put himself in the right place, with the right tools, at the right time. And in a paddock that’s always watching, that’s how comebacks begin.
