RaceFans Round-up: I wept when I secured F1 debut

In brief

Zhou cried when he got F1 seat

Zhou was an Alpine junior driver in 2021 when he was picked by Alfa Romeo (which Sauber competed as at the time) to make his debut with them.

“I started crying like I think I never cried before that,” he told the official F1 website. “For five years for me it was just something that I dreamed of.”

Zhou led the F2 points standings after the first three rounds but was beaten to the title by fellow Alpine junior Oscar Piastri. “I felt like even when I was in F2 at the time, halfway through the season, I was leading the championship, I still felt like the percentage [chance] I’d get to Formula 1 was less than 5%, because that year was a tough year.

“There was only one seat at the time, Alfa Romeo, was available and there I think almost 10 drivers fighting and the list was going down and down. Of course I still was in the list but I didn’t really believe that I would had this opportunity, at least for that year to be going straight from F2 into F1.”

Williams bring update for Albon despite damage

Despite the damage done by their drivers’ three crashes in the last two race weekends, Williams will introduced an aerodynamic update to their Halo fairing on Alexander Albon’s car only this weekend. Both drivers will also have replacements of the new front wing specification the team introduced at the last race.

Bumps eased at Shanghai

The Chinese Grand Prix promoter has worked on easing some of the bumps which have developed at the track since it was completed for the country’s first F1 race 20 years ago. Trouble spots a turns one, three and eight have been addressed.

Other changes include the addition of gravel in place of what was asphalt on the outer edges of the run-off areas at turns 12 and 16. Sausage kerbs and artificial grass have been removed completely and new debris fencing installed.

Special livery for Lundqvist

Ganassi driver Linus…