Formula 2 racer and Renault Academy driver Guanyu Zhou has been promoted at the Renault F1 team, becoming their Test Driver for the 2020 campaign.
Formula 2 driver Guanyu Zhou will step up his duties at the Renault F1 team this year, alongside his Formula 2 campaign with UNI-Virtuosi.
The 20 year old Chinese driver moves up from a development role with Renault in 2019, and will see him attend more races and involve test days and simulator sessions at the team’s base in Enstone.
“It’s another step up from being Development Driver in 2019 where I did a lot of simulator work and some R.S.17 tests.” said Zhou of his promotion. “The feedback and experience in a Formula 1 car is getting better and the team is happy with my progress and input so far. They’ve given me a lot of trust and I also trust them, so that relationship works very well.”
“This year I have an even better opportunity, meaning working harder than before, getting as much information as possible for driving a Formula 1 car and, at the same time, improving the areas the team needs to work on to help them get better in the future.”
Zhou says he’s relishing the opportunity to work closely alongside race drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Esteban Ocon throughout this season: “It’s quite cool as Daniel was my favourite driver, so to work with him was a fantastic opportunity. I know Esteban a little bit too and look forward to getting to know him better. It’s going to be fun working with both of them.”
“Last year I had a taste of being close to the F1 Team and as Test Driver this year, I’ll spend even more time on track and learning from debriefs and listening to all the driver feedback. Having more information and working with Daniel and Esteban will help me a lot, not only on the Formula 1 side but also for the Formula 2 season.”
