With the 2025 grid almost fully locked in, Formula 1 will say goodbye to many names after losing their seats.
Many are anticipating the departure of Sergio Perez from Red Bull after his dismal 2024 campaign. Liam Lawson is set to be promoted from Visa Cash App RB to the Milton Keynes-based outfit to replace the Mexican.
Franco Colapinto is set for a spell on the sidelines after making nine Grand Prix starts with Williams this season. With Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz confirmed in 2025, the Argentine will have to wait for his opportunity to arise again.
Kevin Magnussen will be leaving F1 for the third time after his departure from Haas. His teammate Nico Hulkenberg will also leave the American team, but he will remain on the grid as he joins Gabriel Bortoleto at Sauber – soon to become Audi in 2026.
An all-new driver pairing for Sauber means that current drivers Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu will be out of F1 after spending three years with the Swiss outfit. But the latter does not see this as the end of his time in the pinnacle of motorsport.
Zhou Guanyu says his chances of an F1 return in 2026 are ‘very high’
It was a miserable season for Sauber in 2024 as they were rock bottom of the Constructors’ Championship, consistently at the back of the field. It took Zhou’s trojan effort in Qatar to score the team their first and only points of the season, finishing an impressive eighth.
The Chinese driver scored only 16 points in his three years with Sauber as he now faces a spell on the sidelines. But he claims that his chances of a return to F1 are ‘very high’ – thanks to the arrival of Cadillac in 2026 who will allow for two more drivers to race in the sport.
Zhou feels with a year away from F1, he will be ready to make a comeback in 2026: “With one year off it might make me in even better shape coming back and then opportunities are wide open next year,” he told the official Formula 1 website.
READ MORE: Zhou Guanyu’s life outside F1 from height to net worth
“Already one driver doesn’t take part this weekend [in Abu Dhabi] and you have a new driver [Jack Doohan replacing Esteban Ocon] – and then there are many new rookies coming here. It’s a crazy time.
“It’s even crazier next year – more than quarter will be completely new. It can easily go well or wrong. Next year is probably one of the good years to be sitting around waiting for a chance.
“I’ll just make sure I’ll be ready if an opportunity comes. If you can take that opportunity and do well, you can make a comeback. If you can’t, then you’re out. I will just try to be ready.
“I feel like the chances are still very high – and another team joined [Cadillac/GM], which opens two more spaces.”
Could Zhou Guanyu remain in F1 in 2025 in some capacity?
Zhou would prove a decent option for newcomers Cadillac having had three years experience in the sport and he would bring significant financial backing and a chance to keep the Chinese market interested in F1.
However, it has been suggested that Zhou could stay in F1 in some capacity in 2025, having been linked with taking on a reserve driver role.
Zhou had been linked with Ferrari as a possible Oliver Bearman replacement after he signed with Haas for next season. But it seems that Bearman will be named as the Maranello squad’s reserve driver, despite being contracted to another team.
Zhou had been in talks with Red Bull to take a reserve role there and help fund the development of their junior driver Arvid Lindblad. However, Red Bull seems to have cooled their interest in Zhou as they look to promote Lindblad and Pepe Marti to reserve drivers in the event Perez is sacked.
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