Ferrari has history of looking to recent F1 drivers to support its race team line-up, having worked with Giovinazzi — the driver Zhou replaced at Sauber in 2022 — in recent years. The team announced last year that one of its reserves, Robert Shwartzman, would not be returning in 2025 after his move into IndyCar.

Ferrari appointed Zhou Guanyu as a Formula One reserve driver on Wednesday after the Chinese lost his race seat with Swiss-based Sauber.

The first Chinese driver in Formula 1 is heading back to Ferrari as one of its reserve drivers for the 2025 season.

Ferrari announced their reserve drivers for the upcoming season on Wednesday, pairing current reserve Antonio Giovinazzi with Zhou. This is a homecoming for Zhou, who was a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy from 2015 to 2018 while competing in the F4 and F3 ranks.

Here’s a wild headline we published today : F1 teenager Kimi Antonelli just got his driver’s license — right on time to replace Lewis Hamilton. You read that right. Antonelli didn’t even have a road license when he was picked as the successor to one of F1’s greatest drivers last fall. Have I ever mentioned that this is a silly sport?

The 25-year-old will split the role of supporting Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc with Italian Antonio Giovinazzi.

Zhou Guanyu will join Ferrari as one of its reserve drivers for the 2025 Formula 1 season, taking the role alongside current incumbent Antonio Giovinazzi. Zhou recently ended a three-year stint as a race driver in F1 with Sauber (previously Alfa Romeo),

Ferrari has appointed Zhou Guanyu and Antonio Giovinazzi as its reserve drivers for 2025. Giovinazzi has also been a reserve driver at the Scuderia in recent years, so his appointment is by no means surprising.