As the 2024 season unfolds, it could very well be the final year for Zhou Guanyu in Formula 1. The Chinese driver, currently battling to retain his seat, has started to open up about some of the darker experiences he’s had in F1.
Zhou has recently shed light on the racial abuse he suffered when he signed with Alfa Romeo in 2021. Despite a successful junior career, where he finished third in Formula 2 and won four races in 2021, his entry into F1 was met with racist backlash.
Many fans dismissed his talent and questioned his place on the grid purely based on his nationality, showcasing a disturbing presence of racism within the sport. Zhou reflected on this harsh reception, comparing it to the positive treatment received by British driver Oliver Bearman, who was recently announced as a Haas driver for 2025 despite currently struggling in Formula 2.
“It’s quite clear, in 2021 when I signed a contract with Alfa Romeo there was a lot of racist abuse people were giving [me] because they didn’t follow my career,” Zhou shared as reported by The Race. Zhou sees this as evidence of a bias based on nationality, particularly against Asian drivers.
1996 F1 champion Damon Hill responded strongly to Zhou’s comments. Taking to Instagram, Hill condemned the racist abuse Zhou has faced as he wrote;
“Abuse is enabled by social media. Most of those doing the abusing are miserable cowards who wouldn’t dare say such things to one’s face. To pick on a young person is bullying. I hate bullies,” Hill stated.
— Business F1 (@BusinessF158116) August 13, 2024
Hill also acknowledged the reality of bias in F1, noting that fan reaction plays a significant role in shaping a driver’s career. Hill encouraged Zhou, reassuring him that his efforts in F1 would not go unnoticed even if the recognition came later.
F1 has seen a fair bit of racist comments in the near past
Zhou’s experiences suggest that racial discrimination remains a significant challenge in F1. It serves as a reality check that racism still exists in the sport despite F1 and the FIA launching initiatives such as the Black Lives Matter movement, with the motive of tackling this grave concern.
Similarly to Zhou, Lewis Hamilton has also faced similar experiences despite arguably being one of the greatest F1 drivers in history. Back in 2021, three-time F1 champion Nelson Piquet made some racist remarks against Hamilton.
Piquet referred to Hamilton with a derogatory term, “n*******“. Piquet’s remarks resurfaced in June 2022, leading to widespread condemnation from the motorsport community, including Hamilton himself. The Mercedes driver called for a change in “archaic mindsets” within the sport.
Formula 1 has slammed 3-time world champion Nelson Piquet for using a racial slur to describe Sir Lewis Hamilton.
Piquet said: ‘The n**** put the car in the wrong way and didn’t let the other driver swerve.
He was discussing an accident between Hamilton and Max Verstappen. pic.twitter.com/wCsb9XqHxC
— Abka Fitz-Henley (@AbkaFitzHenley) June 28, 2022
As a consequence of Piquet’s comments, a Brazilian court ordered him to pay $953,000 in moral damages. Helmut Marko, on the other hand, got away with just a warning from the FIA when he passed a racial comment on Sergio Perez, saying that the Mexican’s lack of focus was a result of him being a South American.
