Zhou Guanyu will remain on the grid next season with Alfa Romeo as expected as the Swiss outfit has extended the Chinese driver's contract for 2023.
Although Zhou has only scored three top-ten finishes this season - in Bahrain, in Montreal and last time out at Monza - the young Chinese rookie has acquitted himself overall, having also suffered several reliability setbacks during his maiden campaign.
Given Zhou's satisfactory performances, the qualities he displayed and his good relationship with teammate Valtteir Bottas, there seemed to be little reason for Alfa Romeo team boss Frederic Vasseur not to sign up the 23-year-old to a second campaign in F1.
©AlfaRomeo
"I am looking forward to continuing working with Zhou," said Vasseur.
"From day one with the team, at the Abu Dhabi test last year, he has impressed me with his approach to work and this is always a very positive trait.
"We knew he was quick, but the way he adapted to Formula One in such a short time has been one of the best surprises of our season.
"He is a very nice guy, everyone in the team likes both his personality and attitude. He has had the humility to ask questions and learn, from the engineers as well as Valtteri, and the intelligence to apply all the information he got to improve race after race.
"He will have this experience to draw on next season, and I am sure he will make another step forward as we continue to grow our team."
Needless to say, Zhou is delighted to be handed another opportunity to showcase his skills in F1, the Alfa charger insisting he still has a lot to learn and even more to achieve.
"Making it to Formula One was a dream come true and the feeling of competing for the first time in a race will live with me forever: the team has been incredibly supportive, welcoming me from day one and helping me adapt to the most complex series in motorsport," he said.
"There is more that I want to achieve in this sport and with the team, and the hard work we have put together since the start of the year is just the first step towards where we want to be next season.
There is still a lot to learn, a lot to develop but I am confident in our work: I am looking forward to the next chapter of our story together."
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