Zhou Guanyu: F1 teenager walks out of the paddock

On April 19, Shanghai, shrouded in smoke and rain.

The 2024 F1 Lenovo Chinese Grand Prix kicks off as scheduled. Even though it was a weekday, thousands of spectators from all over the country came overnight to watch the moment of passion.

Sprint qualifying results were indicated, with McLaren team's Norris taking pole position for the sprint, while Mercedes-Benz team's Hamilton and Aston Martin's Alonso finished second and third respectively. Sauber's Chinese driver Zhou Guanyu was 10th.

Rewind to about a week ago. When night falls on Huaihai Road, there is a lot of traffic.

With only a week to go, Zhou Guanyu's schedule is still busy. In the rounds of chasing by fans, he has been able to talk eloquently in front of the media, and he is no longer young. This F1 teenager who has gone out from China is stepping out of the paddock he has struggled for many years and standing in the spotlight.

"I was nervous and excited. In an exclusive interview with the 21st Century Business Herald, Zhou Guanyu admitted the pressure of coming back this time, and he hopes to live up to everyone's expectations at home, and also hopes that this stop will become the focus of the season and refresh his best results in F1.

"For me, it's not just about getting points, it's about putting my best foot forward in the game. ”

As one of the world's three major sporting events along with the Olympics and the World Cup, F1 has not been launched on the mainland in the past three years, and the domestic audience is relatively limited.

But with the return of the Chinese Grand Prix and the appeal of Zhou Guanyu, the enthusiasm of domestic fans spread rapidly. According to the data of the ticketing platform, as soon as the 2024 F1 Lenovo Chinese Grand Prix was opened, the tickets for each stall were sold out within 15 minutes, and the 399 yuan grandstand ticket was once speculated to a sky-high price of 2,999 yuan on the third-party platform.

And smart brands have also set their sights on Zhou Guanyu's natural "traffic pool". The most impressive thing is the racing suit worn by Zhou Guanyu, and the eye-catching brand logo occupies every gap between the neckline, front chest, and sleeves of the clothes.

Historically, Formula 1 has always required high costs and investments, and the commercial value of drivers often exceeds that of other sports. Although Zhou Guanyu's current results are still uncertain, the 25-year-old is very sober, "I hope to focus on the field of racing in the future, and I will not think about variety shows or movies for the time being." ”

Inside the paddock

In the lululemon store of Jing'an Kerry Center in Shanghai, a special exhibition of Zhou Guanyu's home debut "from 2004 to 2024" attracted many fans to check in, and behind a photo, Zhou Guanyu's 20-year dream chasing experience can be clearly restored.

In 2005, 6-year-old Zhou Guanyu watched the passionate competition of the F1 Chinese Grand Prix that year. With the roar of the engine and the sound of the racetrack, Alonso, then the No. 1 driver of the Renault team, crossed the finish line first, and at that moment he seemed to hear the resonance of his own heartbeat. Zhou Guanyu started karting training at the age of 8.

In 2010, Zhou Guanyu competed in the 12-16 years old National Karting Championship, winning eight races and eventually winning the overall championship of the year.

But at this time, there is still a considerable distance from his ultimate ideal. So, 12-year-old Zhou Guanyu embarked on the road to study in the United Kingdom. In 2018, 18-year-old Zhou Guanyu won the first round of the FIA Formula 3 European Championship in Pau.

The young F3 driver became the first Chinese driver to win a single-seater event in this class. At the beginning of 2019, Zhou Guanyu ended his partnership with the Ferrari Driver Academy and joined the Renault Athletes' Academy and became a development driver for the Renault F1 team.

Since then, Zhou Guanyu's career has entered the fast lane. In 2021, Zhou Guanyu won the 2021 Asian F3 Championship Drivers' Championship and won the first race of his F2 career in Bahrain. In November of the same year, he officially became the F1 driver of Alfa Romeo for the 2022 season, becoming the first official Formula 1 driver in Chinese history.

Many insiders in the industry said that Zhou Guanyu is writing the history of Chinese racing. "Although his score is not high now, it is already a historic breakthrough. ”

This year is also Zhou Guanyu's third season as an official F1 driver and his first home game, "I am more eager to have a turning point from China, to start again and better, and then to finish every race and practice session smoothly. Zhou Guanyu explained to the 21st Century Business Herald reporter, "I think that although the season has only passed three races, it is a very difficult start for me personally, or for our team." ”

He further expressed his determination to go all out, "Don't let everyone down, and then bring out the best of yourself, this track in Shanghai may not be the most familiar track for me, I haven't run it, but I think that with the experience of the previous two years, I hope to make the best preparation." ”

Often referred to as the "Paddock Club" in F1, the Racing Garage is not only a place to store cars and equipment, but also an important place for team staff to prepare for races, develop strategies and tune up their cars.

Here, the team members experience the tension and excitement of the race together, sharing the joy of success and the frustration of failure. For Zhou Guanyu, the more familiar world is still in the paddock.

It doesn't stop there

Since ancient times, human beings have never stopped exploring the limits of speed, whether it is relying on personal perseverance and sweat, or with the help of mechanical technology. The velodrome is undoubtedly the perfect stage for this exploration, bringing together the ultimate display of speed and passion. However, while undertaking the sports function, the circuit is also a "gold absorber" for all participants to frantically win gold.

As early as 2021, Zhou Guanyu was confirmed to compete in F1, and Zhou Guanyu quickly attracted the attention of sponsors. At present, he endorses a number of well-known brands in different categories, including Hublot, Hennessy, HSBC, Dior, lululemon, etc. A brand agency advertiser told the 21st Century Business Herald reporter, "Zhou Guanyu's brand endorsement costs are expensive, up to 5 million yuan, and the brand will not sign a short-term cooperation, at least a year to start." ”

Zhou Guanyu's business cooperation in the next few months is full of schedules. In China, the audience's perception of F1 events is inseparable from media exposure and the creation of racing icons. In 2003, the F1 race landed on CCTV for the first time, which happened to be the peak of the "car king" Schumacher, which laid a deep mark on the F1 race.

Now, with the dual blessing of the spotlight on the field and the exposure of the brand, Zhou Guanyu is becoming a racing icon for young fans in China.

On April 10, Zhou Guanyu incarnated as PUMA's "one-day webmaster", shuttled to the PUMA brand pop-up experience store, and also participated in the live broadcast with celebrity artists. A staff member who has been in contact with Zhou Guanyu said, "Zhou Guanyu's personal quality is very good, and the degree of cooperation in business activities is also very high. ”

In addition, under a series of commercial activities, in the face of the love and support from Chinese fans, Zhou Guanyu said: "I am very happy that the car is finally out of the circle. This year's Chinese Grand Prix has attracted a lot of attention early on, and I believe that more and more friends will be attracted by the charm of F1, and I look forward to receiving everyone's cheers on the field. ”

He added, "Domestically, motorsport has changed a lot over the years. One thing that makes me happy is that from 2004 to 2024, F1 has become more and more popular, both in terms of popularity and fans. Before, racing was not the most familiar sport in China, but now I see more people interested in learning about my dream and the charm of racing. ”

But along with the glory and aura, there is also the controversy surrounding Zhou Guanyu's achievements.

At the Japanese Grand Prix, the previous F1 race of the Chinese Grand Prix, less than two weeks before his first home race, Zhou Guanyu retired due to a gearbox failure. He said after the race that he had been frustrated by a series of recent glitches and that the last few races had been a "disappointing start to the season".

"Before I retired I had a good start and a good pace and the overall pace was good. We have to solve the problem before the next race. Zhou Guanyu said.

As an athlete, performance is indeed the core factor of attention from the outside world, and it often puts athletes under unimaginable pressure.

Commenting on his goals for the new season, Zhou said: "After the experience gained in the previous two seasons, this year I will be more focused on finding breakthroughs, which means that I need to show more aggressive competitive form. Overall, points and personal bests are still the goals I need to break through. Of course, the nearest goal must be to put on an all-out game in China. ”

F1 out of the circle

At the home debut special exhibition, Zhou Guanyu treasured 20 of the exhibits. When he talked about the first time he watched the F1 Chinese Grand Prix live when he was a child, he was even more emotional, the 2004 F1 Chinese Grand Prix was the first of the world's three major sports events to be held in China, "I am very grateful to my parents for giving me the opportunity to watch live, and the roar of the engine left a deep impression on me when I was a child." This ticket, Seat 24 of the K Stand, is where my dream of racing began. ”

Compared with the popularity of popular sports such as the World Cup and the Olympic Games, F1 is slightly niche. But this time it has been successfully "out of the circle" in China.

This is also a change that Zhou Guanyu is very proud of. The title of F1 driver not only represents the best driving skills, but also a test of a driver's overall ability. "In the next step, I will first continue to promote motorsports, so that more and more people can understand racing, become interested in racing, and understand the charm of racing. I also look forward to seeing more Chinese drivers join the international racing family in the future. ”

In fact, it is not only the F1 car that is "out of the circle", but also the commercial value attached by Zhou Guanyu himself. Since Zhou Guanyu's rise to prominence on the international stage, Lenovo has announced that it has become an official partner of F1. This sponsorship title is second only to the seven F1 Global Partners. Chinese tech brand Xiaomi has partnered with Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motors, while ByteDance's TikTok logo appears on Aston Martin's cars.

At the same time, technology companies in the field of AI also hope to explore more landing possibilities in the racing scene where Zhou Guanyu lives.

At the scene of the conversation between Zhou Guanyu and Xu Li, chairman of SenseTime, Xu Li admitted to the 21st Century Business Herald reporter that AI+ sports is also a great potential direction for the development of large models in the future. Based on its own visual model system, SenseTime assists in the analysis of athletes' performance ability from the aspects of technical data statistics, action analysis and judgment, and live broadcast support, so as to improve athletic ability.

There are more and more cross-border integrations, and Zhou Guanyu's interest is far more than the paddock, he likes hip-hop music and cutting-edge design, "If I don't want to be a racing driver, I would choose to be a designer." Since F2, Zhou Guanyu has been incorporating blue and white porcelain patterns, Chinese characters, Shanghai symbols and other elements into his helmet, and in the 2024 limited edition commemorative model co-designed with lululemon, Zhou Guanyu also highlighted the geographical coordinates of Shanghai.

For brands and the marketing industry, the personal IP of domestic phenomenal athletes is very scarce in recent years, so it is not surprising that Zhou Guanyu is sought after. The F1 circuit has a strong fan base and business base, and Zhou Guanyu is currently the highest ranked (in China). When choosing a celebrity or athlete to endorse, brands also need a lot of stories to tell, otherwise it will be difficult to highlight the brand characteristics.

But at the same time, how to fully tap their own commercial value while avoiding negative impact has also become a proposition for sports stars represented by Zhou Guanyu to think about.

"In order to extend commercial value, we must first do a good job of self-protection, and commercial value must be in the state of protective development, and if it is over-commercialized, it will have a negative impact, which will affect the long-term commercial value. For example, Su Bingtian carried the historic breakthrough of the yellow race, and in the future, it is necessary to build the value of stars into IP. Zhang Qing, a sports marketing expert and founder of the key sports consulting company, analyzed in an interview with the 21st Century Business Herald reporter that in the management of category development, celebrities will face the same problem, that is, there will always be merchants who will come.

He suggested that sports stars should first strictly limit the category, and then conduct very detailed research in the selection of business partners to understand the background of the partners, because the image of athletes is closely related to the image of the country to a certain extent. There is also systematic planning for individual characteristics.

"Generally, commercial enterprises will measure the brand value of sports stars from three dimensions, the core is the competitive value, including the influence of the athlete's field of sports, the influence of the results obtained, etc. The second is social value, including the ability of sports stars to break the circle outside the arena, personal storytelling, etc. The third is the value of commercial application, including the freedom of sports stars and the expandability of commercialization. Zhang Qing further explained.

Thanks to the popularity of motorsport, F1's own revenue situation has also fundamentally improved. According to the earnings report released by Liberty Media, the parent company of F1, F1 lost $37 million in 2017 and $68 million in 2018. By 2019, F1 had turned a profit of $17 million. This is the first time since 2016 that the event has made a profit in its annual financial report.

According to the financial report released in February 2024, F1's total revenue in 2023 will reach $3.222 billion, a year-on-year increase of 25%, and its profit will reach $392 million, a year-on-year increase of 64%.

According to media reports, around 300 companies and brands sponsored 10 F1 teams in 2023, a number that is twice as high as a decade ago. According to public information, the first place of the top five F1 team sponsors in 2024 is Oracle (Red Bull Racing), the second place is Saudi Aramco (Aston Martin Racing), the third place is Petronas (Mercedes Racing), the fourth place is Stake (Sauber Racing), and the fifth place is Bybit (Red Bull Racing).

No matter what the results are, the audience and fans still wish Zhou Guanyu well.

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