The Singapore event was supposed to be the highlight of Guanyu Zhou’s season.
Nicholas Latifi still has time to drive in five races before his contract expires. PDO
Alfa Romeo driver Guanyu Zhou had been waiting for the Singapore competition for a long time. The rookie driver had attracted a lot of fans from his home country to the small island nation, but on Sunday the joy was short lived when the Chinese collided with Williams By Nicholas Latif behind in the ninth round.
Zhou, who had a bad start in the race, quickly fell to the middle places and behind Latif. The two briefly battled hard for 18th place, until the Canadian wedged Zhou to the side and himself behind. Latifi tried to continue the race for a while, but had to stop like Zhou.
– The guy flattened me against the wall. I don’t know what he’s doing, Zhou lamented on the team radio.
There was no ambiguity in the situation as to who was the cause of the collision. Latifi, who is driving his last season in the team, and probably in the F1 series, received a penalty from Fiat after the race. In the next GP of Japan, he receives a five-start penalty, which is not really a big disadvantage for the driver who performs the least in the series.
– At the previous bend, I looked in the mirrors to see where Zhou was. I didn’t see him, so I took the normal driving line at the next corner. I don’t know if he was in a blind spot where you can’t see through the mirrors. Unfortunately, he was there, Latifi explained in his team’s press release.
Zhou cares little about Latif’s punishment. The focus shifts to Japan, where the Chinese also gets a lot of support from the public.
– Latifi received a fine, but it doesn’t change anything for me. This is especially annoying because I think we had an otherwise promising day. I’m looking forward to Suzuka, Zhou commented on his team’s website.
Latifi, known for his partying and driving formulas with his father’s thick wallet, has become quite a troll at Alfa Romeo. Team manager in Holland in September Frederic Vasseur threw the receipt at the Canadian after he messed up Valtteri Bottas the race.
– Interruptions are not bad luck. Sometimes they are caused by technology, sometimes by the engine, sometimes by Latif, Vasseur said without flinching.
The F1 season continues next weekend.