周冠宇

Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN had a difficult day at the British Grand Prix. Zhou Guanyu was the victim of a gigantic crash from which he emerged, thankfully, unscathed, while Valtteri Bottas retired with gearbox issues.

Frédéric Vasseur, Team Principal: "I think we can all agree that the most important thing today is seeing Zhou come out of such a huge crash without any injury. What we witnessed were dramatic scenes, and once again we have to thank the great improvements in safety spearheaded by the FIA and Formula One for a positive outcome. The work to improve safety in our sport is never done and today reminds us of just how important this is: Zhou is ok and fit to race in Austria next week, and this is the big victory of the day. Overall, we had a tough race in which we also lost Valtteri with a gearbox issue, when he was running in P8 and eyeing a really strong result. It's a shame to miss out on the opportunity to score points, but this is racing. We can take comfort from the pace we showed while we were in the race: we can look with optimism to next week's event in Austria."

Valtteri Bottas (car number 77):
Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN C42 (Chassis 01/Ferrari)
Race result: DNF
Fastest lap: 1:35.103 (Lap 19)
Tyres: New Medium (1 lap) – New Medium (19 laps – DNF)

"First and foremost, the main thing today is that Zhou is fine. It was a big shunt, and I'm glad that nothing serious happened and that he has already been cleared by the FIA. Today, we got additional proof on how the Halo is one of the greatest innovations in F1, and how safety has improved in recent years. For what concerns my race, we had a lot of opportunities after the restart, but we had an issue with the gearbox, so I ultimately had to stop to prevent further damage. It was unfortunate because we had good pace and we could have scored a big amount of points. Even though it's been a tough weekend, we can still draw some positives: the pace we showed on track was a good sign, and I think we can be competitive in Austria next weekend."

Zhou Guanyu (car number 24):
Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN C42 (Chassis 04/Ferrari)
Race result: DNF
Fastest lap: –
Tyres: New Medium (1 lap – DNF)

"It was a big crash and I'm glad I'm ok. The marshals and the medical team at the track were fantastic with their quick response, and I also owe my thanks to the FIA and Formula One for all the work they have done, and they keep doing, to improve the safety of our cars: the Halo saved me today, and it goes to show that every step we take in improving our cars has real, valuable results. I'm keener than ever to get back on track and do what I love: I'm fit and I'm looking forward to Austria next week."