Alfa Romeo F1 Team Orlen
TEAM PROFILE
The Hinwil squad started out as the Sauber team in F1 in 1993, transitioning from a successful sports car team during the 1970s and 80s. A respectable and consistent team from the outset, Sauber finished 5th in their very first F1 race in South Africa and finished 7th overall in the Constructor’s Championship at their first attempt. The 1995 season saw Sauber join forces with Red Bull as a main sponsor, and the beginning of Red Bull’s long and successful involvement in Formula One. 1997 saw Sauber forge a close bond with Ferrari, running their engines for nine seasons. One of their best-ever seasons came in 2001, notably giving the relatively unknown Finn Kimi Raikkonen his F1 debut and finishing 4th in the Constructors Championship with two podium finishes for Nick Heidfeld. The following year saw Sauber give Ferrari-backed Felipe Massa his F1 debut before Ferrari and Sauber’s partnership ended in 2005. The 2006 season saw Sauber join forces with BMW, the latter supplying engines and substantial funding to the team renaming themselves as BMW Sauber. 2006 and 2007 saw more debuts for famous F1 names – Robert Kubica replacing Jacques Villeneuve in 2006 and Sebastian Vettel stepping in for the injured Kubica in 2007 – scoring points on his debut. Kubica in particular put in many giant-killing performances for the BMW Sauber team, scoring plenty of podiums and the team’s first and thus far sole victory in the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix. Kubica was in title contention for the majority of 2008, however car development waned as did his title bid. BMW pulled out of F1 at the end of 2009, the team returning as Sauber with Ferrari engines. Following a quiet season in 2010 rebuilding, 2011 saw the team give Sergio Perez his F1 debut, the pairing with Kamui Kobayashi proving to be a consistent point-scoring duo. Perez was painfully close to a famous victory in Malaysia 2012, chasing down Fernando Alonso right to the end before settling for 2nd. Three more podiums followed in a highly successful 2012 season. Performances never reached the highs of 2012 in the following years, culminating in a 2014 season with zero points. Sauber continued in the lower rungs of the midfield for the next few years, finishing the occasional race in the points, with Indy 500 winner Marcus Ericsson behind the wheel. 2018 saw Sauber and Alfa Romeo form a partnership, keeping Ferrari engines and providing a race seat for promising rookie Charles Leclerc. More competitive displays came throughout this season, earning Leclerc a promotion to Ferrari, swapping seats with Kimi Raikkonen. Renamed Alfa Romeo racing in 2019, Raikkonen drove for the team he began his career with until the end of 2021 prior to his retirement, with a 4th place finish at the 2019 Brazilian Grand Prix being Alfa Romeo’s best result in these seasons with Antonio Giovinazzi following Raikkonen home in 5th. 2022 saw more change on the driver front for the team, with Mercedes race winner Valtteri Bottas joining Alfa Romeo alongside Chinese rookie Zhou Guanyu and the team opting to keep the same lineup for the 2023 season. From 2026 onwards, the team will be competing in F1 as Audi, with Alfa Romeo’s partnership coming to an end at the end of 2023.
Alfa Romeo F1 Team Orlen
DRIVER LINE-UP
Valtteri Bottas
Key Data:
DOB: 28th August 1989
Nationality: Finnish
Lives in: Monaco/Finland
Current team: Alfa Romeo F1 Team Orlen
Background info:
Bottas’ racing career began in his teens, winning karting championships and Formula Renault before the age of 20. Bottas moved up to the GP3 Series (now F3) in 2011 alongside a role as a test driver with Williams F1, winning the title at the first attempt. Sitting out 2012, Bottas jumped past GP2 and raced with Williams in 2013, adding to the already strong pedigree of Finns in Formula One. In the first year of the turbo hybrid era, Williams with Mercedes engines were highly competitive, allowing Bottas to finish on the podium six times on his way to 4th in the driver’s championship. Bottas’ consistency and pace continued into 2015-16 before his big break came at the end of 2016. Due to the sudden retirement of Nico Rosberg after winning the 2016 Championship, dominating front-runners Mercedes were on the lookout for a driver to partner Lewis Hamilton. Bottas was chosen as the man for the job, racing alongside Hamilton from 2017-21, winning eight races and helping the Mercedes team to five consecutive Constructor’s Championships in this time. Bottas’ best season in this period came in 2019, winning four races and finishing second in the Driver’s Championship to Lewis Hamilton with 326pts. Bottas moved to the Alfa Romeo team for the 2022 season on a multi-year deal, helping the team to a much-improved 6th in the Constructor’s Championship while finishing 10th in the Driver’s standings himself. Outside of Formula One, Bottas is an active cyclist, partnering with girlfriend and professional cyclist Tiffany Cromwell in global cycling events. As well as this, Bottas launched Oath Gin in 2022, holding a tasting event at the beginning of 2023 in South Australia.
Zhou Guanyu
Key Data:
DOB: 30th May 1999
Nationality: Chinese
Lives in: London, England
Current team: Alfa Romeo F1 Team Orlen
Background info:
Following his junior karting career in native China, Zhou’s move to the UK saw the beginning of his climb up the motorsport ladder. Zhou showed his talent in his early forays into single seaters, winning at Monza in Italian Formula 4 – while being part of Ferrari’s Junior Academy. Following his departure from the Ferrari family, Zhou joined the Renault Academy for 2019, becoming a development driver for the F1 team. This also coincided with Zhou moving into F2 for the 2019 season after spending three seasons in F3. Zhou’s 2020 and 21 seasons – also spent in F2 – saw him spend time as Renault/Alpine’s test driver and participate in Free Practice in Austria 2021. After finishing third in the F2 championship for 2021, 2022 saw Zhou promoted to Formula One with the Alfa Romeo team to become the first Chinese driver to compete in the sport – scoring points on his debut with a 10th place in Bahrain. A peak of 8th was to follow in the Canadian Grand Prix, Zhou earning his place alongside Bottas for the 2023 season.
100% Financial Protection
Google Reviews
My husband and I had a wonderful experience with The Grand Prix Tours. The accommodation was amazing, communication with this company was brilliant when I had a few questions and the seating for the actual Grand Prix qualifying and race day was perfect, as we got to see all the overtaking on the corner. I would highly recommend this company and look forward to using them again in the future!!
Myself and my son became Grand Prix Grand Tourists for the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa…. GPGT took care of everything, flight were perfect, airport transfers ran smoothly, hotel in Brussels was stunning and comfortable, seats in the gold 4 grandstand were beyond anything we could have expected,transfers from hotel to race were good fun and interesting especially trying to exit the carpark at the end of both days!! But hey, it was expected…Stefan our guide and the drivers were really friendly and looked after us well.Please thank Jamie at your office, he was brilliant, kept us informed on every item….I would recommend you guys 100% to anyone thinking of using your services
Thank you GPGT for organising the trip to Spa for me. My husband and son had the most amazing time.My specific wishes of where they wanted to sit at the circuit were fulfilled perfectly. The organisation, communication and clear instructions by GPGT from start to finish has been first class, well done everyone.I look forward to using this company again and would recommend their services over and over again. Easily 5 ⭐️
We had a fantastic time at the Hingarian Grand Prix. Everything was organised for us. In particular, the communication from booking to race day was excellent. We look forward to travelling with GPGT again.
Just got back from the Hungarian Grand Prix. I booked this as a surprise for my partner’s birthday and GPGT were great from the start. I wouldn’t have known where to start arranging this myself but everything was organised, communication great and everything happened exactly as they said it would! hotel was nice, all transfer pick ups were on time and seats at the Grand Prix were great! I booked the flights separately myself but was really pleased when GPGT still sorted airport transfers for us. They made it a simple, stress free and very enjoyable weekend!
Freshly back from a superb trip to the Spanish Grand Prix - what a weekend and experience! All arrangements from point of booking, pre-travel, and the weekend itself, were seamless and very well coordinated.Our grand stand seats were spectacular, in front of the starting grid and pits, with brilliant views of all the action.We’re already planning which race to book for next year. Thanks to everyone on the GPGT team for making it a very easy and unforgettable experience 🙂
So pleased to have chosen GPT for F1 Monaco - they were really responsive to all emails and phone calls. The advice for hotel in Nice walking distance to the rail station was really perfect (23 minutes to central Monaco). Hotel was great choice for this weekend as we were only there to sleep and it was comfortable clean with helpful staff. Transfers from airport to hotel and return were very efficient and professional - they anticipated late arrival and departure so were ready and waiting to take us both ways in high quality vehicles. Our seats were in one of the main grandstands (K 4) with great views of the track and harbour with a huge screen opposite to see all the action around the track. It was a big decision choosing the company to supply the Grand Prix experience, I read many reviews and GPT stood out, very happy to have chosen them.
We chose GPGT for our 1st F1 experience and we were not disappointed. Bahrain was an incredible experience everything went like clockwork. Well done to the team at GPGT’s we are very much looking forward to our next event.
Having never done a package for a GP I wasn’t sure what to expect. I need not have worried. From the start the communication was excellent with clear instructions regarding flights, transfers and hotel.The airport transfers were easy and the driver was professional and attentive and the hotel was out of this world. The circuit transfers were easy and informative with a local guide who gave us information on local areas of historic importance and local facts and recommendations for nice places to eat.I would recommend this company to anyone who is looking to attend a GP abroad. You won’t be disappointed.
From the moment we booked our Monaco GP tour until the end of the trip, we had nothing but a brilliant experience with this company. Our initial trip was postponed due to Covid and Simon and Jay were always at the end of the phone to answer any questions and reassure us. As for the trip itself, everything was well thought out - from the flight and transfers to the hotel in Nice (clean, comfortable and an easy walk to the train station so we could easily get to Monaco and back). We upgraded our tickets for the Grand Prix after chatting to Simon about the kind of view we wanted and they were superb - right in the middle of the action. It was a once-in-a-lifetime trip that we will never forget and we can’t wait to book our next F1 tour with the company . Thanks all
Like to say a massive thanks to John and the team for a totally hassle free Monaco F1 weekend.Start to finish they are totally professional, quick to respond to emails, and providing all the relevant information required before flying out!The trip itself went without any issues, accommodation chosen in Nice, with its roof top bar, was a perfect way to relax after full day trying to pack everything in, and only a 10-15 minutes walk to/from the station.Our chosen seats which gave access to the mooring pontoons of the big super Yacht’s, with live music that filled the gaps between races. We also got to see plenty of action, (Ricardo’s & Schumacher’s crashes, plus others over the weekend), you could also at a distance see some of the pit activity and even the podium presentations, (depending on the seats we had each day). It had the big screen central to our stand (P), so you didn’t miss any action.Thanks again for a totally awesome F1 experience.Regards Dave
Delighted with the whole experience. The hotel was superb in every way, the seats at the Barcelona Grand Prix were exceptional. Will definitely book with you again and recommend friends to do the same.We were kept informed through the weekend with various tel numbers should we run into difficulties during our stay which we didn’t.Anyone can book with you very confidently!
Monaco Historic GP 2022 with Grand Prix Grand Tours.These guys are top notch. You get exactly what is in the package, airport transfers, flights, hotel, Grandstand Tickets (great seats).I can not speak highly enough of the organisational skills these guys have.Thank you
Latest news
Where & How to Buy Formula 1 Tickets For 2024 – A Beginners GuideDecember 1, 2023 - 11:14 amRelated posts:Drive to Survive Season 5 – Six Storylines to look out forWho Was The Stig?F1 Sprint Races Get Green-LightHow Much are F1 Tickets?
Drive to Survive Season 5 – Six Storylines to look out forFebruary 2, 2023 - 7:50 amRelated posts:Where & How to Buy Formula 1 Tickets For 2024 – A Beginners GuideWho Was The Stig?F1 Sprint Races Get Green-LightHow Much are F1 Tickets?
Who Was The Stig?June 21, 2021 - 12:48 pmRelated posts:Where & How to Buy Formula 1 Tickets For 2024 – A Beginners GuideDrive to Survive Season 5 – Six Storylines to look out forF1 Sprint Races Get Green-LightHow Much are F1 Tickets?
