Zhou Guanyu aiming to deliver under immense pressure from home crowd in China

Zhou Guanyu's wait for a race in his native China has ended. Formula 1 will return to the Shanghai International Circuit on Saturday for the first time since 2019.

The Sauber driver rose to the occasion in sprint qualifying on Friday, setting the 10th quickest time in a dramatic wet-dry session.

George Russell failed to make the top 10 and will start Saturday's Sprint in 11th place for Mercedes. The reigning world champion, Max Verstappen, had a minor blip, going off the track twice as the rain fell in the final part of qualifying on his way to fourth place.

Lando Norris stormed to pole position for the Sprint ahead of Lewis Hamilton, who has won six times in China. Fernando Alonso was in third place for Aston Martin.

Zhou made his F1 debut in 2022 and became the first Chinese driver to compete in a Formula 1 Grand Prix. The home hero's arrival may have energized the crowd, who quickly secured a ticket for the Grand Prix, which sold out within minutes of becoming available.

Zhou understood the added pressure heading into his home race and said Friday's result lifted him.

“It's a big relief,” Zhou told Sky Sports F1. “I’m just really happy for [Friday]. It’s a lot of pressure coming into this weekend. Of course, the fans have high expectations like always but first time at home, first day in the office, first time on the track it’s just great to be SQ3, also for the first time in my career. 

"Every time before I jump in the car in the garage I can see the crowd cheering, so I am really happy I can give them some kind of result and reward them for sitting in the rain.”

The 24-year-old has endured a tricky start to the season, yet to score a point after four rounds, with a best result of 11th at the season opener in Bahrain. The Sauber team has also floundered, failing to deliver consistently competitive pit stops and losing valuable time in the pit lane.

The Chinese Grand Prix could allow Zhou to score his first point of the season; the 100km Sprint on Saturday offers points down to eighth place. The grid for the Grand Prix is yet to be decided; the usual three-part knockout session will take place after the Sprint in China.