*Why Alfa Romeo retained Zhou for 2023

*原標(biāo)題：為什么阿爾法羅密歐選擇繼續(xù)同周冠宇沖擊2023

**譯文版權(quán)up所有，原文及圖片摘自F1官網(wǎng)，有刪減

It's hard for a Formula 1 rookie these days. The limited pre-season testing means they have little-to-no time to get a grip of a machine that is far more powerful and agile than they’ve previously raced. It’s even harder when mechanical gremlins rear their ugly heads, as they did for Alfa Romeo with the red and white car spending close to four of the six days in the garage in pre-season running, further robbing you of precious mileage to build some early rhythm.

現(xiàn)如今，作為F1新秀的日子可不好過。季前測試被縮減了，這意味著他們幾乎沒有多少時(shí)間，去適應(yīng)一輛比自己過去的座駕要強(qiáng)大迅猛得多的賽車。而當(dāng)你還要不得不面對機(jī)械故障時(shí)，情況就更糟了。六天的測試?yán)镉兴奶?，阿爾法羅密歐都只能看著自己的紅白賽車停在維修區(qū)里檢修。寶貴的里程數(shù)就在眼前流失，就是得不到一個(gè)尋找新車節(jié)奏的機(jī)會(huì)。

Not ideal conditions, then, for Zhou, who managed only 112 laps in Barcelona – just over half what Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz clocked up at the same test. But his team mate Valtteri Bottas had a worse time of it, clocking only 54 laps. Zhou was set to drive in the team’s filming day shortly after in Barcelona, with the team keen for him to get as much car time as possible to get him up to speed ahead of his debut.

這對周冠宇來說當(dāng)然是壞消息，他在巴塞羅那完成了112圈，這只是法拉利車手塞恩斯同期的一半。不過，他的隊(duì)友博塔斯還要倒霉，只跑了54圈。周冠宇原本計(jì)劃在巴塞羅那測試后，駕車參與到車隊(duì)官方影片的拍攝中，車隊(duì)也樂于見到他有更多的駕駛時(shí)間，這能幫助他在處子秀前更好的提升速度。

But rather than grab the chance for extra mileage, Zhou stepped aside and offered the car to Bottas, as he knew how important it was for the Finn to get more car time – and use all of his experience to feed back to the team in a bid to aid development. He put the team first.

不過，周冠宇沒有選擇去抓住這次額外的測試機(jī)會(huì)，相反，他把機(jī)會(huì)讓給了博塔斯。上海小伙知道，讓芬蘭隊(duì)友獲得足夠的測試時(shí)間，對車隊(duì)研發(fā)大有裨益。博塔斯可以利用他豐富的經(jīng)驗(yàn)，給到車隊(duì)很多反饋。周冠宇把車隊(duì)利益放在了首位。

“This decision came from himself, I didn’t ask him [to give up the car],” Vasseur tells F1.com. “In the debrief after the three days in Barcelona, he said, ‘I drove more than Valtteri, I think it makes sense if I gave him the car for Sunday.’ For a rookie to propose something like this is impressive.”

“這是他自己的決定，我沒這么要求過他，”瓦塞爾對F1官網(wǎng)說到，“巴塞羅那三天測試后的車隊(duì)簡報(bào)會(huì)上，他說'我比瓦爾特里跑得多，我覺得周日應(yīng)該把賽車交給他，這很合理。'作為一個(gè)新秀，能做出如此提議，這讓人印象深刻。”

Zhou set tone with Bahrain point

巴林奪分定調(diào)

Vassuer admits he was “not nervous but a bit worried” about Zhou heading into the season, with so little track time after a disrupted pre-season – but that feeling didn’t linger as Zhou delivered an impressive debut weekend.

瓦塞爾承認(rèn)，由于零碎的季前準(zhǔn)備，中國車手缺乏測試時(shí)間，他對周冠宇的新秀年“不緊張但有點(diǎn)擔(dān)心”。不過在上海小伙出色的首個(gè)周末后，所有擔(dān)心都煙消云散了。

“We knew before the season that it would be a challenge, as it was a new car with a new line-up, only six days testing – and on those six test days, we spent four in the garage,” says Vasseur. “For a rookie to start the season like this was not an easy one. From Bahrain already, he did very well. He went to Q2, which was the target, and he scored points. He fought with Lewis in the race.

“我們清楚這個(gè)賽季會(huì)極具挑戰(zhàn)性，新車，新車手，更不用說六天測試我們有四天都在修車，”瓦塞爾說，“一個(gè)新秀有這樣的表現(xiàn)很不容易，從巴林就是如此。他闖進(jìn)了Q2，拿了積分，還和漢密爾頓展開了攻防。”

“We started the season on the right foot, with good momentum – and it was very positive for him. Then he was able to maintain this level of performance.”

“我們的賽季起步就在正軌上，勢頭良好，這對他都是積極的信號。之后他也持續(xù)有著不錯(cuò)的發(fā)揮。”

A positive mindset sent right message

態(tài)度決定一切

Throughout that weekend in Bahrain, Zhou remained composed, handled the big media interest with ease, and got down to business in the garage, learning his new office and spending time getting to know his team. As the season has progressed, that approach to a weekend wasn’t an outlier but rather the rule.

巴林周末，周冠宇表現(xiàn)得沉著冷靜，應(yīng)付媒體游刃有余，車隊(duì)工作也是一絲不茍。仔細(xì)熟悉新環(huán)境，新團(tuán)隊(duì)，整個(gè)賽季都是如此，這不是做做樣子，而是嚴(yán)格的自律。

However, it wasn’t as successful from a pure points perspective, with the unreliability which plagued the team at testing stubbornly hanging about through the season. Hardly the smooth sailing a rookie could do with to build himself into a season. But Zhou’s relentlessly positive attitude remained.

從積分角度看，這些努力似乎沒什么用，阿爾法羅密歐賽車備受可靠性問題困擾，從季前測試到賽季中皆如此。這對一個(gè)急需證明自己的新人可不是什么好事，不過好在周冠宇一直保持著雷打不動(dòng)的積極態(tài)度。

“We had some DNFs in the first third of the season – but he was always there in terms of pace,” says Vasseur. “I think the most important for me was to feel he was able to inject a positive attitude into the team. Even when he had to face some tough situations like DNFs, he always stayed positive – and that’s mega positive for us.”

“賽季前三分之一，我們退賽有點(diǎn)多了，不過他速度上其實(shí)一直不錯(cuò)，”瓦塞爾表示，“對我來說，看到他不斷得給車隊(duì)注入積極的思想態(tài)度，這是最重要的。即使他不得不退賽的時(shí)候，他還是保持著良好的心態(tài)，這讓車隊(duì)也獲益匪淺?！?/p>

Progress has been constant and consistent

持續(xù)穩(wěn)定的進(jìn)步

Zhou had a big high-speed crash at the start of the British Grand Prix, but after he was passed fit by the medical centre, he headed straight back to the team’s hospitality to discuss the next race in Austria, rather than retreating home. It an impressive show of bravery and defiance.?

英國大獎(jiǎng)賽上，周冠宇經(jīng)歷了一次高速撞車，在被醫(yī)療中心宣布沒事后，周冠宇沒有選擇回家少做調(diào)整，而是直接加入到車隊(duì)關(guān)于下一站奧地利的準(zhǔn)備中。這展示出了他讓人驚嘆的勇氣和韌勁。

“He came back very quickly – he was performing very well,” says Vasseur of Zhou after the crash at Silverstone. “I like the guy, the team likes the guy – and I think in terms of pure performance, he’s improving step by step. Now he is challenging Valtteri in qualifying – and this is important. We have written one chapter, we have some other ones to make.”

“他很快就回來了，表現(xiàn)得很棒，”瓦塞爾在銀石事故后這么評價(jià)周冠宇，“我喜歡他，團(tuán)隊(duì)也很喜歡他，就算從純技術(shù)角度，他也在踏實(shí)進(jìn)步中。現(xiàn)在他都可以在排位賽里挑戰(zhàn)博塔斯了，這很關(guān)鍵。我們完成了故事的開頭，接下去還有很多路要走?！?/p>

Zhou’s popularity in China continues to grow, the 23-year-old accruing a slew of personal endorsement deals with a variety of high-profile brands, including Prada. With his growing form and profile comes greater interest from Chinese businesses, which is a positive not just for Alfa Romeo but the wider sport.

周冠宇的人氣在中國國內(nèi)也是水漲船高，23歲的小伙已經(jīng)身背大量個(gè)人品牌代言，其中不乏普拉達(dá)這樣的奢侈品。隨著他的表現(xiàn)和狀態(tài)漸入佳境，還會(huì)有很多的中國資本涌入，這對阿爾法羅密歐和F1都是一件好事。

Bottas and Zhou’s good relationship important

同博塔斯的良好關(guān)系

Zhou getting on terms with Bottas is important, as it shows he has potential for the future. That they get on well is crucial, too. Alfa Romeo are in a place where it’s all about the drivers working together to drive the team up through the midfield.

周冠宇和博塔斯的組合漸入佳境，如此良性的隊(duì)友關(guān)系對車隊(duì)很重要，這從另一方面凸顯出了中國車手的潛力。阿爾法羅密歐要想從中游突圍，就必須依靠兩位車手的協(xié)作發(fā)揮。

Squabbling between themselves?is pointless. If one can help the other get an overall better result for the team, that is the priority. Both drivers are completely bought into that mindset.

互相爭斗是沒有意義的，重要的是能否互相幫助，以取得更好的名次，兩人對此心知肚明。

“In Spa, we asked Valtteri to help Zhou in qualifying – to abort the lap for the slipstream. It meant Valtteri did not progress from Q1 for the 149th time in a row. He didn’t mention this, he just did it. We had the same with Zhou, to help Valtteri. They are helping the team. This dynamic is very important to us.”

“在斯帕，我們要求博塔斯在排位賽里放棄自己的飛行圈，來給周冠宇拉尾流，這意味著他無法連續(xù)第149次晉級Q2。他沒去管這些，就是完成了任務(wù)。我們也會(huì)對周冠宇做同樣的安排去幫助博塔斯，周也做到了。他們的協(xié)作也幫到了車隊(duì)，這樣的氛圍對車隊(duì)很重要。”

原文地址：

https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article.driver-market-analysis-why-alfa-romeo-retained-zhou-for-2023.1s5cD8vfrvc2nuAHwU7VHI.html