For the first time in Formula 1 history, a Chinese driver will compete in a Grand Prix race on Sunday as Bahrain hosts the season opener.

Zhou Guanyu, 22, will partner Valtteri Bottas in an all new Alfa Romeo driver line up for the 2022 season.

Lining up against 19 other drivers at the Bahrain International Circuit, the race will be of momentous significance for Zhou whose first contact with Formula 1 was at the age of five, during the Shanghai Grand Prix in 2004.

The magic of the race influenced the Chinese youngster to set himself the ambitious goal of becoming his country's first-ever F1 racer – achieving a feat that Ma Qinghua, the only other Chinese driver to take part in a Formula 1 weekend, never managed.

Qualifying sessions for the race will be held later on Saturday, where Zhou and his teammate Bottas will be aiming for a decent run to optimize their races tomorrow.