He is also Zhou's manager 👀

They'd want him as a reserve or sim driver maybe. I think there will be a big push for someone from Indy to come to the grid. Whether it's Herta or someone else who knows. The second seat I think they'll try to fill with someone from F1 as high up the talent pool as they can attract. To be blunt but not disrespectful, there are drivers with higher stock than Zhou that will be available around that time.

Everyone seems to agree this year's Sauber isn't a competitive car so being towards the back is to be expected. His performance relative to Valtteri hasn't been particularly noteworthy though, which doesn't give him a lot of upside besides maybe experience. It'll be a tough battle for him to get back to the grid IMO.

More seats means more options though. Movement around the grid may open up a seat at a team looking for a driver that can be competitive without binning the car constantly. There's a lot of young talent on the rise but not every team can afford to let someone throw the car around while they learn. Zhou fits that bill nicely. People thought Kmag was done and he made a great comeback run, same for Hulk. Maybe Zhou will be the same.