According to team manager Fred Vasseur, Audi's relationship with the Sauber Formula 1 team beginning in 2026 is a "game-changer" for the Swiss team.
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After months of rumours, it was revealed just before the most recent Mexican Grand Prix that Audi has selected Sauber as its partner for the time when the German automaker enters the new engine rules era of Formula One. Former team principal Vasseur believes that Audi’s capabilities will help the operation make significant strides in competitiveness. Sauber has had works agreements in the past, most notably with BMW from 2006 to 2009. What Audi’s arrival would mean for the team, according to Vasseur, “on the short-term view first: it won’t have a big impact except that for us that we know that we can go to the next step and it will be a huge opportunity in terms of recruitment and to be more attractive also for the sponsors for the future.”
Vasseur believes that even if the F1 cost cap has altered the financial basis of the sport, the amounts required are still too high for a non-manufacturer team to bear. “F1 did a huge step up the last 10 years and, to stay as an independent team today, it’s quite impossible from my point of view. It was probably the best option we could add and [we are] more than happy to have this kind of deal for the future.” He stated, “We are still far from the budget cap. “That means that despite our best efforts, we are still far from reaching the budget cap. We are still far from the budget cap, but I believe we will touch on it later. And the outcomes are wholly dependent upon us. It will get harder and harder to have a long-term perspective if you just have three or four autonomous teams.
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According to Vasseur, when Audi arrived, its engine would be made at its Neuburg facility in Germany, with the chassis component still being made in Switzerland. Operations would be entirely divided, he declared. “It is apparent that the team will manage the chassis and on-track operations from Hinwil, while they will be in charge of the engine in Neuburg. They will eventually purchase some company stock, but we didn’t divulge the specifics, and I won’t do so now.
