Audi-Sauber themes
The theme of the driver to join Nico Hulkenberg for 2025 it’s not the only open question for Audi-Sauber’s future in Formula 1. The house of the Rings has in fact taken over 100% of the Swiss team’s shares and is working hard on its first hybrid power unit in view of its debut in 2026 (next year the team will continue to use Ferrari engines) with the knowledge of having a big gap to make up for on the giants of the automotive industry that already compete in F1. And despite the exit of Renault, which has announced that it will not be Alpine’s engine supplier in the next regulatory cycle, Ingolstadt’s plans are not destined to change.
Renault’s farewell does not change plans
In short, there are doubts about the first Audi power unit and they are not hidden even by those directly involved. If only for a simple physiological question: the German company will find itself competing against other manufacturers who have more than ten years of experience in the design and development of hybrid turbo engines for Formula 1 (which debuted way back in 2014). However, nothing that affects the program, according to what was declared by the Audi CEO, Gernot Dollner: “Renault’s withdrawal will not influence our path and in fact we have not even discussed the issue internally. We have a long-term commitment to F1”.
If the withdrawal of Losanga is therefore not an incentive to leave the circus, it can rather be an incentive to improve. But also an opportunity to be seized: it is in fact clear that, even with the guarantee that there will be no layoffs, Viry-Chatillon’s staff is overstretched with the closure of the F1 programand that many engineers could continue their work elsewhere. The CEO of the Renault group himself, Luca De Meo, said it in an interview withTeam he declared that the technicians who want to continue the development of an F1 engine will have no difficulty in relocating, confirming that he has no intention of imprisoning anyone.
Binotto and the gap to recover
In the meantime too Mattia Binotto expressed his opinion on the current state of work in the new headquarters in Neuburg, recently renovated and adapted for the design of the Audi power unit: “I visited the factory and I must say that the engine is growing well on the dynamometer. But I also believe that ours is a process of growth and learning. In fact, we will have to compete against teams that are very stable and experienced, with great technical knowledge from previous years. The regulations are changing, it’s true, but However, I expect that we will initially have a gap to fill. However, we cannot yet know how big it will be”.
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