Audi is preparing to plan its entry into F1 starting from 2026 when the new regulations come into force: the House of the Rings had made it official in August that it would build a power unit, while in October there was confirmation of the partnership with Sauber.
In the German manufacturer’s plans there was no desire to discover the cards too quickly, but the need to be able to start a personnel recruitment plan forced it to anticipate the times to respect the time schedule that was launched.
The chassis of the 2026 single-seater will be built at the Sauber headquarters in Hinwil, while the power unit will be born in Neuburg, Germany, where the Motorsport base is located. plans have been made to expand the structure with the construction of a new 3,000-square-metre factory where the test benches will be installed.
Audi Sport F1
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
The building, identified as F7.2, is part of an expansion of the Competence Center Motorsport, which opened in 2014 and where the Audis of the WEC, the Formula E program and participation in the Dakar were born.
The expansion works will be completed in the first quarter of 2024, but the first activities will begin to be active as early as next March.
“In the Motorsport Competence Center we have an ideal basis to develop our Formula 1 project – said Oliver Hoffmann, Audi board member for technical development -. The Audi headquarters in Neuburg was designed from the outset to support projects more demanding motorsports.And this foresight is bearing fruit, because even with the existing structures, we were able to immediately start the Formula 1 project”.
“We are putting our team in the best possible condition to aim for success in F1.”
Audi has already hired about 220 employees, but the goal is to reach a workforce of 300 by mid-2023.
“Developing a power unit in Germany for the most demanding championship in the world is a huge challenge,” said Adam Baker, Audi’s F1 project supervisor. “.
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