Sauber/Audi are in no hurry to finalise its second F1 driver, but it won’t be too long as well with multiple names now linked to the project.
After Nico Hulkenberg was firmed by the previous management at Audi, they are still to finalise its second F1 driver for 2025, when the team will still run under its current guise of Sauber. In addition, they will also have to take up a reserve and or junior drivers.
On Sauber bill, they do have Theo Pourchaire, Zane Maloney, Lena Buhler and Carrier Schreiner as juniors, but they are not the ready choices – with only Poruchaire linked to the seat, as such. Apart from Valtteri Bottas, whose name neared confirmation in Singapore, McLaren junior and F2 front-runner Gabriel Bortoleto’s name has come up in recent times.
There is no hurry at Audi to finalise the second driver, but they won’t take long either after Mattia Binotto took charge of the team. “I think this is the current assessment that Mattia is doing,” said Alessandro Alunni Bravi. “He just started few weeks ago, so we have said already in Monza that he’s taking charge of all the dossiers and the drivers is of course one of the most important ones.
“We are evaluating all the options to see which is the best balance between a short-term experience and medium, long-term, maybe young talent. There are potential candidates on both sides. Valtteri is a strong driver for our team. We know him very well. He has been with the team already for three years, and of course he’s one on top of our list. But there are other opportunities.
“We are just looking at all the pros and cons, and Mattia will take a decision based not only on 2025, but also the medium-long-term strategy for the Audi F1 project. It’s not about the deadline because, of course, we are not opportunistic. Now that there is only one seat available, we want to take time. It’s more to assess everything, every aspect, and to take a right decision.
“I think there is no rush, but we want to tick this box also soon. So, I think it will be a matter of the next weeks,” summed up Bravi, who talked about his own future and highlighted the reasoning behind signing Hulkenberg and what the German can bring on the table, who is doing fairly well at Haas.
“I’m happy about your question because of course we have been quite early into the driver’s market this year,” started Bravi. “We tried to anticipate the market and I think it was a good idea and a good move after what we have seen in the second part of the season but Nico is a very strong driver for us. He’s a good qualifier and this is one point that will be even more important in the future.
“We have seen how much qualifying is crucial in Formula 1 and he has this kind of characteristic. I think that Ayao can confirm that. He is also a straightforward guy and we need you know people that you know speak clearly within the team. We have a lot of challenges ahead of us and there will be no politics, just hard work ahead of us, and I think Nico can fit properly into the Audi F1 project.
“He has at the same time a lot of experience in Formula 1. And of course, to have a solid foundation and an experienced guy in the team will help at the initial stage of the Audi F1 project. So I can just see positive things about him. And we are excited to have him in the next year together with the team. But now we need to be focused on our drivers and to get out of this season the very best.”
One of the key contenders for the seat whose name – as noted – neared confirmation over the Singapore GP weekend, Bottas, was relaxed about the situation. The Finn is in discussions, but he knows until there is no signature, he can’t be double sure of what he is doing.
Despite no points to show, Bottas feels he has done a good enough job and is driving better than what he did at Mercedes. “We’ve been in talks now for a while with Mattia since he joined and Alessandro as well,” he said. “I can’t really share much. I might know a bit more than other people, but let’s just focus on the racing. At least there’s then a good time between Singapore and the next race to continue the talks and then we’ll see what happens.
“It’s how the sport is. I think it’s not just this season, but if you look at this season and the last season, when you’re fighting towards the back, obviously, it’s much less visible on what you can do and what kind of performances are you having. And it’s pretty much against your team-mate that you can have a comparison.
“So, for sure, you’re more out there if you’re fighting within the points and towards the front end. That’s just how it goes. So, for sure, it has not been helping the situation. But, yeah, there are still people in the paddock who know what the real performance is, and especially within the team, they know how I’m performing weekend to weekend and that’s the main thing you know.
“I just need the people who need to know to know how I’m performing and that’s what matters. I feel like, yes, especially in qualifyings this year, I haven’t felt any signs of being worse. If anything, you keep getting better with experience. You gain more consistency, more confidence. You can solve different issues in a different way.
“You can adapt to the car the more time you spend in the sport. I feel actually I’m driving better than what I did at Mercedes, but obviously it’s not that visible,” summed up Bottas, who is likely to face stiff competition for the seat from Bortoleto. Even though the Brazilian is tied to McLaren, the F1 team will not extensively come in the way if a race seat opens up.
“If Binotto came to me… when you have such a talent, definitely you’re not going to stop him having a chance in Formula 1,” said Andrea Stella to media. “At the same time, we will be definitely interested in finding a way to keep him in the McLaren family, because I think he’s a talent that in the future could be important for McLaren.
“We are safe for the long term with our two drivers. We couldn’t be any happier. But definitely, we would like to keep him in the McLaren family. But I’m sure we could find a solution. I tell Gabriel the same thing I tell the team: don’t look at the classification, just think about the chequered flag all the time and race one race at a time, with the feet on the ground.
“And he has it. For me, similar to Oscar, it’s not only the ability and the execution when he is in the car. From a driving point of view, he’s also – you know how humble these guys are, how available they are to just get the learning working with the team. At no point they are arrogant. And when you combine talent with hard work and this kind of values and attitude, I think it’s where you can grow as a driver.
“And Gabriel is another example of growing so rapidly. If we think of the start of his F2 campaign, he had some hiccups at times – not necessarily only due to his driving, he had some car problems – but he didn’t give up. He stayed on the case, and now he is building step by step.”
Throwing another name in the hat is Williams’ Franco Colapinto, who has shown good performances in the handful of F1 races so far. James Vowles will happily negotiate with Sauber/Audi, if they come knocking at his door, since the Argentine is a free agent per se with the Grove-based team already having Alexander Albon and Carlos Sainz.
“What I’ve already said is he is a racing driver, and I think he’s already demonstrated in just a few races that he belongs on the grid,” said Vowles to media. “What we’ve already said is we’re very open-minded.
“We’re waiting, in that circumstance, for Audi or Sauber to come to us and say, what do you want, what are you interested in? And from there, we can then discuss what it actually means as an implication. But the first stage is more an open discussion.”
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