Technical director of the Audi F1 project after the departures of Andreas Seidl and Oliver Hoffmann, Mattia Binotto is already hard at work within the Sauber team to enable the German manufacturer to arrive in good conditions in the premier category of the motorsport.
After a 2024 season in which the Swiss team scored only four points, Guanyu Zhou and Valtteri Bottas will be replaced this year by Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hülkenberg. However, according to Binotto, it is not just an overhaul of the driver duo that is needed to get Hinwil back on the right track.
« The team has survived the past few years in survival mode, declares Binotto on the Formula 1 website. It was about surviving, participating, trying to make the best of it. However, having a winning mentality, a winning mindset, is a different approach. So there is certainly a lot to do in terms of culture and behavior. »
« It’s a long journey, we know, and acting on behavior is perhaps even the most difficult, but we have started, continues Binotto. We have a few projects. Since I started, a lot has happened, not just the on-track improvements or the signing of Bortoleto. There is also the investment from Qatar, which represents a significant injection of capital for us. It’s about showing that overall, as a team, we’re moving in this direction with the right approach, the right thinking, thinking big, which is exactly the mindset we’re talking about. »
For Hinwil, the 2025 season will be important in order to lay the right foundations for Audi’s arrival on the grid in 2026.
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