For all the resources going into Sauber’s 2026 Audi F1 transition, the last two years have been underwhelming for the Hinwil outfit. The C44 was easily the slowest car across last season. Luckily for Mattia Binotto’s squad, there is hope that 2025 could be more encouraging.
Sauber have a foundation to build on
To some extent, the final standings in Formula 1 can be misleading. This is not to suggest that teams end up in positions they don’t deserve to be in after the season finale.
However, when assessing a team’s competitiveness at the end of the year, the Championship is not always representative.
As teams progress and decline across various points in the year, it is always possible to finish a season in a better place than your final tally suggests.
Sauber are a good example of this. Across the first 21 rounds of the season, the Swiss outfit were nowhere near the rest of the field.
Aside from occasional Q2 appearances, Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu went under the radar for most of 2024.
With that said, things changed after Sauber brought their Las Vegas update. This package, introduced several races after most teams brought their final improvements, was a difference-maker.
It put Zhou and Bottas firmly in the midfield battle, capable of fighting for points and even outperforming other teams in pure pace.
Looking ahead to 2025, this strong late-season surge gives Nico Hulkenberg reason to be confident:
“The first day together is now behind us, and I think today has been such a productive and positive start,” assessed the 35-year-old after Abu Dhabi.
“We were able to take care of the basics and begin working together as a team. It was generally useful to get a first impression of the car.
“I’m looking forward to building on this momentum in the new year and really diving into the work ahead of us.
“I would like to thank everyone for the warm welcome, and I can’t wait to get back to this in 2025.”
Hulkenberg the driving force at Sauber
Because of how much Sauber struggled for most of 2024, conversation surrounding their driver line-up was fairly limited.
It was only in stand-out moments (like Zhou’s P8 finish) that the Swiss squad’s line-up was brought to the spotlight.
As the 2025 season approaches, Sauber’s driver combination is one of the most intriguing dynamics on the grid.
Nico Hulkenberg, a seasoned F1 veteran, will be the team’s point of reference for the foreseeable future. Having been central to the recent successes at Haas, the German driver is a huge signing for Sauber.
His consistent performances, coupled with an ability to produce moments of brilliance, could make the difference this year.
Hulkenberg’s presence also bodes well for the 2026 regulations – giving Audi an experienced driver to lead them through a largely unknown period.
Meanwhile, Gabriel Bortoleto is a very exciting talent who, for better or worse, enters a team with relatively low expectations for this season.
This gives the Brazilian a relatively low-pressure environment (if such a thing exists in F1) to learn from Hulkenberg and put himself in a position to reinforce the 37-year-old.
