Sauber are the only team yet to score points this season. The C44 is a generally uncompetitive car, lacking the necessary performance to fight for points. To make things worse, the Swiss-based outfit are losing even more ground to their rivals.
Sauber are expected to struggle in the short term
Disaster at the Dutch GP
Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu were essentially afterthoughts in Zandvoort last weekend.
They spent most of their time at the back, as Sauber were cemented as the slowest team on Dutch soil.
Alessandro Alunni Bravi, the Hinwil team’s representative, did not sugar-coat the situation:
“Today has potentially been the most difficult race of the season for us.
“Without any retirement in front of us, we finished at the bottom of the field in P19 and P20, being lapped twice – a hard picture of our current race pace.
“We obviously lack performance in race conditions, and we have also seen that we experience higher tyre degradation than our competitors. So, no matter the strategy, we can’t change the result.
“We found ourselves in a very difficult situation, and we need to understand whether today’s performance is more related to the track characteristics due to wind conditions and corner balance.”
Sauber accept they are in a transitional phase
Arguably the only positive for Sauber last weekend was in FP1. Robert Shwartzman was competitive in the first session of the weekend, setting strong times in both wet and dry conditions.
As Audi considers their driver options for 2025, Shwartzman delivered a timely showing.
Of course, there are many others under consideration. Gabriel Bortoleto is perhaps in the best position, with the 19-year-old bringing a combination of valuable assets to the table.
In addition to his speed, Bortoleto could bring a huge commercial boost to Audi’s F1 project. The presence of a Brazilian driver on the grid would undoubtedly be a significant moment.
Mick Schumacher is another contender and one who is featuring heavily in F1 news headlines.
If the 25-year-old is successful in securing a brief stint with Williams, his chances of convincing Audi to sign him could grow.
Despite all this driver speculation, the team’s results are unlikely to improve until at least 2026. In the meantime, Mattia Binotto and Jonathan Wheatley will work to set the foundations for long-term success.
