29/09/2025
NEWS STORY
It's all systems go admits Jonathan Wheatley as Sauber continues to morph into Audi ahead of its 2026 debut.
While Cadillac has been getting the majority of the headlines, fellow 2026 debutant Audi is quietly getting on with things.
Then again, with much of the workforce still focussing on Sauber's final season, which could yet see the Swiss team claim sixth in the standings, it's a busy time at Hinwil... and exciting.
Well, it's a hugely busy time for every Formula 1 team, and everyone's focus naturally turns to 2026," Wheatley told reporters in Baku. "We are on schedule with our dyno program. The engine's been on the dyno for a while now," he added.
"The focus now is on reliability," he continued, "because, as you say, we'll be running the car in an incredibly short period of time.
Unlike Sauber, and indeed Cadillac, Audi will join Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull in producing its own engine, and like the other manufacturer teams has the benefit of a more streamlined approach when it comes to marrying the power unit with the chassis. This is all the more important considering the huge regulations overhaul facing both next year.
"It's an exciting period in the project, mating chassis and powertrain together for the first time in December," Wheatley admitted. "Our simulator programme naturally starts to lean towards 2026 as well. But I think in both of those programmes, it's a little bit too early to talk about performance.
"Of course, we won't really know any of this until the first qualifying session and the first race in Melbourne," he added.
Meanwhile, Adam Baker, who headed the engine division at Audi, but parted company with the team in May when Mattia Binotto was appointed, has joined Cadillac.
It's understood that Baker's role will be to oversee its own engine operation ahead of its debut, the American outfit using Ferrari powerunits in the meantime.
Baker, who previously worked at Cosworth, was at Hinwil during the period that BMW owned the Swiss team, and was also part of the German manufacturer's WEC and Formula E operations.