To the absolute bottom of the WCC standings. Being based in Switzerland must be a significant handicap to the team?
Don't forget that some of the design and engineering will be done in Germany. Audi won't be as isolated as Sauber was, IMO, in terms of suppliers, recruitment, etc ...
Binotto at Audi...I wonder what that does to Carlos Sainz's plans? Was it good luck he didn't sign earlier this year? Does that mean he has only got Williams as a possible seat? Binotto certainly lowers my expectations for the team.
That hair lol. Interesting assessment of this move by Audi. https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/what-prompted-audis-bombshell-move-for-binotto/10638034/ What prompted Audi’s bombshell move for Binotto A shock change of management has come after troubled preparation for Audi Jonathan Noble Jul 23, 2024, 5:44 PM Image Unavailable, Please Login Mattia Binotto Photo by: Simon Galloway / Motorsport Images Almost two years on from Audi’s official announcement of its Formula 1 entry, the smiles of that day are a long and distant memory. Its team, still racing under the Sauber banner, is currently sitting last in the constructors’ championship without a single point to its name so far this season. In fact, it has not finished in the top ten since the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix and there seems little hope of its challenger being able to get there on pace terms in the near future either. But perhaps worse than the lack of clear results are the optics of the minimal progress that has been made since its Spa announcement as Audi gears up for its F1debut. Efforts at its German engine facility may be flat out, but what is being delivered on track right now is not up to its standards. Despite the huge financial might of the new owners, the Hinwil operation appears to have lost momentum, and that has sown seeds of doubts about what can be expected from Audi itself in 2026. At this stage of the season, the team would have hoped to have had its number one target Carlos Sainz locked down to a contract that would tie his future to the German car maker. Instead, the fact that Sainz was not convinced by what was on offer, and preferred to weigh up options at Williams and Alpine instead, told its own story about why Audi was not the so-called player it wanted to be in the driver market. That lack of conviction in being able to attract the right driver is understood to have been mirrored when it came to personnel too – for there appeared to be a reluctance from quality staff to join a project they too were not believing in. Takeover impact Audi’s takeover of Sauber was never going to have an immediate impact – especially with its official entry not coming until 2026. But what perhaps took it, and former CEO Andrea Seidl, by surprise was how the transition phase of the takeover served as a means to frustrate its ambitions. With former owner Finn Rausing still involved, and his support required for the funding of larger investments, the hands of the team and its CEO Andreas Seidl were pretty much tied – as there was no incentive for Rausing to spend cash on improving something he was no longer going to benefit from. The situation was likened to someone having sold their car and then being asked to buy some new tyres for it. Realising the difficulty of its situation, and waking up to the fact that the lack of investment in its infrastructure was going to have long-term consequences if it was not sorted quick, Audi pushed through with an accelerated takeover earlier this year. The 100% shareholding opened the door for improvements to be made at Hinwil and the first recruitments, which included Stefan Straehnz from Mercedes who will become the new programme director. Other additions have included former-Red Bull and McLaren man Stefano Sordo and Red Bull's former chief mechanic Lee Stevenson. But while the restraints on investment had been lifted, the team’s ongoing lack of competitiveness on track became a growing concern for Audi. And while Seidl’s focus was deliberately on the plans for 2026, so performance on track now was an irrelevance, it was fast becoming obvious that there were long-term consequences for the current dip of form. The attraction for any of the drivers or staff Audi was chasing in being part of a major works effort was being tainted by the prospect of being at the back of the grid for 2025 – and no guarantee of a transformative performance the year after. So, while some believed Sauber now and Audi in the future could effectively be treated as two separate eras that had a clear transition in 2026, their fates were fast becoming entwined. It has also been suggested that things were not helped in recent weeks by a power struggle between Seidl and the newly arrived Oliver Hoffmann. Having come from the Audi operation and having been moved across to the F1 project, Hoffmann was said to point the blame to the lack of recent development falling under Seidl’s remit. From Seidl’s perspective, having had free reign to get on with the project since he was signed at the end of 2022, the arrival of Hoffmann only served to add unnecessary complexity and politics to the situation. Things appeared very complex. But, whatever was really going on behind closed doors, the end result is that Audi’s senior management grew tired of it - and felt that the squabbling had to stop. And its response was probably a surprise to both, because it did not take sides on the matter. Instead, it got rid of both Seidl and Hoffmann and installed former Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto to head things up. A line in the sand The scale of change in appointing Binotto is significant, but one that is entirely logical. Binotto, who left Ferrari at the end of 2022, had been speaking to several teams about opportunities to return to the F1 paddock – but the Audi project is the one that makes the most sense for him and his new bosses. The make-up of the Audi operation is similar to Ferrari in many respects: a works operation for a major car manufacturer that produces both its own chassis and power unit. Binotto, who also previously served as technical director of engine and chassis at Ferrari, has vast experience of what is needed to succeed in F1 – and how to get the most out of staff and facilities. What the new structure also means, and this is something that Audi highlighted in its press release, is that it has someone on board who is focused entirely on its best interests.
--There is no longer the situation of management juggling conflicts between Sauber and Audi, or what is happening now versus two years’ times. And there will also be none of the conflict between chiefs that was holding the team’s progress back – as Binotto is solely in charge and reports directly and only to Audi. As Audi CEO Gernot Doellner, who will also now become chairman of the Board of Directors of Sauber, said: “Our aim is to bring the entire Formula 1 project up to F1 speed by means of clear management structures, defined responsibilities, reduced interfaces, and efficient decision-making processes. For this purpose, the team must be able to act independently and quickly.”--
Clearly Seidl and Hoffmann were not doing well as a 'team' This was reported 2 weeks ago. Im surprised this was not picked up earlier by more major outlets/F1 news types. Better now to bring in experience from the outside to start the process outlined by Doellner. There is no time to waste for Audi.
Love this pic. Seems Binotto is consoling Fred as he struggles at Ferrari lol. The smile on Binotto says - I make more than you now and thank god they let me go. Have fun with The Management at Ferrari lol Image Unavailable, Please Login
Classic conflict of a generic corporate type not understanding F1 (Hoffmann) yet trying to impose his rule on "these little racing people" and a pure racing engineer (Seidl) mostl likely ignoring Hoffmann as he prepared 2026 with obsessive care... Yet Seidl, buried in his planning, made the mistake of not looking up and considering the wider perspective, the danger of ignoring this year, not considering the fact that the team's image would be impacted along with its attractivity to outsiders (staff, engineers etc) and hence its ability to recruit them...which is already very much handicapped by the fact that settling in Zurich/Hinwil and the German speaking part of Switzerland is very difficult for foreigners as Swiss Germans (despite the fact that I have numerous friends there) are not the most welcoming. Sainz spoke pointedly of a team lying to him a few weeks ago, misrepresenting itself to him, which shocked and disturbed him...I am quite sure that was Hoffmann arrogantly talking down to "the potential little employee driver" and telling him a lot of nonsense.
Audi Board cured the Management problem related to both Hoffmann and Seidl. Lack of results and a lack of team work and cooperation. Clearly an analysis was done of where the team is not and who was responsible. I have no issues with culture around the Lake in Zurich ever. They reset the leadership with a clear line of communication to Audi Executive Management. There were simply too many hands in the creation of the recipe. Binotto has more than enough Swiss experience to deal with any hesistant Zurich' types being obstinate lol. He is from Lausanne. Per the AMuS data yesterday - However, Hoffmann had taken a liking to the media-effective Formula 1 business and became more involved in the operational business than Seidl would have liked. Hoffmann's confidant Julius Seebach was like a spider in a web and made Seidl's job twice as difficult. As a result, important decisions regarding personnel and the expansion of the infrastructure in Hinwil were delayed or not made at all. And so the transformation in Switzerland fell behind.
Too many cooks arguing about methodology as I wrote. It reminds me of the Ford versus Ferrari/Le Mans 66 film where Carrol Shelby/Matt Damon tells the Henry Ford character (who has four layers of secretaries right there, never mind far too many suits in the company) that the chain of command must be very short and reactive: Doellner must have seen the film On Swiss Germans I stand by my statement, I am not stating they are worse just very different. Note that I have lived in 8 countries, 23 different places and it is a closed world with its own dialect very, very hard for outsiders to settle in. That is backed up by countless articles, references I have read through the years...but still I have friends there and enjoy visiting.
I have long time friends there. No more worse than Ive seen here in Germany with being less than warm to new people. Ive lived in the USA and was noticing a touch of distance around places as well. We humans tend to be consistent. My sister was in Sweden for many years and the initial welcome was ok but not warm. I digress. Audi has now a plan to execute delayed plans etc needed for the team to have life. I hope they are successful with Binotto. Im curious how they will approach F1 vs WEC.
Looking up Binotto's CV on Wiki I realized that he and I studied at the same university almost at the same time. No, I never bumped into him.
