For Sauber, “it’s clear that Mattia Binotto will be the team leader”
The changes at Sauber mark a new era for Audi in Formula 1, with a clear vision and strengthened leadership to meet the challenges ahead and prepare for the 2026 season, according to Alessandro Alunni Bravi.
The Kick Sauber team, future Audi, has announced significant changes in the leadership structure of its Formula 1 project, marking a crucial step in its preparation to enter the competition in 2026. Kick Sauber team principal, Alessandro Alunni Bravi, shared details about this transition during a press conference this Friday.
He first expressed his gratitude to Andreas Seidl, CEO of Sauber, and Oliver Hoffman, former chairman of the board, who decided to leave the project due to persistent internal tensions. “I want to thank Andreas and Oliver for their valuable help in launching the project,” he said. “Since taking over, there was a need to shift gears in the F1 project. We know there is a lot of work to be done, but it is important to appoint individuals capable of establishing a clear management structure.”
When mentioning the appointment of Mattia Binotto as the new Chief Operating Officer and Technical Director of Sauber Motorsport starting from August 1st, Alunni Bravi explained: “The objective is to work in a highly integrated way between Hinwil and Neuburg, as the Formula 1 factory team. This will be better implemented through Mattia’s appointment. He is competent, with a solid background, particularly in technical matters. He will lead Sauber Motorsport and will be fully responsible for the sporting success of the Audi factory team..”
Alunni Bravi has complete trust in Binotto.
Interrogated on how the Italian could approach things differently, Alunni Bravi replied: « Each person has a different approach. I have known Mattia for many years, thanks to the partnership we had when Fred was our team principal at Sauber. Mattia has all the necessary characteristics to achieve our goals and guide our structure towards 2026 and beyond. »
Regarding the role of the former team director of Ferrari, he specified: « Mattia will be the team leader. It will be up to him to decide on the management structure. He will start on August 1st and will have time to understand if the current management team and organizational structure are suitable to accelerate our progress in F1. Mattia has the full support of everyone at Audi, including myself. »
In response to a question about the involvement of car manufacturers in managing F1 teams, Alessandro Alunni Bravi once again affirmed that after the complete takeover of the Sauber group, there was a realignment of the control structure. The objectives are clear: to have direct responsibility, efficiency in the decision-making process. The fact that Mattia is the clear leader , is an important sign of this new process that will help us accelerate this transformation.
