Audi is all set to join the grid from the 2026 season as a partner of Sauber despite recent reports suggesting that the German automaker may make a last-second u-turn on their $200,000,000 F1 commitment. Alfa Romeo Sauber team principal Alessandro Alunni Bravi recently put an end to the rumors about the German brand pulling out from F1.
He also explained the main reason why there has been extremely limited communication regarding the Audi partnership from their side. Bravi commented that Audi is completely committed to F1 and the speculations about them are simply rumors.
Audi strongly committed to F1, says Sauber’s Alunni Bravi https://t.co/qgqKdd68lZ pic.twitter.com/VTX1476atN
— Reuters (@Reuters) November 4, 2023
He said (as quoted by autosport.com), “Audi has a strong commitment to Formula 1 and, of course together with Sauber, this commitment comes from a decision not only of the board of Audi but also the advisory board of Audi and the Supervisory Board of Audi/Volkswagen.”
The Italian team principal also explained that the main reason for the lack of communication from their side is that Sauber is still a partner of Alfa Romeo as of now. Therefore, there are quite a few restrictions regarding what the team can announce regarding their partnership with the German brand.
.⚠️ Audi ne compte pas renoncer à la F1, insiste Sauber !
Les dirigeants de Sauber ont fait taire les rumeurs en affirmant que, malgré son silence, Audi restait engagé à reprendre la structure en 2026. #F1 pic.twitter.com/22gd2GINwv
— Le Sprint (@LeSprintEdition) November 4, 2023
The French Media, however, had quite a different interpretation of this silence. They believed that current Audi CEO Gernot Dollner, isn’t too enthusiastic about motorsports, and thus, would want to pull out from F1 even before they stepped in.
Audi looks set to join F1 as per Alessandro Alunni Bravi
Audi has already invested around $200,000,000 in their F1 project, which includes a $148,000,000 power unit factory in Neuberg and a minor stake in the Sauber team. As per their original plans, the brand is set to splash around a total of $450,000,000 to take over more than 75% of the Sauber team.
Is Audi still committed to its #F1 project❓
It’s a question that’s been asked more and more in recent weeks.
Here’s what the Sauber outfit that Audi is taking over had to say at the #BrazilGP: pic.twitter.com/zCxf5F1u0q
— The Race (@wearetherace) November 3, 2023
Therefore, a withdrawal at this stage could be quite a disaster for the brand. Apart from the fact that they would incur huge losses, it would also cause extensive harm to their brand image.
However, as of now, all of these speculations look like nothing but plain rumors. No official announcement regarding any sort of decision to pull out has been made. Instead, going by the words of Bravi, Audi looks like they are committed to joining the grid from the 2026 season onwards.
