Sauber, who joined F1 in 1993, has spent the majority of its time in the sport as a midfielder or a backmarker. But the Swiss team stands on the cusp of its biggest takeover to date, with Audi taking over in 2026. Valtteri Bottas—who has driven for them since 2022—won’t be around to see that transition. However, he has some parting words of advice for them.
2024 was very difficult for Sauber, with the team at the bottom of the Championship standings with one race remaining. In fact, before last week’s Qatar GP—where Zhou Guanyu finished P8—they hadn’t even opened their points account for the season. Still, the area of improvement Bottas chose was not technical.
“We still need to keep working on the winning mentality,” he said to Tom Clarkson in a Pirelli podcast. The host was taken aback by Bottas’ remarks as he had anticipated the former Mercedes driver to emphasize facilities or R&D.
“We are not winning at the moment, we are actually at the very back,” Bottas continued. “Which can be tough and it gets into you. It gets into people. You get frustrated, people lose the confidence. Now I think it’s time for new leadership in the team to turn things around…”
Bottas concluded by admitting that no one at Sauber has the ‘mindset’ to compete for wins or podiums, a psychological factor that he believes has limited the true potential.
Bottas’ claim carries weight
Sauber’s mechanical package for 2024 was woeful and there is no doubt that they were the grid’s slowest. But that wasn’t the only thing stopping them from getting into points.
Even the backmarkers can get into the top 10 with an additional stroke of luck, but that was something Bottas truly lacked. There were times when the Finn looked set to finish in the points, or at least fight for it.
However, Sauber would end up making a mistake — either with their strategies or with pit-stops, which became a defining factor causing them troubles. Thankfully, they won’t end the season with zero points because of Zhou.
LAP 32/57
Oh no! A wheel nut issue at Valtteri Bottas’ pit stop has the flying Finn stationary for nearly a minute #F1 #BahrainGP pic.twitter.com/izX7GBvLr1
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 2, 2024
With one race left this year—in Abu Dhabi this coming weekend—they would hope for another miracle. Perhaps Bottas would too, as he looks to end his stint with the Hinwil-based outfit on a high.
