02/05/2024
NEWS STORY
Whilst giving an update on his team's progress, Audi boss, Andreas Seidl has refuted Helmut Marko's claim that his team is seeking to lure drivers with "lucrative offers".
Marko made the claim in response to speculation linking Carlos Sainz to Red Bull should Sergio Perez fail to perform satisfactorily this season.
While the Austrian admits to having talked with the Spaniard he told Kleine Zeitung that Red Bull would be unable to match the sort of money Audi is offering.
"We are speaking with him," said the Austrian, "he is driving his best season in Formula 1. But he has a lucrative offer from Audi, which we cannot match or beat."
Not so, insists Seidl.
"Our approach is not to motivate drivers or other employees to come to us with huge amounts of money," he tells Auto Motor und Sport. "We basically have the financial resources of a top team, but we really think about how we can use every franc or euro sensibly and efficiently. We want to attract people who want to be part of this journey and accompany Audi's entry into Formula 1."
One of those who the team clearly feels wants to be part of the journey is Nico Hulkenberg, who was confirmed as having signed a multi-year deal with Stake last week, the Swiss outfit set to morph into Audi in 2026.
"Given the current level of performance, it is absolutely important for us to have the best possible driver pairing at the start," explained Seidl. "It also makes sense that our future driver squad from the Audi works team will be in the cars as early as 2025 to support the project from the start.
"The drivers can help us in terms of team motivation and development direction," he added. "Therefore, Nico is a top choice. There is no question that he is fast. With his experience, his teamwork and his great technical understanding, he brings what we need."
However, as to whether Hulkenberg will be partnered by Sainz, or one of the current incumbents at Stake - Valtteri Bottas or Guanyu Zhou - Seidl was giving nothing away.
"It makes sense to have at least one driver with experience because we have to overcome many challenges at once," he said. "So it can be two experienced drivers or one with experience and a strong rookie."
Other than drivers, looking ahead Seidl is confident that Audi will hit the ground running in 2026 and is keen to dismiss speculation earlier this year that Audi was having second thoughts. In a bid to quall the speculation the German manufacturer subsequently announced that it was increasing its stake - no pun intended - in Sauber from 75% to full control.
"It was important that we didn't allow ourselves to be deterred by this internally," says Seidl. "We stuck to our plans in both Neuberg and Hinwil and implemented them step by step. The announcement of the full takeover in March was a strong signal that finally put an end to the rumours. This step will help us make the big decisions we need to make more quickly.
"I am confident that we can get off to a good start in 2026," he said, looking forward. "On the team side you always wish you had more time, nevertheless, I believe that we can accelerate the transformation by taking over 100 percent of Audi. In conjunction with the new regulations in 2026, we should have good conditions to get off to a good start as a factory team.
"Adam Baker started building up the team and infrastructure at Audi Formula Racing GmbH in 2022," he continued. "Testing of all components for the power unit began in 2023. As of today the team and infrastructure are largely in place. On the team page at Sauber in Hinwil, we have used the last few months to work out with the team where the deficits lie compared to the top teams in F1."
The main deficit he refers to, of course, is in terms of the power unit, Audi being late to the party compared to Mercedes, Ferrari, Renault and Honda.
"It's not just about the technical details, but of course also about operational processes," he explained. "Nevertheless, in the negotiations with the FIA and the other manufacturers about the regulations, we managed to make enough big changes that mean that the established competitors also have to break new ground.
"The broad know-how that Audi already had in terms of drive development, combined with the expertise of new employees from Formula 1, should help newcomers compensate for the lack of experience as quickly as possible."