Sauber finished in a lowly 9th place this season, so the Swiss-based outfit is taking radical steps for 2024. Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu are optimistic this will reverse their relatively uninspiring fortunes this season.
When the regulation change began in 2022, Alfa Romeo (who will return as Sauber next season) started promisingly.
Valtteri Bottas was securing regular top 8 finishes in a C42 machine that was arguably the fourth-fastest car. Although poor reliability proved costly for Zhou Guanyu, the raw performance at Hinwil was clear.
Unfortunately for the team, this early form did not sustain itself. The second half of the year saw Sauber slowly fall down the pecking order, only occasionally fighting for points.
A similar trend carried over into 2023, with Bottas’ P8 in Bahrain largely an anomalous result.
Speaking after the Abu Dhabi GP, this Finn expressed his belief that large-scale changes can reverse this trajectory:
“Ultimately, the biggest issue has been raw pace. On the other hand, I’m glad it’s over now. Next year, everyone starts from zero again.
“Many changes in the team lately, and I think positive changes.
“Also, the concept of next year’s car looks interesting, so in that sense, I do have hopes.”
Zhou Guanyu echoed a similar sentiment for next season. The Chinese driver revealed the internal push for an aggressive design has been in place for several rounds:
“It’s been a long season. But we already planned a few races ago that next year we will completely change the car,” he explained in Yas Marina.
“The whole concept of the design.”
It’s worth remembering that only a few months ago, at the Qatar GP, the Swiss outfit enjoyed one of its impressive weekends in 2023.
Zhou Guanyu and Valtteri Bottas were fast enough to score points, creating distance between themselves and Haas in the standings.
Unlike their American rivals, Sauber can introduce upgrades mid-season at a competitive rate.
However, their changes have failed to yield results for some time. The question is whether the winter break will see the team produce a tangible step forward to consistently fight for points.
