In the past few hours, Audi F1 has confirmed to AutoRacer that it has completed its full acquisition of Sauber F1. This confirms a report from German website Auto Motor Und Sport. After announcing in 2022 its intention to enter F1 for 2026, the German giant had initially planned to acquire a 75% stake in the Swiss team.
However, in March 2024, the decision was made to proceed with the full purchase of the team. The team is also in a phase of intense change, with the upcoming arrival of Wheatley and the departure of Alunni Bravi.
Audi acquires 100% of Sauber for 650M euros. The C45 will not be presented in a dedicated event.
The transaction, completed in January 2025, allowed Audi to become the owner of Sauber Holding AG. Although the financial details of the operation have not been made public, it is believed that the agreement was reached for a figure close to 650 million euros.
This move is part of a broader strategy that has already been set in motion. In November 2024, a stake of around 30% of the team was acquired by sovereign fund of Qatar – announced at last yea’s Qatar Grand Prix.
The holding company, which also controls Paris Saint-Germain and holds 17% of the capital of Volkswagen, invested a figure close to $360 million to acquire of Sauber. Based on their investment, the team is valued at around 1.2 billion euros.
The now German team, based in Hinwil (Switzerland), like many other teams including Red Bull and Mercedes, but also apparently McLaren, Alpine and Racing Bulls, will not present its car in a dedicated pre-season launch. Instead, like others, they will only show their livery at F1’s new pre-season event.
Alunni Bravi will remain (almost) in F1 orbit, an announcement expected next week?
Sauber have a fresh line-up for 2025, with Nico Hulkenberg and the Formula 2 champion Gabriel Bortoleto. There will also be important changes at managerial level.
The latest part of their reorganisation involves the departure of Alessandro Alunni Bravi, who led Sauber as team principal for the last two seasons.
“Having worked closely with him in the months since my arrival in Hinwil, I want to pay tribute to Alessandro. Aa true team player who has come to embody the essence of Sauber over the years,” Audi boss Mattia Binotto said a few days ago.
“Alessandro has held many roles within the team, leading it through both challenging and exciting times.
“As he moves on to a new challeng , the entire company would like to thank him for all his energy and contribution over the years and wish him all the best for the future. ”
As AutoRacer has learned, the new challenge that the 55-year-old from Umbria has accepted, and which Mattia Binotto spoke about a few days ago, is linked to his arrival in an English team where he will mostly follow non-F1 matters and act as deputy to the CEO. An announcement is expected next week.
It is important to underline that Alunni Bravi’s career in Motorsport did not begin in 2017 with Sauber, but many years before. In 2002, he held the role of CEO and team manager of Coloni Motorsport in Formula 3000. After this, from 2005 to 2008 he led Trident Motorsport as Team Principal and CEO during their GP2 Series debut.
The Italian will be replaced at Sauber by Jonathan Wheatley, former sporting director of Red Bull. The Briton will take over as team principal earlier than expected, already in April, thanks to the agreement reached by Binotto with Red Bull, which granted Wheatley’s early entry into the German team.
With this acquisition and a completely renewed structure, Audi F1 is preparing to write a new chapter in its sporting history, aiming to compete at the highest levels in the Formula 1 panorama, officially from 2026. Of course, Mattia Binotto has already explained that fighting at the front will take at least a few years.
