The team once called Kick Sauber transitions to Audi for the 2026 Formula 1 season, retaining its driver lineup amid rising momentum. After a ninth-place finish in 2025, Audi aims to build on recent progress with experienced hands and fresh talent. The German manufacturer's debut as a full works team sets the stage for ambitious long-term goals.
Audi's arrival in Formula 1 marks a new chapter for the outfit previously known as Kick Sauber, which wrapped up 2025 in ninth position in the Teams’ Championship with 70 points—just nine behind eighth-placed Haas. This followed a dismal 2024 where the team managed only one point, but 2025 brought clear improvement. Nico Hulkenberg scored early in the chaotic Australian opener, and the squad found its rhythm mid-season, highlighted by Hulkenberg's first podium on his 239th start at the British Grand Prix in Silverstone.
The driver pairing remains unchanged for 2026, with Hulkenberg—entering his 13th full-time season and boasting 622 career points, one pole, and 251 starts—partnering rookie standout Gabriel Bortoleto. The Brazilian, fresh off back-to-back titles in F2 and F3, notched 19 points in 2025 across five races, including a best of sixth in Hungary and eighth in Austria, where the team grabbed double points. Team Principal Jonathan Wheatley, who assumed the role in April 2025, described the year as “extraordinary,” stating: “The progress this team has made this year is significant and provides us with real momentum heading into 2026.”
Sauber's roots trace to 1970, entering F1 in 1993 after successes in hillclimbing and endurance racing, including a Le Mans win as Mercedes' works team. Partnerships evolved from BMW Sauber (2006-2009), which delivered a pinnacle 2008 victory for Robert Kubica at the Canadian Grand Prix—securing a 1-2 finish with Nick Heidfeld—to Alfa Romeo (2019-2023) and Kick Sauber (2024-2025). Now, Audi's works entry features power units from Neuburg, Germany; chassis from Hinwil, Switzerland; and a technical center in Bicester, UK.
Looking ahead, Audi targets steady growth under 2026's new regulations. Head of the Audi F1 Project Mattia Binotto eyes a championship by 2030, while Wheatley notes “very realistic set of targets” to sustain momentum and emerge as contenders by decade's end.
