Audi has officially confirmed its entry into Formula 1 in 2026. It will be from Sauber, although at the moment the brand has not confirmed this point. Oliver Hoffmann, Adam Baker and Rolf Michl, three pillars for this project.
Audi will compete in Formula 1 from 2026. Although it was an open secret, it was not until the Belgian GP that his arrival in the premier class was made official. The signature of the four rings will compete hand in hand with Sauber and will develop its own power unit near its Ingolstadt headquarters. Although the conditions of this new link have not yet been defined, Audi is expected to buy 75% of Sauber’s shareholdingwith the remaining 25% being held by Finn Rausing.
Confirmed the irruption of Audi in Formula 1, it is worth analyzing the key points of the Ingolstadt firm. The project will be based at the Audi Sport facility in Nueburg an Der Donau., close to the Audi AG headquarters in Ingolstadt. Thus, the development of the Audi powertrain for the category will take place in Germanya country that has not welcomed the construction of a powertrain for Formula 1 for more than a decade.
“With the new rules, now is the right time to get involved in Formula 1”
An Audi powertrain -and the rest of the manufacturers- in which electric power will have a greater role. In fact, the electric motor will be almost as powerful as the combustion engine in 2026, despite the fact that the latter will offer about 400 kW (544 hp). Circumstance that allows the brand to take advantage of all its experience in Formula E or in the Dakar, where it has already used this type of technology. Audi Sport’s 1.6-litre combustion engine will use sustainable fuel.
Markus Duesmann and three general captains
Markus Duesman As president of Audi AG, he is ultimately responsible for the brand’s designs and, by extension, for this project in Formula 1, which he defines as a logical step: “Motor racing is an integral part of Audi’s DNA. With the new rules, now is the right time to get involved in Formula 1. After all, both the category and Audi pursue clear sustainability goals.”
Oliver Hoffmann is the first of those directly responsible for the Formula 1 project of Audi as Director of Technical Development for the brand and current Chairman of the Audi Sport Advisory Board. In fact, the restructuring of the Audi motorsports department has been carried out under his tutelage, a process in which Audi has suspended development of its LMDh prototype for the WEC and has confirmed the continuity of its project in the Dakar with the Audi RS Q e-tron.
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Hoffmann is also responsible for the change that will take place on September 1, 2022 at the head of Audi Sport. Rolf Michl will become director of Audi Sport, a position held since 2020 by Julius Seebach. The latter will be relocated to the Audi AG business area, while Michl will take on this new responsibility after being Director of Race Operations at Audi Sport since February this year with a view to leading Audi’s arrival in Formula 1. He will have Sebastian Grams as his right hand.
Photos: Audi Sport