F1 pundit Joe Saward reckons Audi could have a rough entry to F1 due to them experiencing financial strain. He talked about how the German company’s parent company was taking drastic measures to cut costs, one of which could be entering the top-tier single-seater motorsport.
Back in 2022, Audi announced that they would be acquiring the Sauber F1 team and enter F1 in 2026, when FIA will introduce new technical regulations, including new power units. The German giants gradually started acquiring the Swiss team by taking a small stake every year. Before 2026, they are planning to completely take over the team and enter F1.
Recently, however, reports emerged that Volkswagen, the parent company of Audi, started closing factories and laying off workers as part of their cost-cutting plan. The company is aiming for a whopping $10,000,000,000 worth of savings in the near future.
This was recently discussed by the F1 pundit in his Green Notebook journal. He wrote about potential worry inside Audi camp as they head towards a new sport during troubled times. He mentioned Volkswagen’s cost-saving plan and speculated that it could affect the F1 team’s assembly plants as well.
“There are also questions about whether it is a good idea to go on given the poor Audi financial results of late and the recent news that Audi’s parent company Volkswagen is going to introduce a cost-saving plan that will be one of the most radical in its history and might even result in the closure of German assembly plants,” Saward wrote.
The 63-year-old also speculated that Gernot Dollner, Audi’s CEO, could also suggest selling off the F1 team at a profit and leaving the sport before even starting.
“One can speculate that Dollner might soon start to argue that it would be better to sell the F1 team (at a profit) and get out of the game before the ventilation and the excrement get together,” he said.
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As of now, Audi has not announced anything related to their future. They are still set to join the grid in the 2026 F1 season.
Former F1 driver claimed Zhou Guanyu was kept by Audi following a massive €1 billion financial error
According to F1 pundit Ralf Schumacher, Audi was forced to retain Zhou Guanyu on the team following a massive €1,000,000,000 error in their financial records. The former F1 driver further said that the Chinese driver’s sponsorship income kept the German company’s F1 entry plan afloat.
Speaking on the German wing of Sky Sports, Schumacher explained how the Chinese driver was one of the key factors why the team was still operating after the rumored financial mishap.
“The project was actually on the brink of collapse at Audi because there was apparently a small miscalculation, amounting to around €1 billion. At least that’s the rumour,” Schumacher said.
“This called into question what was happening. The team had to be refinanced because no money had flowed in. Hence the decision to keep Zhou Guanyu as a driver and take the money. As a result, nothing could happen. There were no people to hire and no prospects to offer. Then the whole issue was simply left as it was before,” he added.
As of now, Zhou Guanyu will race with Sauber till the end of the 2024 F1 season. However, his future with the team is uncertain as Audi is reportedly aiming for a fresh driver lineup for 2026.
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