So far we have mainly talked about the Ferrari drivers who are leaving the Cavallino to go and strengthen the Audi engine engineering area: we are referring to Wolf Zimmermann (who has his suitcase packed but has not yet taken the door to the Ferrari Racing Department) and his deputy Lars Schmidt, leading figures in the Maranello engine research and development area, but the House of the Four Rings which is preparing for its debut in F1 in 2026, plays an underdog game in the Circus.
Mattia Binotto, Head of Audi F1 Project, has launched a five-year plan that aims to win in 2030. In an interesting interview granted to Autosprint, the former Ferrari engineer outlined an interesting scenario: “F1 is the most complex sport and not only in motorsport. This is due to its size and technology. History teaches that all winning cycles are based on a preparation period ranging from 5 to 7 years. We want to do it in 5 years: three to build and two to consolidate.”
Mattia Binotto, Head of Audi F1 Project
Foto di: Peter Fox / Getty Images
The picture is clear, but it is fair to say that the transformation of Sauber into Audi began some time ago and the Ingolstadt brand is not arriving at the Grands Prix like Cadillac which is building its team from scratch. The Swiss team has abandoned last place in the Constructors’ World Championship, putting itself in a position to score points with both drivers, so there is an objective perception of growth, while no one is talking about the Competence Center Motorsport Audi which has been based since 2014 in Neuburg an der Donau in Germany.
It is a 3,000 m2 factory where the Four Rings developed the engine area: the Audi R18 e-tron for the WEC was created in Neuburg an der Donau, the Audi RS Q e-tron which raced and won in the Dakar, not to mention the Audi RS 5 DTM or the management of the Formula E single-seater. We are therefore talking about a center of excellence, which has had to adapt to the needs of F1. The structure has been expanded as well as the number of staff recruited from Mercedes and Ferrari where there is more experience and knowledge.
Neuburg’s Audi from Neuburg should be nascono the prowiss
According to the voices in the paddock, the most accredited power unit at this stage is the Mercedes one which will equip the official Brackley team, in addition to McLaren, Williams and Alpine. There are many expectations for Ferrari which boasts a great engine tradition and there is anticipation for the combination of Honda with Aston Martin, but almost no one knows anything about Audi and Red Bull Powertrains by Ford.
Ferrari, after having given up on a very innovative steel cylinder head proposed by Zimmermann because it did not reach the expected reliability values, has fallen back on an aluminum alloy solution which will have a revolutionary and very secret intake system. The lost time, obviously, pays off and the technicians directed by Enrico Gualtieri find themselves chasing Mercedes a bit with Honda not far behind.
But where is the Audi that is hiding? The rumors circulating (now there is a large circulation of engine engineers from one manufacturer to another…) say that the Germans would have broken through the 400 kW wall with the combustion engine, thus reaching over 540/550 horsepower, while the very famous Mercedes PU would be credited with 420 kW, i.e. approximately 571 horsepower. Not much more just to start with…
These are numbers to be taken with a pinch of salt, because they are not full-blown data, but blurbs from those who… sniff the air after hearing about durability tests on test benches. And the power peaks do not indicate what the reliability value is, given that an entire season of 24 GPs will have to be faced with four units.
Gernot Dollner, CEO of Audi, believes in the F1 project
Foto di: Andy Hone / Motorsport Images
And, in any case, Audi, at least at the beginning, will struggle to put together the two souls of the team (Hinwil and Neuburg), but it is reasonable to think that the starting point for becoming a true top team will be higher than what we can imagine in the simple transposition of Sauber into an official team.
Binotto’s game is very difficult, but the Reggio Emilia native, Swiss by birth, has given a good direction at the beginning of the adventure of the four rings in F1. Of course, going on to win will be another story, but the German manufacturer is used to accepting the technical challenge…
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