Sauber Motorsport

"Sauber" redirects here. For other uses, see Sauber (disambiguation).

Switzerland Kick Sauber-Ferrari
Full nameStake F1 Team Kick Sauber[1]
BaseHinwil, Zürich, Switzerland
Team principal(s)Alessandro Alunni Bravi (Team Representative)
Chief Technical OfficerMattia Binotto[2][3]
Technical directorJames Key
Founder(s)Peter Sauber
Previous nameAlfa Romeo F1 Team
Next nameAudi F1 Team
2024 Formula One World Championship
Race drivers24. China Zhou Guanyu
77. Finland Valtteri Bottas
Test driversFrance Théo Pourchaire
Barbados Zane Maloney
ChassisC44
EngineFerrari 066/12
TyresPirelli
Formula One World Championship career
First entry1993 South African Grand Prix
Last entry2024 São Paulo Grand Prix
Races entered486 (483 starts)[N 1]
EnginesSauber, Mercedes, Ford, Petronas, BMW, Ferrari
Constructors'
Championships		0
Drivers'
Championships		0
Race victories1[N 2]
Podiums27[N 4]
Points865[N 5]
Pole positions1[N 3]
Fastest laps5[N 6]

Sauber Motorsport AG currently competing in Formula One as Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber and also known simply as Kick Sauber or Sauber, is a Swiss motorsport engineering company. It was founded in 1970 (as PP Sauber AG) by Peter Sauber, who progressed through hillclimbing and the World Sportscar Championship to reach Formula One in 1993. Sauber operated under their own name from 1993 until 2005 and from 2011 until 2018. They were known as BMW Sauber from 2006 to 2010 and as Alfa Romeo from 2019 to 2023 in partnership deals with BMW and Alfa Romeo, respectively. Sauber returned in 2024 as Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber,[1] and is set to be the Audi works team from 2026 onwards, with the German outfit planning to acquire the Swiss team.

Having not won a Grand Prix as an independent, the team was rebranded to BMW Sauber in 2006 and competed as BMW Sauber from 2006 to 2009, finishing second in 2007 and third in 2008 in the Constructors' Championship, and scoring their lone grand prix victory together with Robert Kubica at the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix. At the end of a less successful 2009 season, BMW pulled out of Formula One and the team's future remained uncertain for several months until total control was handed back to Peter Sauber and granted a 2010 entry. Due to issues with the Concorde Agreement, the team remained as "BMW Sauber" for the 2010 season.[4][5] In March 2010, Peter Sauber announced plans to change the team name but the FIA announced that they would have to wait until the end of the season.[6] At the beginning of the 2011 season, the team dropped BMW from their name.

Until mid-2016, Peter Sauber held a controlling 66.6% stake in the team, with the remainder belonging to then CEO Monisha Kaltenborn; she had been a leading figure in the team since BMW's withdrawal.[7] The team was sold during the 2016 season to Swiss investment firm Longbow Finance S.A, with Pascal Picci taking over Peter Sauber's role as chairman of the board and president.[8] Audi bought a minority stake in the team in January 2023 in preparation of their Formula One entry.[9] The team operates in a 15,600 m2 (168,000 sq ft) facility in Hinwil, Switzerland.[10]

  1. ^ a b Cooper, Adam (1 January 2024). "Renamed Stake F1 team reveals new logo". Motorsport.com. Archived from the original on 1 January 2024. Retrieved 2 January 2024. The new identity was originally flagged in the FIA entry last month as Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber. That remains its official full identity – including the Kick Sauber chassis name – but the Swiss outfit will use the short version on a day-to-day basis.
  2. ^ "Mattia Binotto takes over a leadership position for Audi in Formula 1". Audi MediaCenter. 23 July 2024. Archived from the original on 26 July 2024. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
  3. ^ "Audi announce former Ferrari chief Binotto as new F1 boss as Seidl departs". Formula 1. 23 July 2024. Archived from the original on 5 August 2024. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
  4. ^ Elizalde, Pablo; Noble, Jonathan (31 January 2010). "BMW Sauber to retain name for now". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Archived from the original on 7 August 2016. Retrieved 31 January 2010.
  5. ^ "FIA Formula One World Championship – Entry List". fia.com. Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile. 3 March 2010. Archived from the original on 16 March 2010. Retrieved 3 March 2010.
  6. ^ Noble, Jonathan (16 March 2010). "Sauber poised to request name change". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Archived from the original on 20 December 2015. Retrieved 17 March 2010.
  7. ^ Elizalde, Pablo (16 May 2012). "Peter Sauber transfers third of Group Sauber stake to CEO Monisha Kaltenborn". autosport.com. Haymarket Publications. Archived from the original on 7 August 2016. Retrieved 16 May 2012.
  8. ^ Noble, Jonathan (20 July 2016). "Sauber F1 team announces change of ownership". Motorsport.com. Motorsport Network. Archived from the original on 24 June 2018. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
  9. ^ Mehta, Amar (30 January 2023). "Formula 1: Audi buys minority stake in Sauber ahead of 2026 F1 entry". CNBC. Archived from the original on 31 January 2023. Retrieved 28 July 2023.
  10. ^ "Facilities". Sauber Group. Archived from the original on 14 July 2023. Retrieved 14 July 2023.


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