Alunni Bravi on how Sauber is preparing for the future

When in the summer of 2017 the Swiss Sauber team changed leadership again and was led by Frederic Wasser, he and his assistants got a very neglected economy. The Hinwil team needed the additional funding needed to address the backlog of issues, but over the next five years most of them were successfully addressed.

The team, which has been racing in Formula 1 under the Alfa Romeo brand since 2019, has a modern simulator, the ranks have been supplemented by many good specialists and since 2022 the experienced Valtteri Bottas and the Chinese driver Guanyu Zhou play for it. Competitiveness has improved significantly and last year the team finished 6th in the Constructors’ Championship.

“We started developing this plan in 2017, we almost had to start from scratch,” admits Alessandro Alunni Bravi, general manager of the Sauber Group and representative of the Alfa Romeo F1 team. – Since the team was from BMW, we still have a good infrastructure and it hasn’t been updated for ten years. Our workforce then consisted of only 180 people, now that has more than doubled.

What the Sauber team was like in 2017 and what it has become now is simply beyond comparison. She’s completely changed. Now we have our own simulator and our production facilities for various components are among the largest in Switzerland.

The wind tunnel has been modernized and although the basics are the same, the software and all technical elements have been brought up to the latest standards.

Thanks to shareholder investment, we have made improvements in all areas over the past five years and this process continues. In Formula 1 you can’t stop, because as soon as you slow down, you immediately roll back.

Now we simultaneously solve operational problems and prepare for the future. Together with Andreas Seidl (the new CEO of the Sauber Group), we are developing a team with an important goal. We are proud that Audi has chosen the Sauber Group as a strategic partner for its entry into Formula 1 (in 2026). But in our company it is impossible to completely delineate the areas of responsibility, so Andreas and I also deal with today’s business.

Seidl is a strong leader and although we didn’t know each other before, it’s a pleasure to work with him. Together we must develop an optimal team approach, which is important for solving future problems as our team grows. We need to create a structure where departments interact more effectively, and this work is already underway.”

Alfa Romeo’s drivers have earned points in two of the new season’s three Grands Prix, but there is a very intense battle in the middle of the pack and so far the team is only 8th in the Constructors’ Championship. Although everything is relative: it is only 6 points behind McLaren, and even less than five separates it from Williams, which occupies the 9th line. Therefore, the main task now is to make every effort to increase the speed of the car.

“Introducing regular updates, even small ones, but doing it throughout the season is better than introducing two or three big sets of technical innovations,” says Bravi. – The rivalry is very tense, so before each race it is necessary to prepare some improvements. That is what we do.

In Australia, our car has a new nose cone and front wing, a natural progression from a concept tested in Japan last year. We are also preparing new items for races in Baku, Imola and Barcelona.

I am impressed with Guanyu Zhou’s mental attitude – it was already clear last year how fast he was progressing. He then made a noticeable step forward, and did the next one this year. He is well versed in technical aspects, makes almost no mistakes, he is a talented and fast pilot. Overall, Zhou impressed me as early as the very first race.

Valtteri Bottas helps our team move forward. It is important to us that he brought the culture of the winner, it is important that he comes to the base every week, works with engineers, works on a simulator, communicates with the team and cooperates with Zhou.

I always like it when riders can openly express their opinion. Off the track, they should have their own privacy. But when Valtteri is on track he is always extremely composed and always shows excellent professionalism. Bottas is always stable as a driver and always pays attention to every detail. And off the track he can live his own life and limit himself to little.

He wants to spend a few more seasons in Formula 1, he wants to fight for podiums and victories. There are two good drivers in our team, we don’t have driver #1 and #2. He and Zhou push each other, perform at a very good level, so we are happy with both. Our job is to provide them with a competitive car.”