A year later, the Audi factory team, founded on the basis of the Swiss Sauber, will make its debut in Formula 1, and it is clear that the initial period in any project is one of the most difficult.
Nico Hulkenberg, with whom Sauber/Audi signed a multi-year contract, is no stranger to trouble, so it makes sense that the German company would rely on his compatriot with his experience of more than two hundred grands prix.
But the second place in the team remains vacant, and according to Roger Benoit, journalist for the Swiss tabloid Blick, 2025 is the ideal time to test one of the representatives of the new generation of riders. Why then does almost every team have its own youth program? And why do series like Formula 2 exist?
An additional argument in favour of working with young people is that, in anticipation of Formula 1’s transition to new generation cars and power plants – and this will happen in 2026 – it would be nice if teams started seriously preparing some of the promising drivers for the Major League of motorsport.
It seems that Haas and Mercedes understand this: the American team is already working with 19-year-old Oliver Berman, and Mercedes seems to be planning to entrust Andrea Kimi Antonelli to become George Russell’s new partner. However, the contract with the young Italian, who is not yet 18, has not yet been confirmed. According to rumors, 21-year-old Jack Duane also has the chance to change his status as an Alpine reserve racer to a fighter pilot.
And only Sauber/Audi continue to doubt the feasibility of this approach. If the contract with Valtteri Bottas, who turns 35 at the end of August, is extended (the Finn is very expensive for the Hinwil team, by the way), then they will have 72 years between them and Hulkenberg next season.
At the same time, Sauber has been supporting Theo Pourcher, last year’s Formula 2 champion, for several years now, and is now helping Zane Maloney, a 20-year-old driver from Barbados who, after the first ten stages of the youth series season, is in 4th place in the individual standings. But this support is only financial in nature and no one is going to offer them a place in the Formula 1 team.
How the new management of the Audi factory project, represented by Mattia Binotto and Jonathan Whitley, will act, is not yet entirely clear. But if Bottas still remains in the team, it is unlikely that it will be for just one season. The Finnish driver has said more than once that he does not want to sign any more annual contracts. However, to spend another year in Formula 1, you can probably make a compromise, given the price of the problem.
At the same time, in theory, in the world of motorsports there are several fairly young drivers who either compete in other series or serve as test drivers in one of the Formula 1 teams. Perhaps some of them will make their debut in the championship in the foreseeable future peace.
The first is Alex Palou, a two-time IndyCar champion who is currently on his way to his third title. No one doubts his talent, but the Spaniard has a controversial reputation. But according to rumours, he is already on the list of possible candidates for Sauber/Audi.
Mick Schumacher spent two seasons in Haas F1, albeit unconvincingly. Now he has mastered a related discipline, trying his hand at endurance racing as part of the Alpine factory team.
24-year-old Brazilian Felipe Drugovich won the 2022 Formula 2 title by an impressive margin, after which he became Aston Martin’s reserve driver.
Liam Lawson has been waiting for his turn in Formula 1 for several years, where he made his debut with great success last season as a replacement for the injured Daniel Ricciardo. But Red Bull continues to intrigue: Helmut Marko has already made it clear that they have made a decision about the future fate of the 22-year-old New Zealander and will announce it next month.
And this is not a complete list, because there is also Robert Schwartzman, Gabriel Bortoleto and Isaac Hajjar, but the last two are already working with other Formula 1 teams, and Audi will not be easy to get them. However, they have not yet indicated that they are interested in representatives of the younger generation of racing talents.
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
