Audi F1 star reacts to shock team boss exit: 'He couldn't commit'

An Audi F1 star has reacted to the shock departure of his team principal, who walked away from the role last week.

Jonathan Wheatley has stepped down as team principal with immediate effect, just two races into the 2026 season and Audi's project as a new F1 entry.

Wheatley had been with the Hinwil-based outfit in their previous iteration as Sauber, and was kept on to take them into their new era too, with the German car manufacturers becoming an F1 works team and power unit manufacturer for the first time.

However, following the Chinese Grand Prix, Wheatley opted to depart for 'personal reasons', with a move to Aston Martin widely expected to happen for the Brit.

Former Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto has taken on the team principal duties at Audi in the short term, but they are looking for a new full-time boss.

Now, Audi driver Gabriel Bortoleto has opened up on Wheatley's shock decision to leave the team, stating that it was the right thing to do if he didn't feel as though he could commit to the project.

Bortoleto's team-mate Nico Hulkenberg had previously provided a funny reaction to the departure in his press conference, but 21-year-old Bortoleto was a little bit more barbed when talking to Ted Kravitz.

"I think you also should look in a different perspective, I think he couldn’t commit to the project fully because he had personal things as he made public," Bortoleto told Sky Sports F1 at the Japanese Grand Prix.

"When you have personal things that you need to put in place, that’s the priority. So yeah, I wouldn’t say it’s a surprise, obviously it’s a short period of time, it’s only two races, he has been with us last year as well so it’s not that he only had those two races.

"It’s not that we are getting someone new as well you know we have Mattia [Binotto] that has been with the project for quite a while now, he was already taking all the leadership Audi’s way but now he’s just taking more and more responsibility."

READ MORE: Audi F1 driver reacts to team boss departure: 'Oh s***!'

Who will replace Wheatley long term?

Audi's next team principal will be someone that they hope is in for the long haul, with the team harbouring ambitions of becoming a world championship-winning outfit by 2030.

Andreas Seidl has been linked with both the Aston Martin and Audi jobs, having of course been involved with Sauber right up until 2024. If Wheatley does indeed end up at Aston Martin, then could we see a return to Audi for Seidl?

On top of this, there is one particular individual who has great experience of turning a new F1 outfit into world champions within a few years, with Christian Horner doing exactly that with Red Bull when he joined in 2005.

Horner was axed by Red Bull after 20 years in the job last July, but is understood to be looking for a return to the sport. Audi could represent the perfect next step for him, while Audi would surely benefit from having his championship-winning experience on board.

It is believed however, that Horner's return is based on him acquiring some deal of ownership in an F1 team.

READ MORE: Verstappen reacts after disqualification heartbreak'

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