Alfa Romeo focus demanded amid Audi rumours
Alfa Romeo focus demanded amid Audi rumours
Alfa Romeo team principal Fred Vasseur has highlighted the importance of remaining focused with rumours over a potential Audi takeover of Sauber looming.
The German manufacturer is expected to enter F1 from 2026, alongside sister Volkswagen Group marque Porsche and the sport's new engine regulations - recently approved by the FIA World Motor Sport Council.
Alfa Romeo has titled the Sauber entry since 2019 but results have never reached the highs of the team's last manufacturer tie-in with BMW in the late 2000s.
With Audi supposedly bidding for a takeover, Vasseur told GPFans: "I don't want to think about this.
"First, I still don't know if Audi will come in F1 or not and then you're speaking about 2026.
"The most important thing for me is that we stay focused in the next pre-season or full season.
"I know that I think we have a great opportunity with Alfa Romeo. I will never thank Alfa Romeo enough because they came to us when we are in a tough situation. They are a solid partner.
"We have a very, very close relationship with them and I'm more than pleased with our current partnership, and we have also a project that we are working on the automotive side with them and the collaboration was very positive."
Improvement must come from "our side" - Vasseur
Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu have prospered in F1's new era with strong performances early on in the season seeing Alfa Romeo jump to sixth in the standings on 51 points.
But with a gulf in performance to overcome in order to command the midfield, the Hinwil-based team still has pace to find.
On whether it would be unfair to ask Alfa Romeo to do more for the team, Vasseur insisted only the operational side needed to find improvement.
"When I say to do more, it's more on our side in order to get better results to be able to attract new sponsors," he said.
"We signed something like 27 new sponsors for this season. We receive an email per week and it's not the end. You will get an announcement soon.
"We are more attractive and Alfa Romeo is also part of the attraction because it's a big name and I want to attract more sponsors with a better budget and to get more TV rights or commercial rights from FOM and this will allow us to do the next step.
"But it's a long process, but we can't say, 'Okay, we don't have someone or a shareholder who is doing a fantastic job', but I want to be fair with them and I want to improve the situation of the team step-by-step and this will come from the sponsor role from the commercial rights."
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Marko defends Ricciardo in 'unbelievable' idiot claim
- 22 minutes ago
Hamilton hints at sensational Newey arrival at Ferrari
- 1 hour ago
Suspended Red Bull employee 'grilled' as Horner saga given potential END DATE
- 2 hours ago
BLOW for former F1 champion as Mercedes preferences revealed
- 3 hours ago
F1 boss HITS BACK at star driver over schedule complaints
- Today 17:58
F1 2025 Driver Lineup: Big names on the move as half the grid reshuffles for next season
- Today 17:00
Related news
F1 team to change names between races in 2024
‘If Shrek was in F1’ - Fans BLAST team’s new 2024 car
F1 team announce SIGNING of 'remarkable' driver ahead of 2024 season
F1 team hint new livery with Drake video tease
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860