Whitley: The goal is to get the team promoted to the top league.

      There are fewer than six months until the 2026 preseason tests, and at the end of January the factory Audi team's drivers will take the new cars onto the track in Barcelona for the first time.

      Sauber is competing under its original name for one last season, and in all of the summer races the Swiss team showed clear progress, which is a sign that Audi's project is built on a fairly solid foundation.

      Just over four months ago Jonathan Wheatley started work at Sauber as the new team principal, but before that, more than a year ago, it became known that Mattia Binotto, the former head of the Scuderia, had replaced Andreas Seidl as CEO of Sauber Motorsport.

      "The next six months will in many ways be about showing respect for Sauber's rich historical heritage," Wheatley told The Race. "This wonderful Formula 1 team has achieved a great deal, even though it started from a very modest position. And we must treat the team's legacy with great care.

      "I'm somewhat interested in history, and Sauber has been part of the championship's history since my youth. I remember the first time I saw their first car — I was working at Benetton then. And that car (in 1993) looked beautiful.

      "I know that for Gernot Döllner, chairman of Audi's supervisory board, it is important that we treat the historical heritage with great care. After all, the four rings in Audi's logo show that this company has never forgotten its roots, how it became Audi. Mattia Binotto and I understand that too.

      "There is a lot to be done in the remaining months. The plans are ambitious, but everything we are doing is tied to our ambitious project, and we are currently on the right track... Apparently, people do not see Sauber as a stepping stone to move to other teams. They regard it as their long-term job, the work of their lives.

      "It is necessary to maintain staff stability, because when you have incredibly talented and experienced people who understand how the team works, you want them to remain motivated and stay with the team.

      "Since I started work in April, we have made significant progress in establishing information exchange within the team and developing its organizational structure. That work is not yet finished, and I have to resolve this quickly. I'm trying to assemble a team that will work the way I need so that I have more freedom to do what I want to do. Although, to be honest, I'm pleased to be actively involved in all processes right now, because that allows me to plan for the future...

      "As you might imagine, Mattia hasn't been idle over the past year, and I also feel that compared with April the team is gaining momentum in all areas. This is a very important moment when you are trying to reform a small team and turn it into a factory project capable of tackling the most serious challenges. So it's extremely important that this acceleration of development continues...

      "It's great that we managed to score points in many races in a row and to perform excellently in Silverstone, where Nico Hülkenberg reached the podium. We want to do this on a regular basis, but we must remain realistic — we have not yet reached that level...

      "We have a young, energetic team, and it needs direction. But not because the best specialists don't work here — it's that at Sauber there isn't a clear hierarchy or structure, people don't fully understand their roles and areas of responsibility. So our project is also about developing a new production culture and carrying out structural transformations...

      "I've spent a lot of time talking with Peter Sauber (the team's founder and former principal), trying to understand which challenges he had to overcome, what decisions he made, and why the team has that structure. I took something of a dive into Sauber's history, into the period when it all began. When you learn all of that you start to understand why certain decisions were made. Many of them were compromises.

      "At one time this team had to count every Swiss franc to continue competing in Formula 1. And it managed to do so remarkably. Our sport should be grateful to Peter Sauber, who managed for 33 years to put two cars on the grid, and that is an astonishing achievement. Especially when you know what difficulties the team experienced.

      "Our task, together with Mattia and Audi, is to elevate this team to the top tier... By the end of the decade we must start winning races and championships — that is the goal of this journey. The route will not be straight: we'll face sharp turns and hairpins, as well as bumps, potholes, and the like. And we must transform from a small team into a factory Audi F1.

      "I'm looking forward to this journey. I've seen a lot in Formula 1 and I believe it's important to always keep in mind the goal that lies ahead of you."