Alfa Romeo engagement to include chassis name in 2019

The final FIA entry list for the 2019 F1 world championship reveals that Alfa Romeo has taken over both Sauber's entrant name and the name of the chassis.

Sauber competed in 2018 as the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team, but last week it was announced that the Swiss outfit would be known this year as Alfa Romeo Racing.

However, despite the disappearance of the traditional 'C' letter from its cars' designation (the 'C' standing for 'Christine' - founder Peter Sauber's wife) Sauber will remain the team's constructor, operating as an independent entity, financed in large part by its Italian partner.

• A relationship steeped in history between Alfa Romeo and Ferrari

That could also change in the future however according to Auto Bild, which claims that Alfa Romeo acquired the naming rights from Sauber for 6 million euros.

The move could foretell an outright buy-out of Sauber, currently owned by holding company Islero Investments, with Auto Bild reporting that Fiat-Chrysler boss John Elkann has negotiated an option for Alfa Romeo to purchase Sauber by next summer.

Obviously, such a scenario would bolster Ferrari political and financial power in Formula 1, a prospect likely to be frowned upon by the Scuderia's rivals.

A take-over would not come as a surprise however given last years' 'rapprochement' between Ferrari and Sauber that led to Scuderia chief designer Simone Resta moving to Hinwil.

On the driver front, Charles Leclerc and Kimi Raikkonen have traded places while Ferrari junior Antonio Giovinazzi has been recruited to race at Alfa Romeo alongside the 2007 world champion.

The writing is on the wall…

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