Former Formula 1 team boss Eddie Jordan believes that Audi’s approach to its F1 project is inherently flawed due to the location of its partner, Sauber.
Audi has acquired the Swiss outfit and is in the process of leveraging the latter’s operations to develop the 2026 chassis that will carry the German manufacturer’s next-generation F1 power unit.
As an affiliate of the Ingolstadt firm, Sauber will also logically run Audi’s F1 efforts. But so far, the project’s development hasn’t been clear sailing.
Former McLaren top man Andreas Seidl was hired to lead the Audi/Sauber 2026 programme. But a period of internal strife between the German and Audi chief representative Oliver Hoffmann led to the dismissal of both men, with former Ferrari team boss Mattia Binotto placed in charger Audi’s F1 operations.
Further strengthening the project’s foundation was the announcement on Thursday that Red Bull sporting director Jonathan Wheatley would be joining the team as its team principal as some point in 2025.
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But despite Audi’s high-profile appointments, Jordan is unconvinced by the wisdom of maintaining the team’s headquarters in Hinwil, Switzerland.
He argues that the UK is the epicenter of Formula 1, boasting a wealth of talent, expertise, and infrastructure that is unparalleled elsewhere.
“I have a question mark over Audi in the full stop,” Jordan remarked, speaking in the latest Formula For Success podcast hosted by David Coulthard.
“You and I are particularly good friends with Allan McNish [Audi motorsport director of coordination] and we wish him well there, but that’s a big, big task he’s taken on, big, big operation.”
Jordan went on to highlight the historical dominance of British-based teams in Formula 1, emphasizing the importance of the region’s racing culture and the efficiency of its supply chain.
He contrasted this with the perceived inefficiencies of working outside the UK, citing potential delays and difficulties in securing critical components.
“To build a car, to run it out of Switzerland, with manufacturing, it’s a big, big, big ask,” he added. “When did you last see a Swiss or a German [based] team win a world title?
“We saw what Toyota did. They came in, they tried to do it that way and then it didn’t work. And so it’s a big ask.
“And I have to say there is no better way to run a race car than through Britain and particularly in that area of Northampton, Oxfordshire and various other places.
“They’ve just got such a wealth of knowledge. They’ve just got such a mindset of being able to win or to achieving or getting the best.
“And the suppliers in the region understand the complexities and the timeframes that people are on there. Whereas, you know, you go out and you order a piece of machinery to be done in Switzerland. They will give you a timeline of maybe needing four days, four weeks, four months and there’s nothing you can do.
“Whereas if you’re in the UK, you would just sit on top of that supplier and say, ‘If you don’t do this, you just don’t get any more work. So you better drop everything and do it.’ And they work night and day to get it done.
“So that’s the philosophy that there is a racing culture, it’s in the DNA, and I think what Audi are doing is fundamentally wrong.”
But Jordan’s criticism extended beyond Audi’s geographical location. He also expressed concerns about the Sauber team itself, which has struggled to compete at the highest level in recent years.
The beleaguered outfit has yet to score a point in the 2024 championship, a statistic that the former F1 team owner believes is indicative of deeper-rooted problems.
“It shouldn’t also go unnoticed that the team that they bought, which is Sauber, which I adore Peter Sauber [founder] as a person, but nice people don’t win anything,” Jordan continued, “the unfortunate thing is that Peter hasn’t won anything in terms of winning Grands Prix.
“But [what] he has failed to do even this year, which must be a big embarrassment for him, is that they are the only team without a point. And having said that, they are absolutely last. And that’s no great joy and I’m disappointed for them.”
When Coulthard pointed out that Sauber had in fact one a race – the 2008 Canadian GP with Robert Kubica – Jordan credited BMW for that sole win.
“Peter Sauber, as a person as a team as an entrant, has not won a championship or has never won a race. BMW has won a race. Two totally different things,” he said.
However, Coulthard did agree with his sidekick that Audi’s interest would have been better served by basing its operations in the UK.
“I think that if you are really trying to be World Champions, a Grand Prix winner, then the UK has long established itself as being the backbone of where you would achieve that,” said the Scot.
“Ferrari are the outliers of course, but that took a major European headcount to deliver that. But time will tell whether it [Audi] is successful or not.”
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