Wheatley won’t give up: Sauber ‘still in the hunt’ for P6

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Sauber team principal Jonathan Wheatley is refusing to back down in Formula 1’s fierce midfield battle, declaring that a sixth-place finish in the Constructors’ Championship remains within reach – even as the margins tighten heading into the final rounds of the 2025 season.

With just 12 points separating Sauber in ninth from Racing Bulls in sixth, and four rounds still to go – including two sprint weekends, the battle for the upper midfield remains wide open.

Despite a tough outing at last weekend’s Mexico City Grand Prix, where Gabriel Bortoleto claimed a solitary point in 10th and Nico Hülkenberg retired, Wheatley says the fight is far from over.

“So let's look at the points table first of all,” he said after the race at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.

“So Haas took a big chunk out of us today in the championship. Knocks us down to P9, as I sit here today. But the margins are really close in the points.

“One good weekend can swing it in a completely different direction. Genuinely, mathematically, P6 isn't out of all realms of possibility.”

Gains Every Race Weekend

Wheatley, Red Bull’s former sporting director who took charge of Sauber earlier this year, praised his new team’s growing cohesion and execution under pressure.

“We talked before about how well you have to execute every race because the margins are so close,” he said. “And I think for a young team that's growing and knitting together, we're doing a reasonable job of that at the moment. And I can feel the continuous improvement.

©Sauber

“I can feel the gains every race weekend. But we're still punching against teams that are really established and have got strong engineering teams that have been working together for a long time.

“So I love it. It's a championship. We're in the hunt. And I'll never give up until it's mathematically impossible.”

With the season barreling toward its climax, Sauber’s got everything to play for. One stellar weekend could flip the script, and Wheatley’s betting on his team to deliver.

P6? It’s not just possible – it’s personal for the Briton.

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Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.