Monisha Kaltenborn is confident Sauber has become “far more attractive” for drivers since the Swiss outfit was taken over by Longbow Finance, but admits the 2017 line-up is likely to continue bringing funding to the team.
Sauber currently has Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr on its roster, both of whom have substantial backing, but their deals expire at the end of the 2016 Formula One season.
The Hinwill-based outfit endured a torrid start to the current campaign, as financial difficulties led to delayed payment of staff salaries and limited the updates on the Sauber C35. Following fresh investment from Longbow however, the team has been on a recruitment drive to fill major senior positions.
“I can assure you one thing, we are far more attractive now than we were a few months ago,” she told Autosport. “It speaks for the quality of the team as some people tried to reduce this team for two years when we were not strong.
“We had two crappy years, 2014 and this year, but this is not Sauber. There are some people out there who see this. There are a couple of [driver] options on the table and we are assessing and seeing what to do.
“I’ve got no timeline in mind. We have our options, we are assessing them and when we are ready, we will announce. It's good to do it quickly, because then you have certainty, but there is no time pressure.”
Having previously claimed that money alone would not decide the 2017 Sauber line-up, Kaltenborn rules out not having any pay driver next year.
“I don't think that is going to happen.”
The Sauber team principal explains how drivers with funding would speed up the team's development pace.
“It would help us in implementing our targets quicker and be a big help in the overall plan we have.
“We're confident our car will be better next year and we're hoping to have more sponsors onboard, but in the current environment, it is still about finances.
“There is a close link to the more you have, the more you can test and that's what you need to do.”
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