Audi

Audi’s factory Formula 1 team is the latest incarnation of the long‑standing Hinwil operation founded by Peter Sauber, now retooled as a full works entry. In 2026 they sit eighth in the constructors’ standings with 17 points and no wins so far, under team principal Jonathan Wheatley and with an in‑house Audi power unit.

Roots in Hinwil

The team is based in Hinwil, Switzerland, a constant through three decades of top‑level competition. It first appeared in Formula 1 in 1993 as Sauber, quickly building a reputation for sound engineering and a calm, methodical approach uncommon for a newcomer. Early on the operation aligned with major manufacturers for engines, ran Ferrari customer power units for a long stretch rebadged as Petronas, and used those relationships to stay competitive on a modest budget. The Hinwil campus became known for steady development and an ability to bring young drivers through to the front of the grid.

The BMW partnership

A major step up came with BMW’s acquisition and rebranding of the entry to BMW Sauber from 2006 to 2009. That partnership delivered the team’s most obvious peak: Robert Kubica’s victory at the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix, part of a season in which the car was a regular podium threat. BMW’s resources and Sauber’s expertise meshed well, with a strong technical structure and consistent reliability. When BMW withdrew at the end of 2009, the team returned to independent status but retained the core staff and infrastructure that had delivered those results.

From Sauber to Alfa Romeo

In the hybrid era the Hinwil squad continued as a Ferrari‑powered independent, later adopting Alfa Romeo branding from 2018 while remaining operated by Sauber Motorsport. The arrangement brought manufacturer support on the chassis side and a clear identity, while keeping the team’s Swiss base and engineering leadership intact. That period also underlined the group’s resilience: even when headline results were scarce, Hinwil’s car build quality and operational tidiness remained points of note.

Audi takes over

Audi’s decision to enter Formula 1 as a power unit manufacturer and team owner centred on Hinwil’s assets: a proven factory, experienced staff and a climate of careful, data‑driven decision‑making. The transition to a works programme required aligning Audi’s power unit development with the established chassis group, a complex integration that built on the team’s experience of long supplier relationships and one prior factory era. The power unit is now Audi‑badged and developed within the wider Audi framework, while day‑to‑day team operations are led by Jonathan Wheatley. As with previous identity changes, the entry’s legal and sporting continuity links back directly to the Sauber lineage, even as branding and governance moved under Audi.

2026 form and direction

In 2026 the team sits eighth in the constructors’ championship with 17 points and no wins, a clear indication of a midfield outfit still bedding in as a full works concern. The standings so far reflect a car capable of scoring but not yet equipped to challenge the established leaders across a season. The Hinwil base continues to be the programme’s anchor, and the Audi power unit is now a central pillar rather than a supplied component to be integrated around. With Wheatley in charge on the pit wall and a manufacturer‑backed structure in place, the effort is focused on turning that combination into consistent, repeatable performance without sacrificing the operational discipline for which the team has long been known.

A continuous lineage

Although names have changed – Sauber, BMW Sauber, Alfa Romeo and now Audi – the entry is the same Hinwil operation that debuted in 1993. The continuity is unusually clear in modern Formula 1: the headquarters have stayed put, the engineering culture remains analytical and understated, and the team has repeatedly adapted to different power unit partners and governance models. The BMW era delivered the team’s most famous Grand Prix win, the Alfa Romeo years brought a renewed manufacturer tie‑in, and Audi’s arrival marks only the second time Hinwil has operated as a true works team. That history matters in 2026 because it frames Audi’s task not as a start‑up but as the latest chapter of a proven organisation switching to a new set of tools and targets, judged today by an eighth place and 17 points in the table rather than by promises.