Motorsports
Audi F1 CEO: “This is the most important thing for us right now. Time will tell.”
Audi team boss Jonathan Whitley is preparing for a tough first season in Formula 1 and admits 2026 will be a real roller-coaster year for the team.
The German automaker introduced its first car, the Audi R26, at an event in Berlin. The car received a silver, red and black livery that was previously shown without sponsor logos in the December preview.
Audi has taken over the Sauber base in Hinwil, Switzerland, and is also developing its own power plant according to new regulations at the site in Neuburg. This is a tense time for the team as they have to build from scratch a structure that can compete with the established F1 giants.
Although Audi’s strategic aim is to challenge for the championship by 2030, Wheatley is acutely aware that the first season will not be easy. Speaking to reporters on the eve of the presentation, he explained in detail the team’s expectations:
“Everyone starts the season with a car they have created specifically for this year, so each team sets its own internal targets.
“There are times when you get so close to that goal that you start to think you can beat it, and sometimes there are times when you have it all (good weeks and bad weeks) in the process of figuring out your own approach to development.”“The most important thing for us now is to make the most of the testing days before the first race. We need to understand the car as well as possible, listen carefully to the drivers and make sure that development is going in the right direction.”
Evaluating Audi’s competitiveness, the team leader emphasized that the real balance of power will not be immediately clear:
“Time will tell. There are several new technical solutions in the car that engineers have been working on for a long time, but you never know for sure.”
No one will know where they are until qualifying in Melbourne. And even then the full picture will only start to emerge after the first two or three races.”“At the end of the day you still have a chassis, an engine and a pilot, and it’s about getting the most out of each of these elements.”
Source: Sport UA
Ruth Waterhouse is an author and sports journalist who writes for Sportish. She is known for her coverage of various sports events and her insightful analysis of sports-related news. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, she has become a respected voice in the sports community.
Alpin evaluated the first drive of the Mercedes-powered vehicle positively and said that the race at Silverstone gave the team confidence before the preparations for the 2026 season.
The Enstone team is working as a Mercedes customer for the first time, abandoning Renault’s own engine on the eve of new rules. On a rainy and cold shooting day, Pierre Gasly rode 140 km of the allowed 200 km, and the program was shortened only due to weather conditions. Despite this, the A526 with Mercedes engine and transmission operated without any technical problems.
Flavio Briatore, one of the team leaders, noted that the silence on the radio was the main positive point:
“For the first time in my long career in Formula 1, a car goes, comes back, comes out again and nothing else happens. Usually we talk about temperature, oil and settings. The radio was silent here. That’s good news.”
“We covered less than 150 km due to aquaplaning. There was no point in risking the car.”
Source: Sport UA
Ruth Waterhouse is an author and sports journalist who writes for Sportish. She is known for her coverage of various sports events and her insightful analysis of sports-related news. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, she has become a respected voice in the sports community.
Audi has officially announced that it is creating its own driver development program that will cover the entire path of young talent from karting to formula series and possibly Formula 1. The move is part of the brand’s long-term strategy to compete for the championship title by 2030.
Alan McNish, a former Formula 1 driver, multiple winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and long-time representative of Audi in motorsport, has been appointed head of the programme. The company states that the aim of the initiative is not only to find fast pilots, but also to train athletes with the right mentality, determination and the ability to work as a team.
The launch of the junior program puts Audi on par with leading Formula 1 teams such as Ferrari and McLaren. Red Bull and Alpin have been investing in the development of young drivers for many years.
Source: Sport UA
Ruth Waterhouse is an author and sports journalist who writes for Sportish. She is known for her coverage of various sports events and her insightful analysis of sports-related news. With a passion for sports and a keen eye for detail, she has become a respected voice in the sports community.
On the second day of the Monte Carlo Rally, the opening round of the World Rally Championship (WRC), which will be held from Thursday to Sunday, Swedish driver Oliver Solberg (Toyota) further widened his lead.
This Friday’s itinerary includes three different specials, each running twice. The Swede, son of 2003 world champion Petter Solberg, who had already finished first on Thursday, shined again on the snow and ice in the first stage of the day, setting the best time (13 minutes 48.5 seconds).
Of the nine special stages held so far, Solberg has won four, with a cumulative time of 2 hours 11 minutes 13.1 seconds. Due to a puncture he was only fifth, 27 seconds slower than Toyota teammate Elfyn Evans. “It’s been a great day because my advantage has increased. I’m happy and just want to welcome a new day,” the Swede concluded in a statement to the organization.
Even so, Evans continued to take 2nd place from the second day. The Briton never finished lower than fourth in any section and ended the day with a time of 2:12:21.5, 1:08.4 behind Solberg. “It was a good day, a little up and down, but good,” Evans said of his performance.
The joy for Toyota continued with the performance of Sébastien Ogier. The previous world title saw the Japanese team close to the full podium with a time of 2 hours 12 minutes 28.0 seconds, very close to that of the British athletes who had improved by nearly 18 seconds compared to Thursday’s time. The Frenchman particularly shined in the eighth section, navigating the muddy area better than his rivals (18:05.1).
Ford had to regret Irishman Josh McErlean’s withdrawal on stage nine, when his car went off the road in a snowbank shortly after the route began.
The Monte Carlo Rally will see drivers covering a total of over 339 kilometers across 17 stages. There are four stages remaining, including a super special through the streets of Monaco, on Saturday 24th January, and a further four stages on Sunday 25th.
Source: Mundo Deportivo
I am a writer at Sportish, where I mainly cover sports news. I’ve also written for The Guardian and ESPN Brasil, and my work has been featured on NBC Sports, SI.com and more. Before working in journalism, I was an athlete: I played football for Colgate University and competed in the US Open Cross Country Championships.
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