Audi’s entry into F1 is of high interest to all motorsport enthusiasts and the team has already earmarked the driver it wants to lead its charge when it officially enters the sport.
A report on RacingNews365 has detailed the plans that Audi is keen to implement on its arrival in F1, slated for the 2026 season, and the first demand that the team has is roping in an experienced driver at Sauber starting from the 2025 season.
The German manufacturer believes it is imperative for a racer from the same nationality to spearhead its ambitions owing to better marketability opportunities.
While recently retired F1 driver Sebastian Vettel was earlier being suggested as the ideal candidate to facilitate their entry, it is now believed that they have turned their attention towards the 36-year-old Nico Hulkenberg.
With Sauber’s name once again returning to the grid, the team will be known by the name Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber before they become the works Audi team in 2026.
No immediate movement is expected as far as the driver line-up is concerned, with all 20 names in the list already confirmed as far as the 2024 season is concerned.
It is believed that Audi already has some control over the decision-making process that will take place at Sauber starting next season itself and they want the team to pursue Hulkenberg so that he has a season to acclimatise.
The report claims: “At the moment, however, Hulkenberg appears to be in pole position to secure one of the two seats at Audi.”
A natural result of this will be pressure on the likes of Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu, both of whom failed to impress last season.
While bottas has racing pedigree in F1, he ended the season with only 10 points.
meanwhile, Zhou’s campaign was even worse as the Chinese driver managed three P9 finishes to notch 6 points through the course of the campaign.
This season could very well prove to be an audition for both drivers to see who ends up partnering Hulkenberg in 2025 and then in 2026 when Audi officially enters the F1 bandwagon.
As far as Hulkenberg’s availability is concerned, it is unlikely that he will have any issue in forsaking his seat at Haas for the opportunity of being associated with Audi.
Although his team boss Guenther Steiner has blocked one move for Hulkenberg to exit Haas in the past, it appears unlikely that he will be able to do so again.