The season finale at Yas Marina already promised tension, but one team quietly bid farewell to the sport forever as, for the last time in F1 history, the name Sauber appeared on the entry list. After more than 30 years in the sport, the Swiss team will be bowing out of the sport before its full transformation into Audi for 2026.
There were a few tears and a proud Peter Sauber watching the cars roll out from his garage one final time, and it felt like the end of an era that many didn’t want to say goodbye to.
Sauber’s F1 Legacy Built With Passion and Persistence
Sauber never had the biggest budget or payroll, yet it kept its place in F1 through sheer determination, and the team has been home to dozens of drivers who later became household names in the sport.
The team joined F1 in 1993 and immediately showed intent by running fourth and fifth on their very first competitive lap. The project started as a Mercedes factory effort, but when the German manufacturer backed out before their debut, Sauber pushed ahead on its own.
Their rise helped launch the careers of several major drivers, including Kimi Raikkonen, Felipe Massa, Sebastian Vettel, and even almost Lewis Hamilton. Sauber revealed in Abu Dhabi that Hamilton came close to joining the team early in his career, but the deal fell through because McLaren only wanted a one-year loan.
The Swiss owner admitted, “Hardly anyone knows that around 20 years ago, Lewis Hamilton almost drove for us. The Briton belonged to McLaren, and they wanted to send him to Hinwil for his Formula 1 apprenticeship…. The deal fell through because McLaren only wanted to loan him for one year but we insisted on two.”
Sauber’s biggest highlight came during the BMW takeover with Robert Kubica’s famous win in Canada 2008, but financial struggles hit the team hard later. A failed sale and BMW’s exit nearly killed the project before the Swiss owner stepped in and rescued it despite having no obligation to do so. It was a decision driven by loyalty to the team, the sport, and the people working back at the factory in Hinwil.
A Proud Farewell and New Future As Audi
The Abu Dhabi paddock felt unusually emotional on Sunday as the team marked the moment with a message captioned, “From our first race to our last. An honour to have Peter Sauber in the garage for our final weekend on track,” along with a short clip of the owner.
Sauber ended the 2025 season much better than last year, with a 66-point step forward from last year, and now Nico Hulkenberg, along with rookie Gabriel Bortoleto, will carry the torch next season as the cars switch to Audi branding.
New team principal Jonathan Wheatley expressed huge excitement about the project, “I feel very comfortable in the role I’m doing at the moment, it’s an amazing opportunity. I’m so excited about the project. Just saying Audi Formula 1 project sounds like the most incredible thing to be part of. Pressure is part of the job, it’s been part of my job for the last 30 years. I turn it into something positive.”
The Sauber name may no longer appear on the grid, but its DNA will live on through Audi and the staff who built the team through all its struggles and small victories.
