Sauber Finds Silver Linings at Monza; Bottas Remains Point-less Amidst Optimism

Sauber identifies "promising indication" yet Valtteri Bottas remains without points

Sauber chief maintains there is cause for hope

Sauber is confident that they have reduced the distance to their closest competitors even though they have yet to earn any points at the F1 Italian Grand Prix.

Valtteri Bottas secured the 16th position at Monza, with his teammate Guanyu Zhou ending two spots behind him.

Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu, and Logan Sargeant (who is no longer with Williams) are the sole Formula 1 drivers in 2024 who haven't scored any points, and Sauber is the only team yet to earn a point.

The Sauber team had both of their drivers start from the rear of the grid. Bottas was equipped with hard tires and tasked with running the longest initial stint possible. However, these strategies did not yield significant results.

Nonetheless, team spokesperson Alessandro Alunni Bravi remains hopeful.

He stated that despite the final standings appearing similar to past races, there were encouraging aspects in the team's performance.

"Each driver successfully handled their hard and medium tyres, enabling us to stick to our pre-race strategy while keeping tyre wear in check."

Certainly, we aren't yet in a position to compete for points due to our insufficient overall speed. However, the low-drag configuration we introduced at Monza and the adjustments we made for qualifying improved the car's balance, allowing Valtteri and Zhou to contend more effectively.

"We're not yet in a position to compete for points, but it's crucial to recognize that we've made progress in closing the gap with our main rivals. This is a positive development worth noting."

Bottas commented on the race, saying, "It was a straightforward and smooth race for us without any major incidents. We opted for a one-stop strategy, beginning with the hard tires, as we aimed to try a different approach and hoped for favorable timing with a possible Safety Car."

"Regrettably, our efforts didn’t pan out as we had hoped, but I believe it was worthwhile to attempt it."

Reflecting on the progression of the race, I believe I wouldn't change a thing: we managed to move up a few spots through our performance, reaching 16th place fairly, but that was truly the best we could achieve.

"Our speed hasn't significantly improved. Although our weekend began positively, we struggled to maintain that momentum or make substantial advancements. Nevertheless, it was certainly a better performance than at Zandvoort. We have considerable work to do to make further progress, and that's what we'll be focusing on as we prepare for the upcoming back-to-back races in Baku and Singapore."

Zhou stated, "We didn't have enough speed today to compete for points, particularly since the race went smoothly without any interruptions or major surprises."

"Our speed was definitely better than it was last weekend in Zandvoort, but we are still lagging behind our main rivals in terms of performance."

Over the weekend, we observed a boost in our single-lap speed, yet it's evident that we must fine-tune the car's optimal performance and deliver a perfect weekend to achieve the best outcome.

"Instead of depending on chance, our team is dedicated to staying focused and working diligently to shave off those critical fractions of a second that will help us break into the top ten."

Next year, Sauber will progress further into becoming Audi, but they will retain their existing identity.

Nico Hulkenberg has secured a contract with Haas for the 2025 season, putting pressure on Bottas and Zhou to fight for their spots and avoid being cut from Formula 1 entirely.

Only Sauber and RB still have open driver positions for the next season.

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