Sauber Sees Silver Lining Despite Bottas’ Point-less Streak: Optimism Abounds After Italian GP

Sauber sees "positive indicators," but Valtteri Bottas remains without points.

Sauber's leader maintains there is cause for hope.

Sauber is confident they have narrowed 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, finishing two spots in front of his teammate Guanyu Zhou.

In the 2024 Formula 1 season, Bottas, Zhou, and Logan Sargeant (who no longer holds his seat with Williams) are the sole drivers yet to score a point. Sauber stands as the only team without any points.

Sauber's pair of drivers secured the last positions in the qualifying round, leading to Bottas being equipped with hard tires and tasked with running the longest initial stint. However, the team's strategy was mostly unsuccessful.

Nonetheless, team spokesperson Alessandro Alunni Bravi remains hopeful.

He stated that despite the final rankings appearing similar to prior races, there were some promising aspects in the team's performance.

"Both drivers effectively managed their hard and medium tyres, allowing us to stick to our pre-race strategy and keep tyre wear in check."

"Naturally, this is insufficient for competing for points, given our lack of overall speed. However, the low-drag package we introduced at Monza and the adjustments made for qualifying enhanced the car's balance, providing Valtteri and Zhou with an opportunity to compete."

"We have a significant distance to cover before we can compete for points, but it's crucial to recognize that the gap with our main rivals has narrowed today – this is a positive development worth highlighting."

Bottas shared his thoughts on the race, stating, "It was a smooth and straightforward race for us. We decided on a one-stop strategy, beginning with the hard tires, as we aimed to try a different approach and potentially benefit from a timely Safety Car intervention."

"Regrettably, things didn’t go as planned, but I believe it was worthwhile to make the attempt."

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

"We didn't see significant improvements in our speed. Although our weekend began positively, we struggled to maintain that momentum and didn't achieve much progress. However, it was definitely better than our performance at Zandvoort. There's still a lot to be done to make further advancements, and we'll be focusing on that as we prepare for the upcoming consecutive races in Baku and Singapore."

Zhou remarked, "Today, our speed wasn't sufficient to compete for points, particularly in a race that was smooth and free of major disruptions or surprises."

"Our speed has definitely improved since last weekend in Zandvoort, but we are still lagging behind our main rivals in terms of performance."

Over the weekend, there was noticeable progress in our single-lap speed. However, it’s evident that we must identify the car’s optimal performance settings and deliver a perfect performance throughout the weekend to achieve the best outcome.

"Instead of depending on luck, our team is dedicated to staying focused and putting in the hard work needed to shave off those vital fractions of a second that will move us nearer to the top ten."

Next year, Sauber will transition into Audi while maintaining their present form.

Nico Hulkenberg has secured a contract with Haas for the 2025 season, putting pressure on Bottas and Zhou as they fight to stay in Formula 1.

Sauber and Red Bull are the only teams with open driver slots for the upcoming season.

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