Sauber Sees Silver Lining Despite Bottas’ Point-less Streak: Team Optimistic After Monza

Clean team sees “good indication” though Valtteri Bottas remains without points

Clean team leader maintains there is cause for hope

Sauber thinks 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, finishing two spots in front of his teammate Guanyu Zhou.

Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu, and Logan Sargeant (who no longer holds a seat with Williams) are the sole Formula 1 drivers in 2024 who have not scored any points, while Sauber stands as the only team yet to earn a point.

Both Sauber drivers secured positions at the rear of the grid, prompting the team to equip Bottas with hard tires and extend his initial stint in the race as long as 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 those of earlier races, there were encouraging aspects in the team's performance.

"Each driver effectively handled their tires, whether hard or medium, enabling us to stick to our pre-race strategy and keep wear and tear in check."

"Naturally, this isn't sufficient to contend for points since our overall speed is lacking. However, the low-drag configuration we introduced at Monza and the adjustments we made for qualifying enhanced the car's balance, allowing Valtteri and Zhou an opportunity to compete."

"We have a significant distance to cover before we can compete for points, but it's worth noting that the gap with our immediate rivals has narrowed today – a promising indicator that we should highlight."

Bottas reflected on the race, stating, "It was a straightforward and quiet race from our perspective. We opted for a one-stop strategy, beginning with the hard tires, in an effort to try something unique and possibly benefit from a well-timed Safety Car."

“Regrettably, our attempt didn’t succeed, but I believe it was worthwhile to make the effort.”

Reflecting on the race, I realize I wouldn't change a thing: we managed to overtake a few competitors and secured 16th place through our own efforts, but that was truly the best outcome we could achieve.

"We did not achieve significant improvements in speed; although our weekend began positively, we struggled to maintain that initial pace and make further advancements. Nonetheless, this weekend was definitely an improvement over Zandvoort. We have substantial work to do to make additional progress, and we will be focusing on that in preparation for the upcoming races in Baku and Singapore."

Zhou mentioned that their speed today was insufficient to contend for points, particularly in a race that was straightforward and free of major disruptions or surprises.

"Although our speed showed noticeable progress from last weekend in Zandvoort, we are still lagging behind our main rivals in terms of performance."

Over the weekend, we've noticed some gains 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 event to achieve the best outcome.

Instead of depending on luck, our team is dedicated to staying focused and diligently working to gain those essential fractions of a second that will move us nearer to the top ten.

Sauber is set to transition into Audi next year, although they will keep their present form.

Haas has secured Nico Hulkenberg for the 2025 season, putting pressure on Bottas and Zhou to fight for their spots in Formula 1 to avoid being dropped completely.

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

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