Sauber Sees Silver Lining Despite Point-less Monza Finish: Bottas and Team Remain Optimistic Amid F1 Struggles

Clean team sees "good sign" but Valtteri Bottas still without points

Clean team chief maintains there is cause for hope

Sauber is confident that they have made progress in catching up 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 ahead of his teammate Guanyu Zhou.

In the 2024 F1 season, Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu, and Logan Sargeant (who no longer holds a position with Williams) are the only drivers yet to score a point, with Sauber being the sole team without any points.

Sauber's pair of drivers ended up qualifying at the rear of the grid, leading to Bottas being equipped with hard tires to endure an extended initial stint. Unfortunately, the team's strategy did not yield significant results.

Nevertheless, team spokesperson Alessandro Alunni Bravi maintains a sense of hope.

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

"Each driver successfully maintained their tires, both hard and medium compounds, enabling us to stick to our pre-race strategy as wear and tear remained manageable."

“Certainly, this isn't sufficient to compete for points yet, as we are still missing overall speed. However, the low-drag package introduced at Monza and the adjustments made for qualifying enhanced the car's balance, allowing Valtteri and Zhou to contend.”

"We're not yet in a position to compete for points, but it's crucial to recognize that the distance between us and our main rivals has decreased – this is a positive development worth highlighting."

Bottas commented on the race, saying, "It was a straightforward and calm race for us; we opted for a one-stop strategy, beginning with the hard tires, as we attempted a different approach and hoped to benefit from a possible Safety Car intervention."

"Regrettably, it didn't turn out as we had hoped, but I believe it was worth the attempt."

Reflecting on how the race played out, I wouldn’t change a thing: we managed to advance a few spots on the track, reaching P16 fairly, but that was truly the best we could achieve.

"We haven't seen significant improvement in our speed. The weekend began positively, but we struggled to maintain that momentum and didn't make much progress. Nonetheless, it was definitely a better performance than at Zandvoort. We have a lot of work to do to take the next step forward, and that will be our focus as we prepare for the upcoming back-to-back races in Baku and Singapore."

Zhou commented, "Our speed today wasn't sufficient to compete for points, especially in a race that was smooth and free of interruptions or major surprises."

“Although our speed has evidently gotten better since last weekend at Zandvoort, we are still lagging behind our main rivals in terms of performance."

Over the weekend, there has been a noticeable enhancement in our single-lap speed. However, it's evident that we need to fine-tune the car's optimal performance and carry out a perfect weekend to achieve the best outcome.

“Instead of depending on fortune, our team is dedicated to working diligently to shave off those vital fractions of a second that will move us nearer to breaking into the top ten.”

Sauber is set to transition into Audi next year, although they will retain their existing identity.

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

The only open driver spots for next season are with Sauber and Red Bull.

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