Sauber’s Struggles Show Signs of Hope Despite Point-less Finish for Bottas at Monza

Sauber Discovers Encouraging Indications, Yet Valtteri Bottas Remains Without Points

Sauber's Team Principal Asserts Reasons to Stay Hopeful

Sauber feels confident that 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 in the Monza race, finishing two spots in front of his teammate Guanyu Zhou.

Valtteri Bottas, Zhou Guanyu, and Logan Sargeant—who no longer holds his position at Williams—are the only Formula 1 drivers in 2024 yet to score a point. Sauber stands as the sole team without any points.

Sauber's drivers secured positions at the end of the grid, leading to Bottas being equipped with hard tires and tasked with running the longest initial stint. However, the team's strategy ultimately proved ineffective.

Nonetheless, team spokesperson Alessandro Alunni Bravi maintains that there is a sense of hope.

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

"Each driver effectively managed their hard and medium tires, enabling us to stick to our pre-race strategy while keeping tire wear in check."

"Certainly, it’s insufficient to compete for points because we don’t have the necessary overall speed. However, the low-drag package we introduced at Monza along with the adjustments we made for qualifying enhanced the car’s balance, providing Valtteri and Zhou an opportunity to contend."

"We have quite a distance to go before we can compete for points, but it's crucial to recognize that today, the difference between us and our main rivals has decreased – this is a positive development that we should highlight."

Reflecting on the race, Bottas commented: "It was a straightforward and calm race for us. We opted for a one-stop approach, beginning with the hard tires, as we aimed to try a different tactic and hoped to benefit from a well-timed Safety Car."

"Sadly, things didn't go as planned for us, but I believe it was worthwhile to attempt it."

Reflecting on the race, I have no regrets about my decisions: we managed to move up several spots, securing the 16th position through our own efforts, but that was truly the best outcome we could achieve.

"We didn't see significant improvements in our speed. Although our weekend began positively, we couldn't maintain that energy or make substantial gains. Nevertheless, it was certainly better than our experience at Zandvoort. We have a considerable amount of work to do to take the next step forward, and we'll be focusing on that as we prepare for the upcoming consecutive races in Baku and Singapore."

Zhou remarked, “Our speed today wasn’t sufficient to contend for points, particularly in a race that went smoothly without any interruptions or major surprises.”

"Although our speed showed a notable improvement from last weekend in 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 is evident that we must fine-tune the car's performance and deliver a perfect weekend to achieve the optimal outcome.

"Instead of depending on fortune, our team is dedicated to diligent effort, striving to shave off those vital fractions of a second that can propel us into the top ten."

Sauber will carry on with their transformation into Audi next year, although they will stay in their present form.

Haas has secured Nico Hulkenberg for the 2025 season, putting Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu in a fierce battle to keep their spots in Formula 1.

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

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