Audi Expected to Finalize 2025 F1 Driver Lineup by November Says Mattia Binotto

For those following Formula 1 and Audi’s road to the starting grid set for 2026 including purchase and conversion of Sauber F1, last weekend was the Mexican Grand Prix where Sauber continued its 2024 season performance with no points gained. While in Mexico for the race, the media had a chance to catch up with Sauber’s new team boss and former Ferrari man Mattia Binotto.

For Binotto, there are the natural comparisons to the Ferrari F1 buildout during his tenure. Binotto began with Ferrari in 1995, and took part in its road to glory from that point on. Audi is hoping he and the team they’re assembling at Sauber can do the same. For now though, the Switzerland-based team has failed to land a single championship point and the season is almost over.

Could that be strategy? Nobody’s saying, but there is more talk about the driver roster for next year and potentially beyond. German driver (and former Porsche Le Mans winner) Nico Hülkenberg was signed on months ago, though no such commitment has yet to be made on any of the current drivers including Valtteri Bottas or Zhou Guanyu.

The Mexican Grand Prix was won by Ferrari, with Carlos Sainz Jr. at the wheel of the winning car. Sainz famously lost his seat earlier this year when Mercedes’ Lewis Hamilton announced his migration over to the Italian team. Sainz Jr., whose father also won the Dakar Rally for Audi earlier this year, was a rumored get for Sauber, but that’s not how it played out when Carlos signed on with Williams in a multi-year deal.

There’s been a lot of speculation of who would fill that second seat ever since, with names such as Daniel Ricciardo and comparative newcomers Mick Schumacher and Franco Colapinto being thrown around. Of course, rumors in F1 are seemingly always both full of intrigue and gamesmanship, so we likely won’t know until Sauber announces it.

According to the Binotto conversation (reported by ESPN), the Italian reportedly stated, “We will need to come to a decision I would say before mid-November,” adding, “I think it’s because of fairness towards individuals, as well as us as a team to start switching to look at the future and building and developing the future.”

Look for more information here as it happens.