'Audi pulls plug on F1 project: Porsche as possible successor'
Rumors
An extraordinary rumour has come out via France's L'Auto Journal. Audi has already signed up for Formula 1 but is now said to have cold feet. Porsche is in the front row to take over, but not everyone is waiting for that.
From 2026, Audi will step into Formula 1 with all its might. Step by step, the Sauber team will be bought out, and in 2026 Audi will also supply the engine to the team. A big step for the German manufacturer, and they are starting to realise this internally. At least, that is the story appearing in the French media.
First of all, there was the departure of CEO Markus Duesmann. The one who shouted from the rooftops that Audi and Porsche would enter F1 and was internally a strong supporter of this project has not been part of the Volkswagen Group for some time. Although work in Neuburg continues undisturbed, it is said to be rumbling at the managerial level.
Why Porsche cannot just take over everything from Audi
Indeed, Duesmann's successor, Gernot Döllner, is said to be much less enthusiastic about the F1 project. An internal source within Audi is said to have informed the French medium that Döllner is happy to pull his brand out of F1 before 2026, but that would not mean that the Volkswagen Group would not be active in F1 from 2026 onwards.
Indeed, within that group, Porsche is said to be eager to take over the project from Audi. Logical, you would first of all think since the two brands are under the same parent company, but that is definitely not the case. After all, Audi and Porsche are not exactly the greatest of friends and if Porsche can just take over everything from Audi, it would be a big slap in the face to all the Audi staff.
After all, Porsche would not just take Audi's place, it would actually take over everything. This applies to the deal with Sauber, but also to the Neuburg plant. All the people working there would then be taken over by Porsche. So before these folds are ironed out, a lot has to happen, while in the background hard work has to be done to be competitive at all in 2026.