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Why champion killers Audi can be a major threat in F1
A look at Audi's track record in motorsport shows why leading teams
such as McLaren, Ferrari, Red Bull and Mercedes should be
concerned, with the Ingolstadt concern's track record when it comes
to entering new categories - and winning. For the first time, the
four rings is entering Formula 1 in 2026 with a works team, having
taken over Sauber, and unlike Cadillac (until 2029 at least), has
created its own power unit. And Audi is not coming into grand prix
racing to make up the numbers, with the Le Mans 24 Hours exhibit A.
An example of Audi's destructive efficiency comes in 1999, when it
first visited the Circuit de la Sarthe, with the R8R and R8C,
finishing third and fourth overall despite some mechanical
gremlins. 12 months later, and Audi was not messing around with a
historic 1-2-3 victory, headed by Frank Biela, Emanuele Pirro and,
with his second victory, Tom Kristensen. TK would go on to claim
seven of his nine Le Mans wins at the wheel of an Audi between this
first triumph in 2000 and 2013. But it is not just on-track Audi
has had success, with a dip into the Dakar Rally in 02 with an
all-electric RS e-tron. Stage victories followed in the first
year, and by 2024, Carlos Sainz Sr, the two-time world rally
champion, guided Audi to its first victory in the Dakar by over one
hour after 7,900km of racing. It was the first time an
electric-powered machine had won the Dakar. Further success Keeping
up with the electric theme, Audi was also one of the leading teams
in the early years of Formula E, when the battery technology was
still immature. Lucas di Grassi won the first-ever FE race in
Beijing, albeit helped by Renault's Nico Prost suddenly doing the
best impression of his father at the 1989 Japanese GP against Nick
Heidfeld just before the final braking zone of the final lap,
launching Heidfeld into a flip. The team finished third overall in
the standings, before di Grassi went to the season two finale with
a chance of the drivers' title against rival Sebastien Buemi, who
emerged on top by virtue of the fastest lap two bonus points after
a controversial collision between the two. But in season three,
Buemi's lightning start faded in the second-half of the year as di
Grassi claimed the drivers' title for Audi, with a teams' title
following in 2018 before the team withdrew at the end of the 2021
campaign. In terms of F1, Audi is not underestimating the scale of
the challenge, with CEO Gernot Dollner indicating that the team
"want to win" but realise "you don't become a top team overnight"
with 2030 earmarked as a the target for a championship challenge.
For the leading F1 teams, the message is clear: Audi is coming, and
its history proves that it is not coming to compete. It is coming
to win.
