The German team shows a solid package in engine and chassis, the surprise departure of Jonathan Wheatley left a void in leadership, Hülkenberg admits that their starts cost them points in Japan. Binotto took over provisionally.
Audi's adventure in Formula 1 is already three chapters in, the German manufacturer, which entered the category in 2026 after absorbing the Kick Sauber structure, has so far scored two points in the constructors' championship and sits eighth in the table, the balance is mixed, but analysts agree that the start has been promising.
In Australia, the dream debut was partially frustrated, Nico Hülkenberg could not start due to a breakdown, but Gabriel Bortoleto brought joy to the team with a brilliant comeback to ninth place. In China, luck reversed: the Brazilian did not take the start and the German finished eleventh, in Japan, Hülkenberg repeated 11th place, although with a bitter feeling: his poor starts relegated him from 13th to 19th place on the first lap.
Precisely that is the main Achilles' heel that the team has identified: "Improving our starts is something we need to focus on as a team over the coming weeks," admitted Hülkenberg, Bortoleto gave his diagnosis: "We've known since the first race that it's something we need to work on."
Beyond the results, the performance indicators are encouraging, both the engine and the chassis designed by Audi seem solid, unlike other teams, they do not have huge deficits to correct or obvious concept flaws. Their pace has been competitive on three very different tracks, which suggests that the base package is good.
However, the most shocking news of the start of the season did not happen on track: Jonathan Wheatley, the team principal who had been appointed to lead the project, left surprisingly after just two rounds. Mattia Binotto, head of the Audi F1 project, took over on an interim basis while the structure decides how to replace him or reorganize the leadership.
"The car's pace is encouraging. We have shown that we can compete close to the top 10, at the same time, there are clear areas to improve, our performance at the start is not where it needs to be, and that compromised both drivers' races in Japan. More broadly, driveability and energy management remain key focuses," Binotto stated.
One of Audi's disadvantages is that it has no customer teams using its power unit, that means they have less data to compare than the rest of the manufacturers, added to the fact that in Australia and China they could only start with one car in each race, the sample of information is limited.
The team's future will depend on its ability to develop the package successfully, Binotto will have to lead that offensive while Wheatley's replacement is resolved, and with the season still long, the tight points in the midfield can make the difference in December.