Motor racing-Hulkenberg's podium will boost belief in Sauber, says Wheatley
LONDON (Reuters) -Nico Hulkenberg's breakthrough podium for Swiss-based Sauber at the British Grand Prix will boost belief in the future Audi works team, according to principal Jonathan Wheatley.
Hulkenberg, 37, finished third at Silverstone for the German's first podium finish in 239 starts -- an achievement many thought would never happen for a driver who made his Formula One debut 15 years ago.
He also started last on the grid in Sunday's chaotic and rain-affected race, another element that made his success even more surreal.
"Really for me, what I've taken from today is people start believing in us," Wheatley told a much bigger crowd of reporters than usual outside the Sauber paddock hospitality on Sunday evening.
"I can say the words, I can say we're gaining momentum, I can say we're putting performance on the car, I can say (overall boss) Mattia (Binotto) and all the hard work he's been putting in before I came here is coming to light.
"But it's true. We've got a very long journey towards where we need to be as a team and it's a great step when you're starting on that journey."
Sauber were last overall with just four points last season after finishing ninth out of 10 the year before, but new management has arrested a downward spiral and turned fortunes around.
Former Ferrari boss Binotto has overall charge of the project, with Wheatley joining from Red Bull to run the team at the racetrack and prepare for the transformation into Audi next season.
Sauber also have an all-new lineup this year of Hulkenberg and Brazilian rookie Gabriel Bortoleto, last year's Formula Two champion.
Already this season Hulkenberg has finished fifth in Spain to lift Sauber off the bottom of the standings and he has scored in his last four races, with the team now only 18 points behind fifth-placed Williams.
His points tally of 37 in 12 races is already far more than the team scored in the last two seasons combined.
Asked whether Sauber were further ahead than expected in their plan for the future, Wheatley refused to tempt fate.
"You can think of the plan as a straight line and there's some hairpins on the way and there's some stoplights and traffic works," he said.
"It's a great day for the team. Everyone's working so hard here. It was a mature race performance."
(Reporting by Alan Baldwin, editing by Clare Fallon)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
27 minutes ago
- The Star
Cycling-Pogacar loses key teammate Almeida in Tour de France blow
Cycling - Tour de France - Stage 9 - Chinon to Chateauroux - Chinon, France - July 13, 2025 UAE Team Emirates XRG's Tadej Pogacar wearing the yellow jersey crosses the finish line after stage 9 REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier CHATEAUROUX, France (Reuters) -Tadej Pogacar's Tour de France hopes suffered a blow on Sunday as the Slovenian's key domestique Joao Almeida withdrew following a crash on Friday. Almeida, 26, who finished fourth in the general classification last year, abandoned after 89km of stage nine, two days after fracturing a rib in a spectacular high-speed crash. The Portuguese rider had come into the race in brilliant form having won the Tour de Suisse, the Tour of the Basque Country and the Tour de Romandie earlier this year. "We are really sad that we lost Joao (Almeida) today," Pogacar told reporters on Sunday. "I think it was just too much. I was suffering today on the bike... I cannot imagine him with all the pain, it must be really, really painful." "It's a really big loss. Joao was in a super great shape." Three-time Tour champion Pogacar lamented his teammate's withdrawal a day before the race enters the Massif Central with 4,450 metres of climbing awaiting the peloton on Monday. "It was a luxury to have him in the GC (general classification), he could also do a great result for himself here in the Tour," Pogacar said. "For sure, he would be a big help on the mountains. Now we have to reassess a little bit. We will try to win this Tour for Joao." World champion Pogacar can still count on the support of some good climbers including Adam Yates, who claimed third overall in 2023, Marc Soler and Pavel Sivakov. (Reporting by Vincent DaheronEditing by Toby Davis)
The Star
42 minutes ago
- The Star
Motor racing-Britain's Rowland takes Formula E title with two races to spare
FILE PHOTO: Apr 12, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; Oliver Rowland of Team Nissan enters turn four during qualifying for the ABB Formula E Series race at the Homestead Motor Speedway Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images/File Photo BERLIN (Reuters) -Nissan's Oliver Rowland won the Formula E title for the first time and with two races to spare on Sunday, the Briton becoming the all-electric series' 10th different champion in the space of 11 seasons. Rowland had needed to lead Pascal Wehrlein by 59 points after the second of two races in Berlin, the championship's penultimate weekend, and he did it by finishing fourth with his Porsche rival only 16th despite starting on pole. The Briton now has 184 points with Wehrlein on 125. Sunday's race at Berlin's old Tempelhof airport was won by Jaguar's Nick Cassidy, completing a weekend sweep after teammate Mitch Evans won on Saturday, with Andretti's Jake Dennis second and Jean-Eric Vergne third for DS Penske. The final two races of the season are in London on July 26-27. It was the first time a Japanese manufacturer had won the championship. (Reporting by Alan Baldwin in London, editing by Christian Radnedge)
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Cycling-First mountain test as Tour de France enters Massif Central
Cycling - Tour de France - Stage 9 - Chinon to Chateauroux - Chinon, France - July 13, 2025 UAE Team Emirates XRG's Tim Wellens wearing the polka-dot jersey in action in the peloton during stage 9 REUTERS/Benoit Tessier CHATEAUROUX, France (Reuters) -The Tour de France riders face a stern test as the 112th edition of the race enters the Massif Central for the 10th stage on Monday, with 4,450 metres of climbing awaiting them. Following a tough and hectic opening week, with some difficult stages, the peloton will ride 165.3km between Ennezat and Le Mont-Dore Puy de Sancy, tackling eight categorised climbs including the uphill finish. "All day long, we'll be going up and down climbs all the time," race director Thierry Gouvenou said. "You'll need to be in top shape if you hope to shine on this kind of course. "The riders in the general classification will be aiming to win the stage and make up time for the final overall classification." Slovenia's Tadej Pogacar leads the general classification by 54 seconds ahead of Belgium's Remco Evenepoel while two-time Tour champion Jonas Vingegaard sits fourth, trailing the yellow jersey by one minute and 17 seconds. "A lot of things can happen," defending champion Pogacar told a press conference on Sunday when asked about the 10th stage. "All the day up and down. I think there will be some attacks from GC (general classification) riders." His team principal Mauro Gianetti said Monday's stage was a key moment in the Tour. "It's very important because it's a stage with about 4,500 metres of climbing," Gianetti told Reuters. "There will be a lot of battles, a lot of attacks. It's going to be a very intense day." Pogacar will miss his best domestique in the mountains as Portugal's Joao Almeida withdrew on Sunday after crashing on Friday. Retired French rider Pierre Rolland, who won two Tour de France stages, said Monday could be a tougher day than the high-mountain stages starting on Thursday. "It's going to be a very, very difficult stage. There's no respite. It's almost harder than a high-mountain stage because the course is so hilly," he told Reuters. "There won't be a gap of minutes between the favourites but there may be a few seconds." Monday's stage should give some insight into Vingegaard's shape. The Visma-Lease a Bike rider suffered a blow during the stage-five time trial, losing more than a minute on Pogacar but has managed to follow the world champion's wheel in every punchy finish. After the stage comes the first rest day of the Tour, on Tuesday. (Reporting by Vincent Daheron; editing by Clare Fallon)
