Peter Sauber answers questions

In this world of F1, there is a man who knew how to step back to give the necessary momentum to his team’s success: Peter Sauber. He accepted this choice when BMW wanted to race under its own name.

Today the German manufacturer has left, and the legendary Swiss boss has returned to save expertise, a team, and the people.

A complicated start to the season and changes within the organization, these are the concerns of a key figure in motorsport:

Question. Two days ago, James Key took over the position of technical director. Why did you choose him?

Peter Sauber: «I have been impressed by what Force India has achieved recently with a tight budget. James Key has played a major role in this project, and we can see where they are today. For me, it is also important to appoint a technical director who knows how to make the most of limited resources. He will benefit from the first-class infrastructure in Hinwil, and I am certain he will be able to move the team forward.»

Question: What are its main missions?

Peter Sauber: « He will start in Shanghai, where he will have full technical responsibility on the circuit. In the short term, he will focus on exploiting the full potential of the C29, something we have not been able to do in the first three races of the season. In the longer term, he will establish what he considers to be the right structure for the technical service. I am convinced that there will be changes. However, they will not happen overnight. It is a process that will take some time. »

Question. Why are these necessary changes in the technical department?

Peter Sauber: In terms of performance, we are not where we hoped to be, given the resources we had at our disposal for the development of the C29. I am looking for explanations myself. What is clear is that there was a lot of uncertainty around the entire team in the second half of 2009, which is not surprising given the circumstances. No one within the team knew if we would be on the grid in Bahrain. This uncertainty disappeared only when I took over the team. The guys could consider their futures again. Now we have the duty to make up for lost time as quickly as possible.

Question. What are the conditions for that?

Peter Sauber: We are witnessing a new start within the team, it’s an adaptation process, moving from the operation of a manufacturer team to that of an independent team. We have reduced our budget by 40% and our staff by 1/3. It’s a huge reduction. However, this significant cut also affects other teams as it’s a restriction imposed by the FOTA. What we need to do now is to move away from the previous modus operandi and implement new methods to maximize efficiency. This applies not only to technical development but also to how we operate, for instance, how engineers work with our two new drivers. It’s something that takes time. James Key will thus have a wide variety of tasks to accomplish. As an organization, everything is in place for us to return to our core values.

Question. Willy Rampf will be very close to the track in Shanghai, while Malaysia was his last Grand Prix as technical director. What does that mean for you as the team director?

Peter Sauber: It’s the end of an era. Willy spent 14 years with the team, including ten as technical director. He helped shape the company and played a big part in the team’s successes over the years. Willy has done a great deal for our team and I am very grateful to him.

Question: How did Willy Rampf join the team?

Peter Sauber: I met Willy in 1993 through Leo Ress, our technical director at the time. He invited Willy to our very first Grand Prix in Kyalami. At that time, Willy was working in South Africa as an engineer for BMW. A few months later he applied, and I took him on as a race engineer with Heinz-Harald Frentzen.

Question. What happened next?

Peter Sauber: «In 1998, Willy returned to BMW in Munich to lead other projects for the company, notably in motorbikes for the Paris-Dakar. Once again, he quickly achieved success. In 2000, he came back to us, and I appointed him Technical Director shortly after. This decision proved to be fortuitous. In his first full year in 2001, we finished fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, which was a very good result for us. Willy continued to demonstrate his technical capabilities throughout the BMW Sauber F1 Team years, during which we celebrated victory with a double in Canada. It is true that Willy, being a smart man, had already indicated that he wanted to consider his career differently. He had promised to stay until we found someone to take over. With the arrival of James Key, that person is now in place. »

The wise Peter Sauber knows that by appointing Key he is playing the youth card with a technical director who has just turned 38. He wants to instill a new dynamic by returning to a true independent team identity.