Sauber hopes that strong cars will prevent drivers defecting
24 October, 2012
Oct.24 (GMM) Team principal Monisha Kaltenborn thinks that if Sauber can provide its drivers with a good car every season, the Swiss team can prevent them from jumping ship to bigger teams.
After just two years, the Hinwil based team has lost its impressive youngster Sergio Perez to McLaren, and is now expected to promote another Telmex-promoted young Mexican – Esteban Gutierrez – into the race cockpit for 2013.
“We wanted Sergio to stay, but it was not possible,” Kaltenborn is quoted by Brazil’s Totalrace.
“However, if we can [always] have a competitive car like this season, we can prevent this situation from happening again in the future,” she added.
Gutierrez’s teammate in 2013 is expected to be German Nico Hulkenberg, who is moving from Force India to Sauber, but has also been speculatively linked earlier this year with a switch to Ferrari.
“We have a great history of bringing young talent into the sport and giving them all the support they need to develop, learn as quickly as possible and move forward,” Kaltenborn continued.
Sauber is currently sixth in the 2012 constructors’ championship, just behind the much better funded Mercedes F1 team and ahead of Force India, themselves engine customers of the Stuttgart motor giant.
“I think what we did this year is very important for the team’s strategy for the coming years,” Kaltenborn insisted.
Subbed by AJN.
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- FIA expected to tweak rules to prevent ugly 2013 F1 cars
- Sauber: Our drivers showed fighting spirit
- Sauber blames drivers for slow pitstops
