Whilst it might currently be the Formula 1 winter break, that doesn’t mean the sport stops delivering huge headlines day after day.
At least that’s how it currently feels, with the conclusion of the drivers’ silly season having been replaced by the team principals having their very own silly period, following a magnitude of changes.
Three of which came as a result of Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto’s resignation, after four years in the role.
Tuesday, 13 December 2022 will forever be remembered as a chaotic day, with Ferrari announcing Frederic Vasseur as their new boss having kicked it all off.
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Vasseur will be departing his role as Alfa Romeo team principal after six seasons with the team, in order to replace Binotto starting from the 9th of January.
Whilst a team principal replacement hasn’t been announced yet by the Hinwil-based side, they have announced that McLaren team principal Andreas Seidl will be leaving the Woking-based side to become the new CEO of the Sauber group.
This is a role that Vasseur held alongside his job as team principal at Alfa Romeo, with Seidl ruling himself out of the latter.
Seidl will only be taking the CEO role and not the team principal job, with the German set to start a search to find a replacement for Vasseur’s other role.
With that in mind, McLaren announced that their executive director of racing, Andrea Stella, would become their new team principal.
To add to all of this, Williams have announced that Jost Capito has left his role as team principal of the Grove-based outfit.
It has truly been a crazy day for F1; however, Seidl’s move in particular does seem to make a lot of sense.
Seidl previously worked for Sauber whilst they were known as BMW Sauber, meaning the Swiss company know how the German works.
As well as this, Seidl has experience with the Volkswagen group, who, of course, own both Porsche and Audi.
Seidl played a huge role in Porsche’s LMP1 stint in the World Endurance Championship, making him a favourite of the Volkswagen Group.
It means that Seidl is reuniting with two of his former employers, with Audi joining the championship in 2026 after striking a deal with Sauber.
CTO of Audi AG Oliver Hoffman actually congratulated Seidl’s switch back to Sauber and highlighted his “impressive” record in racing.
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“We welcome our future partner’s choice,” Hoffman said.
“Andreas Seidl has extensive experience in leadership roles across motorsport programs on both the manufacturer and Formula 1 team side.
“His track record in motorsport is impressive.”