Alfa Romeo first came on board in 2018 as a sponsor of the Sauber team, before taking over the name of the Swiss team from 2019.
The move came as part of closer coordination with Alfa Romeo’s sister brand Ferrari, which took over engines, transmissions and other parts from Maranello, and was one of the first big decisions made by team boss Vasseur when he joined the team in 2017.
In addition to the close collaboration with Ferrari, Vasseur has described the increasing bond with the Alfa Romeo brand as essential for the development of the team.
“It’s crucial for us,” Vasseur said when asked by Motorsport.com after the Alfa deal.
“I don’t want to talk about the financial aspect, but it is definitely part of it, but rather the motivation that can be brought into the team to be able to afford recruiting for the development of the company.
“The fact that Alfa Romeo, the first world champion, is looking to renew their contract with us and develop the partnership further is a nice reward, but it’s not just a reward, it’s a next step for us.”
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The deal goes beyond a simple renaming as Sauber Motorsport was also involved in the development of the Alfa Romeo Giulia GTA and GTAm road cars for 2020.
“We are now working a lot together on the automotive side. We developed the GTA and GTAm 2020 in the factory, in the wind tunnel, ”explained Vasseur, whose team took a disappointing eighth place in the 2020 constructors’ championship.
“Even if it’s outside the Formula 1 world, I think it’s important to build a strong collaboration between the two companies, and it’s also the future of the collaboration that we need to push forward in this direction.
“I’m sure I know exactly [well] that we also have to improve performance on the track, that not only is it better to develop aerodynamics, but that we have to have a global approach and a global package.
“But the automotive side is part of the partnership and crucial if you want to further develop the partnership between the brand and the Formula 1 team.”
The post Continuation of Alfa Romeo’s ties “crucial” to the future of the F1 team first appeared on monter-une-startup.
