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Audi F1 Rethinks Team Boss Role After Wheatley Exit

Audi signals a move toward supporting Mattia Binotto rather than naming a traditional team principal.

Overview

  • Audi confirmed Jonathan Wheatley quit as team boss with immediate effect on March 20, leaving project lead Mattia Binotto to cover the role on an interim basis.
  • Binotto has hinted the team may skip a classic team principal appointment and instead add senior support around his position, even as he said a new leader would be unveiled “very soon.”
  • Formula 1 reporter Will Buxton floated Allan McNish—who runs Audi’s junior program and previously led its Formula E team—as a ready-made option.
  • Wheatley has been linked in reports to Aston Martin, while owner Lawrence Stroll publicly rejected talk that Adrian Newey will scale back his current duties.
  • The team boss directs sporting strategy and race operations, so a prolonged vacancy could slow Audi’s trackside calls as the new structure beds in.