Audi F1 Team has officially revealed its challenger for the 2026 Formula 1 season, the R26. Earlier today, Audi F1 Team became the fourth Formula 1 team on the grid to unveil its 2026 livery during a global livestream from Berlin.
The start of a new era
The 2026 Formula 1 season marks the German automotive brand’s debut in Formula 1 after inheriting the team from Sauber. To mark the new era for Audi, the livery presentation was broadcast via a livestream on the team’s website.
The newly revealed R26 features a primarily titanium chassis with Audi red and carbon black details, mirroring the concepts released by the team earlier this month. The car is a joint project created by their powertrain division in Neuburg, Germany, alongside the chassis team in Hinwil, Switzerland, and the new Technical Centre in Bicester, UK. The team will be looking forward to showcasing the car’s full potential at the 2026 Formula 1 season opener in Melbourne.
Audi F1 Team will be led by Jonathan Wheatley as Team Principal, as well as Mattia Binotto, Head of Audi F1 Project.
Setting the momentum for 2026
The 2025 season marked the team’s final season under its former identity, Sauber. The team completed the season ninth in the Constructors’ Championship. Before the 2025 Formula 1 season, the team underwent a fundamental reconfiguration of its technical department and senior management structure, ahead of Audi’s full integration in 2026. This move included a completely new driver lineup featuring Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto.
The 2025 Formula 1 season showed progress in the right direction for Audi, as evident from the team’s decent point-scoring momentum that continued to build throughout the season. Despite finishing ninth in the Teams’ standings with a total of 70 points earned, Audi definitely had a stronger season than in 2024. The team scored 66 points more in 2025 than it did in the previous season.
A key highlight of Sauber’s 2025 Formula 1 season is Hulkenberg’s podium finish at Silverstone for the 2025 Formula 1 British GP weekend. The 37-year-old had an impressive race, fighting through the grid from 19th on the grid and finishing the race third. This was a significant moment not only for Hulkenberg, who clinched his maiden podium after 239 race starts, but it also marked Sauber’s first podium since the 2012 Formula 1 season.
Bortoleto also achieved his maiden points in Formula 1 in the second half of the season in Austria. The Brazilian driver scored his first points in his rookie season by clinching a finish in eighth ahead of teammate Hulkenberg.
Bortoleto will be entering his sophomore campaign with a season of experience under his belt, driving alongside Hulkenberg, who will be looking to continue the success from the 2025 season. Will Audi be able to continue the building momentum from 2025 and perform under the new label with the new regulations in 2026?
