Red Bull’s long-time sporting director Jonathan Wheatley will leave the world champions after this season to become Audi’s F1 team principal.
Wheatley, who has been involved with the team for the vast majority of their existence, will join Audi’s factory F1 team for the start of the 2026 season following a year of gardening leave with Red Bull in 2025.
Having started at the Milton Keynes-based team as a team manager, Wheatley has most recently worked as sporting director for Red Bull.
Christian Horner, team principal of Red Bull, thanked Wheatley for his efforts over his tenure with the team, having been involved with all of their championship titles.
“It has been a long and successful relationship with Jonathan over 18 years”, Horner said.
“Jonathan will remain in his position until the end of the 2024 season, as the team seek to defend both our world drivers’ and world constructors’ titles successfully. A period of gardening leave will follow in 2025.
“Everyone at Red Bull Racing and Red Bull Technology wish him all the best in his new role and would like to place our thanks to Jonathan. Red Bull Racing have tremendous strength and depth and this provides opportunity to elevate others within the team. We will announce a new team structure in the coming weeks.”
Wheatley is the latest major figure in Red Bull to leave the team in 2024 after chief designer Adrian Newey was also confirmed to be departing earlier this year.
Audi will evolve the current Sauber team into their factory F1 outfit when the German marque joins F1 as a power unit manufacturer as the overhauled 1.6L V6 turbo power unit regulations come into force in 2026. Audi announced last month that former Ferrari team principal Mattia Binotto will become the team’s chief operating and chief technical officer, with Sauber CEO Andreas Seidl departing the project.
Nico Hulkenberg has been confirmed as the first driver to race for Audi into 2026, joining Sauber at the end of this current season. His team mate for 2025 and beyond is yet to be announced.
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