Binotto believes Audi has fourth-best chassis — but eyes 2028 for the real power unit leap

A Strong Chassis Foundation, a Clear-Eyed Roadmap

Mattia Binotto is not one for vague ambition. In his first season leading Audi's works Formula 1 operation, the Italian engineer has mapped out a precise, step-by-step trajectory — one that acknowledges where the team currently stands and where it needs to reach. And on the chassis front at least, the early signs are genuinely encouraging.

"I'm very pleased by the chassis," Binotto said. "Even discussing that with drivers, not only GPS telemetry analysis. First, we got a good correlation with the wind tunnel and the simulator. That's in terms of platform from the engineering — that was the most important thing. But I think our car is pretty fast in the corners. We believe that maybe we're even the fourth team in terms of chassis, which as an ex-Sauber, it's an outstanding result."

Power Unit: The Gap That Defines the Present

Audi is expected to benefit from ADUO development concessions, the framework designed to help manufacturers closing a performance gap — a topic that has been at the centre of the 2026 technical picture. But Binotto is clear that the road to closing that deficit is long, not least because engine development timescales are fundamentally different from those on the aerodynamic side.

"The lead time of developing an engine is longer than the aerodynamics," he explained. "To improve our current one to be a better engine — or as good as the competitors' engines — we believe that cannot be possible by 2027, but to reach the right level by 2028."

The target, then, is not just raw power, but also drivability — the harmonious integration of power delivery and driver feel that the best units in the field currently deliver.

2030: When Audi Aims to Truly Compete

Beyond the immediate horizon, Binotto has set 2030 as the year Audi should genuinely be fighting at the front. It is a timeline that demands patience and systemic change — not unlike James Vowles' ambitious 2030 championship target at Williams, another team undertaking a wholesale transformation from the ground up.

For Audi, the transformation is as much cultural as it is technical. Binotto describes 2026 as a year defined not by points or qualifying positions, but by a mindset shift — moving from a team that was historically self-satisfied with participation, to one that leaves no stone unturned in the pursuit of performance.

"To become competitive means that every single person in the team understands what it means to compete and being Audi," he said. "Not anymore to be self-satisfied by participating, but no stones un-turned, moving forward, raising the bar and the challenge to become better each single race."

Attracting proven talent from elsewhere in the paddock forms a central pillar of that plan. The recruitment of Jonathan Wheatley — before his subsequent departure — was emblematic of the approach: a figure valued not only for his regulatory expertise but for the winning culture he helped build at Red Bull. Meanwhile, Audi has opened a facility in England to attract new personnel, while simultaneously expanding its Hinwil headquarters in Switzerland, the historic home of chassis and aerodynamics development. The power unit, by contrast, is developed in Germany.

The architecture of a title contender is being assembled, one component at a time.