I still remember it vividly – exactly one year ago, I walked through the paddock at the Austrian Grand Prix and made my way into the Sauber hospitality area. There I encountered Oliver Hoffmann, then head of Audi’s Formula 1 project – though he seemed far more preoccupied with former German national team footballer Maximilian Arnold and his entourage than with anything else.
Even back then, I found myself wondering: is that really the right focus and strategy for a young, essentially brand-new team? To use the glitz of the undeniably glamorous Formula 1 world to entertain celebrity guests – footballers from Audi-owned VfL Wolfsburg, in this case – instead of concentrating on racing?
