Audi understood Vasseur's departure: 'Ferrari can't refuse you'

Frederic Vasseur has been the team boss of Ferrari for several weeks now. A challenging job at one of the biggest brands in motorsport. It didn't matter much if he had worked for an another top brand: Audi.

Until the end of last year, Vasseur was employed by Sauber, which currently competes in Formula 1 under the name Alfa Romeo F1. From 2026, Sauber will be called Audi, after the German brand that has (now partially) bought the Swiss. For a long time, it looked like Vasseur would lead the transition to Audi, but after Mattia Binotto's departure from Ferrari, everything changed. The Italians brought in the Frenchman as Binotto's replacement.

No talks reported

The talks between Ferrari and Vasseur took place at a interesting moment, as Audi was in talks with Sauber to take over the team. That Vasseur was about to leave for the rival was something he did not tell anyone, he confessed to Motorsport. "I did my own thinking and I only held the talks with John Elkann. I didn't discuss anything with Audi before the announcement either."

While the deal between Sauber and Audi was being finalised, Ferrari announced that Vasseur would become the iconic brand's new team principal. Only from then on did Audi know for sure that Vasseur would leave, although the Germans probably also read the rumours in the media. Audi did not subsequently try to change the Frenchman's mind: "I ended up talking to someone from Audi, but he said you couldn't refuse an offer from Ferrari."