Wheatley's emotions after a top day: 'Thoughts go to Dietrich Mateschitz'

Gabriel Bortoleto's eighth place earned him the first points in his F1 career, and one spot behind him his teammate Nico Hulkenberg crossed the finish line - who had started last! If there was one team that had reason to be satisfied after the race in Spielberg, it was Sauber, the future Audi.

Jonathan Wheatley has a huge smile, as he sits down for the traditional chat with the international media in front of his team's hospitality. The former Red Bull Racing team manager also says he is happy that his team excelled in Austria.

"We've had wins here which I've got to share with him and he's such an extraordinary man, and to be here. The circuit's always been kind to us in terms of all the teams that I've worked with," the Brit tells GPblog among others.

Sauber's rise is admirable. The team played a minor role last season, but is increasingly establishing itself in the midfield by 2025. The Austrian Grand Prix has been the highlight so far. "It's easy to look back and pick the tiny little details out of it," Wheatley says.

While the team principal is proud of Bortoleto, he also praises Hulkenberg who managed to score points from the 20th starting position. "Look at him, look at the drive that he delivered today."

At Red Bull, Wheatley was the man behind the quick pit stops. Now at Sauber - coincidence or not - the pit stops are also super quick. However, Wheatley doesn't want to take the credit for it. "There's a difference between this year and last year. Yeah, and I'm sure you will see that before I arrived there was a journey."