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Former Ferrari F1 team principal Mattia Binotto is taking on a senior role in Audi’s F1 programme, as part of a “control structure reorganisation” that comes with two major exits – including that of Andreas Seidl.

Binotto, whose two-decade tenure at Ferrari ended with four seasons as team principal, has been out of Formula 1 since leaving the Scuderia at the end of 2022, when he was replaced by Fred Vasseur.

It will now start at Hinwil – home of the Sauber team that will take over Audi’s identity and power unit in 2026 (and which Vasseur coincidentally ran before joining Ferrari) – as early as August 21.

Binotto will serve as chief operating officer and chief technology officer.

“Our goal is to bring the entire Formula 1 project up to Formula 1 speed with clear management structures, defined responsibilities, reduced interfaces and efficient decision-making processes,” said Audi CEO Gernot Döllner in justifying the move. “To achieve this, the team must be able to act independently and quickly.”

As part of the move, both Seidel and Oliver Hoffmann will now leave.

Seidl left McLaren to head up the Audi startup at the end of 2022, while Hoffmann stepped down from the Audi board earlier this year to instead take up the role of chairman of Sauber.

The departure of both now is a remarkable development coming just a year and a half before Sauber became Audi and the Audi power unit designed to the new regulations made its debut.

Seidl is known to have been a key factor in signing Nico Hulkenberg, Audi’s first driver signing, who will join Sauber next year on a multi-year deal.

But the programme has struggled to secure a partner for Hulkenberg. He was long expected to benefit from Carlos Sainz’s exclusion by Ferrari and his failure to secure a satisfactory offer from a front-runner, but Sainz has come under fire from the likes of Williams and Alpine, and the latter is now seen as well placed to secure his services – which could be a public vote of no confidence in the Audi project.

But such a decision would easily fit with Sauber’s on-track form so far. Its 2024 car, the green C44, was plagued by operational issues early in the season but has now established itself as arguably the weakest car in the championship, failing to score a single point on the board this season.