(Motorsport-Total.com) – If there were still any doubts about Audi’s Formula 1 commitment, they have now been finally dispelled. Gernot Döllner, the CEO of the Four Rings, made the rather unusual decision to fly to Melbourne for the season opener – well aware that he would spend more time on the plane than on the ground in Australia.
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And it wasn’t even a trip in a private jet: Döllner used normal scheduled flights to make the journey.
This decision marked a U-turn from what he had hinted at just a few months earlier. Last November, during a press conference alongside Formula 1 boss Stefano Domenicali and the head of the Formula 1 project, Mattia Binotto, Döllner admitted that his schedule might prevent him from attending the first Audi race.
“I only have one concern – that my calendar won’t allow me to be in Australia on March 8,” he said at the time – only to fit the trip in at the last minute after all.
Döllner sees first Formula 1 points for Audi
Döllner actually had other important commitments during the week of the Formula 1 season opener, as he had to attend the Volkswagen Group’s supervisory board meeting on Friday. Nevertheless, he decided to make the long journey to Melbourne – perhaps also to demonstrate the brand’s determination for its new Formula 1 project.
This decision ultimately paid off. While only one of the Audis actually made the start – Nico Hülkenberg’s car broke down on the way to the grid – Gabriel Bortoleto not only finished the race for the new team but crossed the finish line in ninth place, securing two points for Audi on its debut.
“I think we focused on ourselves over the winter,” said team principal Jonathan Wheatley after the finish in Melbourne. “We wanted to come here and deliver a clean race weekend. We had encouraging test sessions and came here with a certain basic confidence in the car’s performance.”
“But if you had told me at the beginning of the week that I could trade everything for ninth place in the race, I would have taken it immediately. I think it was a very encouraging first race for the team, a historic moment: an Audi Formula 1 car scores points right in its very first race.”
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“All in all, we can say with our heads held high that this is a good start for our journey.”
Directly to Ingolstadt after marathon journey
For the brand that entered Formula 1 in what is arguably the greatest challenge for engine manufacturers of all time, the result could hardly have been better – especially against the backdrop of the problems Honda is currently struggling with, despite having years of experience and facilities developed specifically for Formula 1.
It would probably have been overly optimistic for Döllner to fly to Australia just to celebrate the team’s first points – and yet he made the trip, knowing that he would be back on a plane to Germany by Sunday evening.
According to reports, Döllner was completely exhausted from the trip upon arrival and had even lost his voice. Nevertheless, he traveled directly on to Ingolstadt to speak to the employees at the Audi plant about the importance of the Formula 1 program for the brand.
During the meeting, he also explained what had happened to Nico Hülkenberg’s car on the way to the grid and answered questions from the workforce about the team’s first race weekend.
The upcoming race weekend could prove to be just as important for Audi, as China is the manufacturer’s largest market.
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