Team principal Jonathan Wheatley leaves Audi Revolut F1 two races into 2026 season

[p][b]"Due to personal reasons, Jonathan Wheatley will depart Audi with immediate effect," [/b]the team said in a statement released on Friday.[/p][p][b]"The team thanks Jonathan for his contribution to the project and wishes him the best for his future endeavours. Mattia ​Binotto, head of ‌Audi F1 Project, will continue leading the team while taking ‌over additional responsibilities ​as team ‌principal."[/b][/p][embed guid="0539ddd1-ca04-4df6-bde0-9dcbd2852860" url="https://x.com/F1/status/2035007914906137044?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]Wheatley previously served as Red Bull's sporting director between 2006 and 2024 before joining Sauber, now Audi, as team principal.[/p][p]Rumours of the 58-year-old Englishman joining rivals Aston Martin as the successor to Adrian Newey, who's reportedly looking to return into a more technical role, intensified after the Chinese Grand Prix, which saw Audi finish 11th with Nico Hülkenberg. Brazilian driver Gabriel Bortoleto never started the race due to an issue that kept Hülkenberg from starting in Australia.[/p]