Nico Hulkenberg's podium will boost belief in Sauber, says Jonathan Wheatley
Sauber's Nico Hulkenberg celebrates with a trophy on the podium after finishing third place in the British Grand Prix.
LONDON – Nico Hulkenberg's breakthrough podium for Swiss-based Sauber at the British Grand Prix will boost belief in the future Audi works team, according to principal Jonathan Wheatley.
Hulkenberg, 37, finished third at Silverstone for the German's first podium finish in 239 starts – an achievement many thought would never happen for a driver who made his Formula One debut 15 years ago.
He also started last on the grid in Sunday's chaotic and rain-affected race, another element that made his success even more surreal.
"Really for me, what I've taken from today is people start believing in us," Wheatley told a much bigger crowd of reporters than usual outside the Sauber paddock hospitality on Sunday evening.
"I can say the words, I can say we're gaining momentum, I can say we're putting performance on the car, I can say (overall boss) Mattia (Binotto) and all the hard work he's been putting in before I came here is coming to light.
"But it's true. We've got a very long journey towards where we need to be as a team and it's a great step when you're starting on that journey."
Sauber were last overall with just four points last season after finishing ninth out of 10 the year before, but new management has arrested a downward spiral and turned fortunes around.
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Former Ferrari boss Binotto has overall charge of the project, with Wheatley joining from Red Bull to run the team at the racetrack and prepare for the transformation into Audi next season.
Sauber also have an all-new lineup this year of Hulkenberg and Brazilian rookie Gabriel Bortoleto, last year's Formula Two champion.
Already this season Hulkenberg has finished fifth in Spain to lift Sauber off the bottom of the standings and he has scored in his last four races, with the team now only 18 points behind fifth-placed Williams.
His points tally of 37 in 12 races is already far more than the team scored in the last two seasons combined.
Asked whether Sauber were further ahead than expected in their plan for the future, Wheatley refused to tempt fate.
"You can think of the plan as a straight line and there's some hairpins on the way and there's some stoplights and traffic works," he said.
"It's a great day for the team. Everyone's working so hard here. It was a mature race performance."
Hulkenberg finished behind the McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri.
The British team, meanwhile, are expecting Piastri to turn British Grand Prix hurt to his advantage as the Formula One title battle with Norris gets increasingly intense and rivals are left trailing.
The pair are now only eight points apart at the top, with Piastri still leading the standings at the halfway point in the season.
'Oscar is a very fast, very strong, very determined driver,' said team boss Andrea Stella.
'He proved that today, it didn't lead to a win but I'm sure it will lead to many more wins this season.' REUTERS
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