Jonathan Wheatley: New Audi F1 team principal served long Red Bull apprenticeship

F1

He was the calm conductor of Red Bull's precise F1 teamwork. Now Jonathan Wheatley has been announced as the new team principal of Audi's grand prix team. Here's everything you need to know about the former mechanic turned boss

Red Bull Jonathan Wheatley

Jonathan Wheatley: Red Bull's next team principal?

Red Bull

Long-seen as Red Bull’s next boss, Jonathan Wheatley is joining Audi’s Formula 1 project, to be team principal of the revamped Sauber operation.

Until the beginning of August, Wheatley was sporting director of Red Bull, and had been with the team for 18 years, from its early days, playing a part in every one of its championship victories in 2010.

He will now work underneath Mattia Binotto at Audi, which is buying the Sauber team and rebranding it from the 2026 F1 season. From what we have seen in his previous role, Wheatley is likely to demonstrate a cool, calm composure from the pitwall, as exemplified in one of the most tense moments he handled at Red Bull.

Just over 20 minutes before lights out at the 2020 Hungarian Grand Prix, the team suffered the unthinkable. On his way to the grid, Max Verstappen locked up in wet conditions and crashed into a barrier — losing his front wing and braking his front left suspension in the process. But while others swore and shouted over the radio — assuming their race was run before it had even began — one voice remained tranquil.

“OK, we have a car in the wall in Turn 12,” said Red Bull sporting director Jonathan Wheatley, already in the midst of formulating a plan to keep Verstappen racing. “He’s got plenty of time to reverse out. I think we get him to the grid.”

As the car hobbled back toward the starting line, more expressions of concern came over the radio, as mechanics got their eyes on the extensive damage for the first time. But Wheatley remained unfazed by the unfolding catastrophe — even using the phrase “Okey-dokey” on multiple occasions.

Max Verstappen's damaged car is pushed to the grid ahead of the 2020 Hungarian Grand Prix

A crisis averted: Verstappen’s off on the formation lap in Hungary was negated by superb teamwork by Red Bull

DPPI

While following all FIA guidelines and without incurring a single penalty, he choreographed his team of mechanics perfectly to reassemble the entire front left suspension arm, replace the front wing and change all four tyres while also keeping everyone informed of the depleting deadline. With 78sec remaining before the car would have had to have been taken off the grid, Verstappen’s Red Bull was back in once piece and ready to take the start. 70 laps later, he repaid his team’s efforts with a podium finish.

It was a mechanical miracle and Wheatley is remembered fondly as its conductor. It was no wonder that the Briton’s calm demeanour and 30+ years of F1 experience saw him emerge as the most likely candidate to succeed Christian Horner until his move to Audi.

 

Jonathan Wheatley’s early F1 career — Benetton 

Wheatley began his F1 career as a mechanic for Benetton in 1991, initially working on the front end of Roberto Moreno‘s car before a young Michael Schumacher joined the team mid-season.

“It was a fantastic era,” said Wheatley speaking on The Jack Threlfall Show. “Michael was only a year younger than me at that point but if was definitely more ‘work hard, play hard’ back in those days. There was a lot of partying and it was just a very different world. There were 20 of us that travelled to a race, and that included the drivers, marketing, catering, everyone.”

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Despite the outfit’s success — as Benetton finished inside the top four over the next seven seasons; won back-to-back drivers’ titles with Schumacher in ‘94 and ‘95; and claimed a constructors’s title in the latter year — the atmosphere within the team wasn’t always pleasant.

“There was a lot of competition between the cars in the garage and that was almost encouraged,” added Wheatley. “But I found myself in a sport which I absolutely loved and so progressed from there.”

In 1998, a now 31-year-old Wheatley was promoted to chief mechanic but oversaw what would become a stint of gradual underperformance as the team failed to adapt to new regulations and lost pace as a result.

Benetton 1998

Crashes and failures plagued Wheatley’s final years at Benetton

Grand Prix Photo

 

Renault 

In 2000, Benetton was acquired by Renault which had decided to rejoin F1 as a constructor for the first time since 1986. Wheatley retained his position within the team as chief mechanic.

The historic French brand had been a significant engine supplier since its exit from the series — powering the likes of Lotus, Williams and Benetton to race victories and F1 world titles — but after two years of development, it lined up on the grid as a works team in 2002 with Jenson Button and Jarno Trulli in the cockpits.

In its first season, the team finished fourth in the constructors’ standings and success only grew from there. Led by a young Fernando Alonso — who had been the team’s reserve driver — Renault would ultimately become the outfit to break Ferrari’s seemingly endless streak of dominance with back-to-back world championships in 2005 and 2006.

Wheatley was only there for the first title success, as he was lured from Enstone to Milton Keynes by a 31-year-old Christian Horner ahead of the 2006 season, which would see the debut of Red Bull racing: an F1 outfit built on the ashes of Jaguar F1, which was quickly being filled with experience and potential.

“It was a difficult decision,” Wheatley told redbullracing.com. “Red Bull offered me a wonderful opportunity to build a race team I would want to work in.”

“It took a while” he adds, looking back on his success with the team so far. “Because it takes time to create an environment in which people can thrive – but I’m very proud of what we’ve achieved.”

Red Bull 2024 Jonathan Wheatley Christian Horner

Together since the start (almost) — could Wheatley replace Horner as Red Bull team principal?

Red Bull

 

Red Bull Racing

Wheatley joined Red Bull Racing in its infancy as a team manager alongside other key signings such as Adrian Newey, Rob Marshall, Peter Prodromou, Paul Monaghan and Mark Ellis — all of whom would contribute so the team’s evolving success.

Aside from the odd point-scoring finish and podium appearance, Red Bull’s first sign of championship contention came in 2009, when Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber drove the team to second in the championship while securing a combined six grand prix victories. But the following year remains one of Wheatley’s most memorable throughout his time in Formula 1.

“I’ve been fortunate to be involved with winning championships as a mechanic [at Benetton], as a chief mechanic [at Renault] and now as a team manager [at Red Bull]. Of all of those I think I’d have to choose the first championship here at Red Bull as the one which really stands above the others.

“We won it in typical Red Bull style with everything going on: cars crashing, engine failures and everything else. We seemed to do it the hard way – but the resilience of the team stood out. That made me proud. There was so much to soak up, so much excitement and commotion. It really was an extraordinary achievement for the team.”

Sebastian Vettel Jonathan Wheatley

Wheatley celebrates with Vettel in 2009 ahead of world titles to come

Getty Images

Vettel would scoop up a further three consecutive drivers’ titles in the years that immediately followed Milton Keynes’ first F1 championship before Wheatley’s side was eventually dethroned by the dominance of Mercedes who won every championship from 2014-2020.

Nevertheless, Red Bull remained resilient and Wheatley remained a positive force throughout the team’s losing years — earning him a promotion to sporting director in 2018, a post he has retained until August 2024.

I think through every single scenario...and I try to come up with an idea

He has gained a reputation for his meticulous obsession with the FIA rules and regulations — a fixation which has paid off more than once before. Not only did it help Verstappen recover to race at Hungary in 2020, but he also played a part in convincing Michael Masi to controversially let the lapped cars — which separated Verstappen and title rival Lewis Hamilton — pass the leaders on the final lap of the 2021 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Masi heeded Wheatley’s radio message, which was broadcast worldwide in the race coverage and Verstappen ultimately won the race, as well as the first of three world F1 championships to come.

Wheatley is also widely regarded as the man responsible for Red Bull’s incredible pitstop speed, as his organisation and leadership skills have allowed the Milton Keynes pitcrew to become the benchmark for other F1 teams. The team won the inaugural DHL Fastest Pit Stop Award in 2018 and later set a world record for the fastest pitstop ever recorded — with Verstappen’s Red Bull stationary for just 1.82sec at the 2018 Brazilian Grand Prix. This was a bar only just recently surpassed by McLaren in 2023, which serviced Lando Norris’ car in 1.8sec.

“I’ve been doing this job for a long time,” said Wheatley on the Red Bull podcast. “The way I do my job is insane in a lot of ways because I think through every single scenario that I think could happen and I look at the rules and I look at how the team might react and I try to come up with an idea.

“I look like I’m completely in control in the time. But I’ve put hours of thought into it and if I’ve done my job well, I think I’m very well prepared going into that event.”

 

Audi

Wheatley’s attention to detail and preparation will be crucial in his new role at Audi, which is buying the Sauber team and will take full control from the 2026 season, when it will be known as the Audi Formula 1 team, running an Audi engine.

The full factory outfit will have ambitions to fight for race wins and championships but, with 18 months until its car is due to run for the first time, several paddock insiders have raised doubts over whether it will have everything in place to deliver a competitive package.

Those rumours gained credence when Andreas Seidl, Sauber’s former CEO left the team and was replaced by Binotto, followed a week later by Wheatley in the role of team principal.


Jonathan Wheatley F1 career

Year Team Role
1991 – 1998 Benetton Mechanic
1998 – 2000 Benetton Chief mechanic
2000 – 2006 Renault Chief mechanic
2006 – 2017 Red Bull Racing Team manager
2018 – 2024 Red Bull Racing Sporting director
tbc Sauber/Audi Team principal