Sauber's 2015 F1 Driver Line-Up Brings a Combination of Talent and Sponsorship

The Sauber Formula One team has faced financial difficulties in recent years. Along with fellow independent teams like Force India and Lotus, the Swiss outfit has struggled with rising costs while continuing to receive a small piece of the F1 financial pie.

For 2015, though, it appears their money troubles may be taken care of. Roger Benoit, of the Swiss newspaper Blick, is reporting that the team's all-new driver line-up will provide $50 million in funding this season—approximately half their 2014 budget.

Coming off the worst season in the team's 22-year history—their first without scoring a point—Sauber are in need of a rebound.

Yes, the team has taken on pay drivers, but this is not some Alex Yoong scheme, where a driver with more money than talent buys his way into F1. Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr both have the racing credentials to back up their claims to increasingly scarce F1 race seats. 

Ericsson spent last season with Caterham, where he was particularly impressive near the end of the season, despite the team's struggles to stay solvent. Nasr, meanwhile, finished third in a hard-fought GP2 championship behind Jolyon Palmer and McLaren's Stoffel Vandoorne.

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At the U.S. Grand Prix last November, team principal Monisha Kaltenborn told Crash.net's Chris Medland that money was a consideration in the signing of Ericsson but that other drivers offered similar sponsorship cash.

In other words, the team chose the drivers they thought were the best.

Ericsson and Nasr will replace the largely uninspiring duo of Adrian Sutil (zero podiums, four top-five finishes in 128 career races) and Esteban Gutierrez (one top-10 finish in 38 grands prix). Sauber also had Giedo van der Garde, Sergey Sirotkin and Simona de Silvestro in their garage at various points last year.

Ericsson and Nasr jumped the queue.

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While the two race drivers bring cash from their own sponsors, new reserve driver Raffaele Marciello—a Ferrari protege—comes with a discount for Sauber on their Ferrari engines for 2015.

F1 journalist Joe Saward reported on his blog that Ferrari originally intended to place Jules Bianchi at Sauber next season, but he was severely injured in a crash at the Japanese Grand Prix. Therefore, Marciello got the call.

If the new money does indeed put Sauber's financial worries behind them, at least for now, the Swiss team can put their focus on climbing back up the grid.

In 2012, with Kamui Kobayashi and Sergio Perez at the wheel, they scored 126 points and four podiums. With Nico Hulkenberg and Gutierrez in 2013, the total dropped to 57, with a best finish of fourth. And then there was the disaster of 2014.

The Ferrari engine was underpowered compared to Mercedes' unit. This allowed Merc customers Williams and Force India, who battled with Sauber in previous years, to sprint ahead.

But the engine was only part of the Swiss team's problems. Last July, Gutierrez told Autosport's Ben Anderson, "We don't have enough downforce on the car."

With an influx of cash and a refreshed driver line-up, Sauber should be able to recover in 2015. The recently uncovered engine development loophole will also help Ferrari close the gap to Mercedes on the power unit side.

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While a return to the podium this year is highly unlikely, a few points here and there are not. Unfortunately, with the apparent demise of Marussia and Caterham, even semi-regular finishes in the points could leave Sauber last in the constructors' standings.

Still, there is cause for hope in Hinwil.

The fact that a race seat for Sirotkin never materialized probably means his Russian money never did either. And the team also parted ways with De Silvestro, "due to financial reasons on her side," as a Sauber spokesman told ESPN F1.

Now, the team has two race drivers with lots of money and great potential. It may be a couple years before Sauber can hope for a return to the podium, but at least they should be able to spend that time worrying more about improving the car than about the team surviving.

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