Wolfgang Ullrich: Audi has always been engaged in motorsport that's relevant to our customers such as rallying and touring cars, which brought quattro, FSI and TFSI to our road cars. This is why in 1999 we decided against F1.
Audi motorsport boss Wolfgang Ullrich has said that the manufacturer is not interested in F1.
His latest comments seemingly contradict those made at the end of January, when he refused to rule out the possibility of the brand entering F1 in future despite its success in other formulae [see separate story -
click here].
Speaking in an interview earlier this month though with
Car Magazine he said F1's main issue is relevance – or the lack of it.
“There's a very good reason why we are not in F1,” he explained. “There's no relevance to the road.
“Audi has always been engaged in motorsport that's relevant to our customers such as rallying and touring cars, which brought quattro, FSI and TFSI to our road cars. This is why in 1999 we decided against F1. Instead we decided to take on the greatest race in the world. We went for Le Mans.”
“Our goal is track to road technology,” he added. “The best proof of technology is success in motorsport. Lightweight construction, downsized engines and greater economy – they are as relevant for the road as they are for the track.'
“At Le Mans, one of our cars will cover 325 miles more than an F1 car will cover in an entire season, our average speed including pits stops will be 20mph higher than an F1 car and we will use 42 per cent less fuel. You cannot argue with those figures,” Ullrich concluded.
