“Red Bull is falling apart”: Fans react as Jonathan Wheatley announced in major role at Sauber

Fans have raised questions over Red Bull's future after the Sauber team revealed the starting date of their new team principal Jonathan Wheatley. The Brit previously served as the Sporting Director at the Austrian team until 2024.

It was announced that Jonathan Wheatley will be leaving Red Bull and joining the Sauber F1 team as their team boss in August 2024. But the team had not announced the official date of his arrival. Now they have finally announced that the 57-year-old will be starting in his new role from April 1.

F1 fans on social media have reacted to this news. Many of them are of the view that the Red Bull team is breaking down as yet another member of the management team has left.

The Kick Sauber team have just announced Wheatley's starting date, which will be after the conclusion of his gardening leave with Red Bull. But many fans have seemingly mistaken the press release as an announcement of the Brit leaving his current team to join the Swiss team.

F1 posted the update on thier X account, and it garnered a variety of reactions from F1 fans.

"BREAKING: Former Red Bull Sporting Director Jonathan Wheatley will begin as Kick Sauber Team Principal from April 1," posted F1.

"woah - redbull is falling apart", wrote a fan, seemingly presuming that it's a new announcement.

"Red bull in the mud rn", wrote another fan.

"Soon, We gonne hear Max Verstappen departing from RedBull at this rate. Newey and now Wheatley,who's next?" said yet another user.

Some other fans also mentioned how this was a progressive move for Sauber, and that they are beginning their transformation into Audi already.

"Exciting move for Sauber, Wheatley's expertise welcomed," said another fan.

"Oh man, stacking the team in preparation for the Audi takeover 😎," wrote another user.

"Big move for the Sauber team! Excited to see what Wheatley brings to the table. Could be the start of a new era for them!" said yet another fan.

The Sauber team is all set to transition into Audi in the 2026 season as the German giants have bought a 100% stake in the Swiss company. They will also be building their own power units amid the new engine regulations that come into effect at the start of the next season.

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Former Red Bull man Jonathan Wheatley will work alongside Mattia Binotto at Sauber

Mattia Binotto with Kick Sauber at the Formula 1 Testing in Bahrain - Day 3 - Source: Getty

Sauber's press release announcing former Red Bull man Jonathan Wheatley's starting date has also revealed that he will work alongside Sauber Chief Operating Officer and Chief Technical Officer Mattia Binotto. The Italian also joined the team in 2024 in preparation for the Audi takeover.

Sauber’s press release has shared that Binotto and Wheatley will be equally responsible for the team's results and that they have put in place a structure wherein both have defined roles and responsibilities.

"Together with Chief Operating Officer and Chief Technical Officer, Mattia Binotto, Jonathan Wheatley will jointly lead the management team at Sauber Motorsport AG," the release stated [via Sauber Group].

"Binotto and Wheatley are together jointly responsible for the success of the racing team, under a structure that empowers both leaders with clearly defined roles and deliverables," the statement further read.

The Sauber press release also explained that both Wheatley and Binotto will directly report to Gernot Dollner, who is the Chairman of the Board of Directors at Sauber Motorsports.

Wheatley was the second major team member to leave Red Bull during the 2024 season, as legendary designer Adrian Newey also left his role as the Technical Director to join Aston Martin. The Austrian team's former head of race strategy, Will Courtenay, was also announced to be joining McLaren in 2025 and will begin his duties after his gardening leave with his former employer ends.