Monisha Kaltenborn has reportedly left Sauber with immediate effect

Monisha Kaltenborn is a historic figure in the paddock as she had been the CEO of Sauber since 2010, before becoming the first woman to be a F1 team principal in 2012.

But she had been working for the team since 2000, as the legal manager. Due to her privileged position, she even became a shareholder, owning 30% when Peter Sauber started to step back.

However, she sold her shares during the complete buyout of the team by the investment fund Longbow Finance but had been able to keep her position until now. Several internal sources have confirmed the information to various journalists, but the team has not officially announced the news yet as the communication service members were on their way to Baku.

The heart of the problem would be the lack of results, even though the team managed to gather four points at the Spanish Grand Prix, which pushed McLaren to the last position in the championship. Indeed, the new parts brought to Monaco did not seem to work even though they had already been delayed compared to the initial schedule.

But above all, strong tensions would have arisen over the management of the drivers. The new shareholders are very close to Marcus Ericsson and would have wanted to favor the Swedish driver over his teammate, Pascal Wehrlein. Such an imbalance was unacceptable to Monisha Kaltenborn, which would have led to the breakup between the two parties.

The first official reaction from the team did not focus much on the future of Monisha Kaltenborn but aimed to deny the possibility that the two drivers are not treated equitably. Thus, Pascal Picci, the chairman of the team’s board of directors, declared: “The owners and the board of directors of Sauber Motorsport AG want to firmly deny the rumors and numerous media articles circulated today that our drivers have not been and are not treated equitably. This is not only completely false but it would be contrary to our absolute and long-term commitment to fair competition. These rumors, attributed to anonymous ‘sources,’ do significant harm to both Marcus Ericsson and Pascal Wehrlein as well as the management team and all employees of the Sauber F1 Team.”

The fact that Monisha Kaltenborn’s name is not mentioned at all appears to support the idea that she is no longer part of the management team, since Pascal Picci had never spoken publicly before.

The question is who will replace Monisha Kaltenborn. While Dave Ryan (who held the position at Manor) could be an option, other possibilities might be explored. However, Giedo van der Garde did not hesitate to react when the first rumors started circulating on Twitter:

Always have wanted to add ‘Team Principal’ on my resume… #youguysstillgotmynumber

— Giedo van der Garde (@GvanderGarde) June 21, 2017

The Dutch driver has not forgotten the saga of Melbourne 2015 when he tried by all means to slip into the seat he considered to be his. In the end, Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr were indeed able to participate in the entire weekend and season.

With the participation of www.racingbusiness.fr