Formula 1: Sauber renamed Alfa Romeo Racing ahead of 2019 season

Sauber, which competed as Alfa Romeo Sauber in the 2018 Formula 1 season, have been renamed Alfa Romeo Racing ahead of the 2019 season.

The name Sauber has been on the Formula 1 grid since the 1993 season. This was the case even from the 2006 season through the 2009 season after BMW bought the team and ran it as a works team during this four-year span.

However, this is set to change in the 2019 season.

After Alfa Romeo returned to Formula 1 as Sauber’s title sponsor for the 2018 season and the team competed as Alfa Romeo Sauber in what was the Italian luxury car manufacturer’s first season with major involvement in the sport since the 1985 season, the team are set to compete as Alfa Romeo Racing in the 2019 season.

This move effectively revives the Alfa Romeo works entry that won the Formula 1 championships in the 1950 season and the 1951 season, the first two seasons of the sport’s existence. Giuseppe Farina won the 1950 driver championship driving for Alfa Romeo before Juan Manuel Fangio won the 1951 driver championship driving for the team.

The team withdrew from Formula 1 following the 1951 season, as they were unable to fund a car for the 1952 season.

That said, Sauber’s ownership and management have not changed and are still independent of Alfa Romeo, so this is not a downright works operation.

Here is what Alfa Romeo Racing team principal Frederic Vasseur had to say about the name Sauber no longer being associated with the team, according to Motorsport.com.

"“It is a pleasure to announce that we will enter the 2019 Formula 1 World Championship with the team name ‘Alfa Romeo Racing’. After initiating the collaboration with our title sponsor Alfa Romeo in 2018, our team made fantastic progress on the technical, commercial, and sporting side.“This has given a boost of motivation to each team member, be that track-side or at the headquarter in Switzerland, as the hard work invested has become reflected in our results. We aim to continue developing every sector of our team while allowing our passion for racing, technology and design to drive us forward”.“We’re proud to collaborate with Sauber in bringing Alfa Romeo’s tradition of technical excellence and Italian panache to the pinnacle of motorsport. Make no mistake: with Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi on one side of the pit wall and Alfa Romeo and Sauber expertise on the other, we are here to compete.”"

Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovinazzi are set to drive for Alfa Romeo Racing in the 2019 season after Charles Leclerc and Marcus Ericsson drove for Alfa Romeo Sauber in the 2018 season. The team finished in eight place in the 2018 constructor standings, which was their highest finish in the standings since they finished in seventh in the 2013 season.