Kaltenborn becomes Sauber team principal 11 Oct 2012
Sauber’s team principal Peter Sauber announced some time ago that he did not wish to be on the pit wall when he turned 70. The company founder is proving true to his word: in two days’ time - on October 13 - he will turn 69 and is now stepping back from the day-to-day running of the team.
Monisha Kaltenborn, 41, the team’s CEO and responsible for business operations at Hinwil since early 2010, will now additionally take over the role of team principal at trackside with immediate effect.
Peter Sauber will continue in his capacity as President of the board of directors of all Sauber Group companies and remain responsible for the group’s strategic direction.
“We decided a long time ago that Monisha would take over from me,” explains Sauber, “but we left the timing open. Now is a good time for both of us, so this is the right moment to pass on the baton. After all, there have been a number of races I’ve been unable to attend - most recently the Japanese Grand Prix, where the team put in an excellent performance. I’m in no doubt that Monisha has all the necessary skills to be an outstanding team principal, and I’m equally certain she will ensure that the values underpinning the company live on. That is very important to me.”
Kaltenborn, an Austrian of Indian origin, joined the company in 2000 to run the legal department, was appointed a member of the board of management not long afterwards, and took over as CEO in January 2010. In late 2011 Peter Sauber transferred a third of the company’s shares into her name.
“Naturally I’m very aware of the major responsibility I have for Peter Sauber’s racing team,” says Kaltenborn. “He founded the team over 40 years ago, and in the spring it will be 20 years since Sauber lined up for its debut Formula One grand prix. We are the fourth-oldest team in Formula One. To build up a project like this and keep it alive in a difficult environment is a tremendous achievement. I have set my sights high and am committed to taking the team forward as Peter Sauber would want and leading it on to success.”
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