F1: Tech chief Zander returns to Sauber from Audi

The Sauber Formula 1 team is set to announce Audi technical director Jorg Zander will join the team next year.

Zander, who will leave his role as Audi's technical chief in the wake of the manufacturer's withdrawal from the World Endurance Championship at the end of the season, will fill the role that has been vacant since Mark Smith departed on the eve of the 2016 campaign.

The 52-year-old has extensive F1 experience, having worked with Toyota, BAR-Honda, Williams, Honda and Brawn GP. He also spent a year with BMW Sauber at its Hinwil, Switzerland base as its chief designer, reporting to then technical director Willy Rampf.

Zander left F1 in 2009 to set up an automotive engineering company and came close to making a return with HRT in 2011 before a deal fell through. He joined Audi Sport in 2015 as its technical director but will now move back to Hinwil to perform the same role for Sauber.

It is the latest in a series of appointments Sauber has made since new owners acquired the Swiss outfit in the summer. Ex-Ferrari and Haas strategist Ruth Buscombe joined as a race strategist in September, just days after Nicolas Hennel de Beaupreau was named as new head of aerodynamics. That came after Max Verstappen's ex-engineer Xevi Pujolar was appointed as head of track engineering.

Originally on Autosport.com