Sauber capable of further step in 2019 - Resta

New Sauber technical director Simone Resta believes his team is well positioned to make another major step forward in 2019.

Sauber scored just five points last season and was cut adrift from the rest of the field following the collapse of Manor, but this year has delivered a significant improvement and the team regularly reaches Q3. Having scored points in seven of the 11 races so far this year – including four of the last six before the summer break – Sauber is a regular in the midfield, and Resta says the team has a good baseline from which to improve even further.

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“I believe the team has shown a very strong recovery and improvement this year, so it shows that the foundations are there and the competition is there,” Resta said. “The team is growing in terms of size and the technical grounding is good, there are good facilities as an independent team with a good technical background. I think there are all the ingredients to have a step forward. My biggest focus is 2019, but it needs to be a gradual journey so I can understand where we start from."

Having watched Sauber's progress since the start of this season, Resta says the 2018 car was a good starting point for him to build upon for next year’s design despite changes to the aerodynamic regulations.

“Without doubt next year there is going to be a big change in terms of aero regulations, so some of the content cannot be translated from one car to the other," he said. "The main parts of the car and the main technical regulations in terms of the vehicle itself are going to be the same, so I am sure we can translate most of the content from one car to the other. But we need to improve, and there is a lot to do and a lot to be found.”