Audi’s Mattia Binotto Says Freddie Slater Could Reach an F1 Seat ‘Even Earlier’ Than Planned

• Audi CEO Mattia Binotto says the team wants Freddie Slater in a Formula 1 seat in the near future, and possibly sooner than originally planned.
• Slater finished runner-up to Ugo Ugochukwu in this year’s F3 championship and will graduate to F2 with Invicta Racing in 2027.
• Slater’s path to a race seat depends on his own progress and on how current Audi drivers Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg perform next season.

A Junior Programme With a Clear Target

Audi have made little secret of where they see Freddie Slater’s career heading. CEO Mattia Binotto used the Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend to restate the team’s plans for the 18-year-old, saying he wants Slater in a Formula 1 seat before long, and possibly ahead of the original schedule.

Slater signed with Audi’s Driver Development Programme earlier this year and has repaid that investment with a strong campaign in F3, finishing runner-up to Ugo Ugochukwu. He is set to graduate into F2 next season with Invicta Racing, working closely along the way with Audi Racing Director Allan McNish, whose former role at the team was running its junior academy.

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Binotto’s Timeline for Slater

Asked directly whether Slater would take on more Formula 1 duties in 2027, Binotto did not hesitate.

“Or maybe even earlier,” he said. “So, certainly Freddie is part of our driver development programme. High potential, he’s doing well. Just finished second in the championship.”

Binotto also addressed Slater’s late-season slip in the F3 standings, where a difficult weekend in Madrid cost him the points lead he had held for much of the year.

“He was leading the championship before the last weekend in Madrid. Now finishing second. I think we discussed that with him. It can be as well a great lesson learned. Sometimes it’s not that, and that will be forgotten very soon.”

“More important what he will deliver in the future. F1 duties yes, because that’s part of the development plan.”

Waiting on Free Practice Opportunities

Formula 1 rules require any team without a full-time rookie on its books to give up four FP1 sessions across the season so a young driver can gain experience behind the wheel of the current car. Audi have used that slot for Paul Aron this year, sharing the Estonian driver with Alpine, but have only fulfilled two of their four allocations so far. That leaves room for Slater to get his own outing in an Audi car before the season ends, even while his main commitment remains F3 and, from next year, F2.

McNish’s presence around the team gives Audi a direct line into how Slater is developing away from the track as well as on it. The Scot spent years assessing young talent as part of his previous role, and Binotto’s comments suggest that relationship has fed directly into how the team is planning Slater’s next steps.

A Seat That Depends on More Than One Driver

Binotto was careful to note that Slater’s path to a race seat does not rest on his progress alone. It also depends on how Audi’s two current drivers, Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg, perform next season. Bortoleto is regarded as the long-term future of the team given his age, while Hulkenberg turns 40 midway through next season.

“F1 seat in the future, that will depend on how strong [Slater] will continue developing. But when you’ve got a driver in your academy, somehow the plans are for him, sooner or later, to be in your F1 seat,” Binotto explained.

He also pointed to the technical growth Slater has shown across his F3 campaign as a reason for the team’s confidence.

“So again, happy with him, the way he has progressed. If you look at his F3 season since the start, where maybe he was abusing a bit too much on the tyres, he has become more balanced, managing better, getting experience and finishing very strong this season.”

The Next Step in an Established Pipeline

Slater’s progress follows a route Audi have used before, pairing F3 and F2 seasons with FP1 outings and close contact with senior staff rather than rushing a young driver into a race seat before he is ready. Binotto’s comments make clear the team regard Slater as a genuine long-term prospect, not simply a name filling a place on the development roster.

For now, his immediate focus stays on adapting to F2 with Invicta Racing next season. But between the FP1 sessions still owed to Audi this year and Binotto’s own words, the door to a race seat is being left open rather than shut, with the team’s timeline for getting him there looking shorter than it did only a few months ago.

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Written by

Jack Renn

Jack Renn is an editor at F1 Chronicle and a veteran motorsport journalist with 25 years of experience covering Formula 1 and international motorsport. A member of the Association Internationale de la Presse Sportive (AIPS), the global body representing accredited sports journalists, Jack has spent his career reporting from paddocks and press rooms across the F1 calendar. His work spans race analysis, technical insight, and in-depth features, giving readers authoritative coverage grounded in decades of firsthand experience at the highest level of the sport.

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