BMW Sauber boss now shares how the team let a future World Champion leave for nothing

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Former BMW Sauber boss Mario Theissen has explained how Sebastian Vettel ended up leaving the team after just one race.

Theissen was speaking on the Beyond The Grid podcast about his time with the Swiss-based team.

The German engineer worked in Formula 1 through his connections with BMW.

He spent several seasons with BMW Wiliams as a Motorsport Director and was responsible for the car having one of the most powerful engines on the grid.

A disagreement between BMW and Wiliams saw them split in 2005, and the German car company purchase Sauber.

Theissen was named team principal and oversaw four seasons in Formula 1.

He had a very settled driver line-up in that time, with Nick Heidfeld staying with the team throughout his tenure.

Robert Kubica replaced Jacques Villeneuve halfway through his first year and went on to lead the Drivers Championship at one point.

However, for one race, Theissen called up a young Sebastian Vettel to drive for Sauber.

He replaced an injured Kubica and scored points on his debut in the sport.

Just months later, he was driving full-time for Toro Rosso, and the rest is history.

Theissen explains Vettel’s Sauber exit

Theissen was asked how Vettel’s move to the Red Bull feeder team happened so quickly after his debut with Sauber.

He replied: “The explanation is really the joint programs of Red Bull and BMW.

“Of course, we could have offered him a race seat as well, but that was not the right move in my way because in 2007 we were close to becoming a winning team.

“We were quite strong already and we had high expectations for 2008 and with Nick [Heidfeld] and Robert [Kubica], we had a strong team.

“At that time, Sebastian was a 19-year-old kid, and it was too risky in my view to put him in the car instead of one of the two experienced drivers.

“So, it was only natural not to block him, and let him take the chance with Toro Rosso at the time.”

Vettel went on to become one of the most successful drivers in Formula 1 history.

He dominated the sport with Red Bull before going on to drive for Ferrari and Aston Martin.

It would have been hard for Theissen to justify keeping Vettel at BMW Sauber at the time.

The team were in a good position with two very fast drivers.

However, the young German proved he was destined for the very top quickly after his exit.

He was the only driver ever to win a race for Toro Rosso, although Pierre Gasly has now achieved that feat for the renamed AlphaTauri team.