Sauber has revealed a white and red livery concept for the 2018 season, the first year it will run under the branding of newly-confirmed title sponsor Alfa Romeo.
Sauber confirmed Marcus Ericsson and Charles Leclerc as its 2018 race team at an event in Milan on Saturday, while also presenting showcar adorning Alfa's famous icon on the engine cover. The Alfa deal ties in with Sauber's new partnership with Ferrari, which will include the latest specification Ferrari engine and strategic, commercial and technological cooperation.
The deal also helped the team secure the services of Formula 2 champion Leclerc, who enjoyed a dominant season in F1's feeder category. Fellow Ferrari junior Antonio Giovinazzi missed out on a race seat but will fill the role of reserve driver for the team.
Alfa is back in F1 for the first time in 33 years. The Italian company won the first two F1 world championships in 1950 and 1951 but struggled to replicate that success in later years, eventually pulling out of F1 in 1985 after several years with a works team.
For Sauber, the Ferrari and Alfa Romeo deals follow a period of uncertainty for the team which has seen it linger at the back end of the grid for several seasons. It secured new backing from Longbow Finance in 2016 but ran a year-old Ferrari power unit this season, finishing bottom of the constructors' championship.
It originally had a deal with Honda agreed for 2018, but the team walked away from that deal several months after its confirmation in favour of the tie-up with Ferrari. It is hoped the new deal will help elevate Sauber back up the grid.