Early days for BMW SauberBMW Sauber is not yet a top team, team principal Mario Theissen admits.
The German insisted that, for the first year of full ownership by the Munich based carmaker, the idea is to build up a solid foundation throughout 2006.
"This starting phase will last for the whole season," he told Sport-Informations-Dienst.
For that reason, you won`t hear reference to championships or wins - even podiums - just yet.
"The unification and development of the team has priority at the moment," Theissen said.
However, the newly launched F1.06, designed mostly by the team led by Peter Sauber last year, is showing postive signs.
"It seems to have noticeably more grip than its predecessor," Nick Heidfeld said. Canadian team-mate Jacques Villeneuve, additionally, says he is able to `brake later` and `drive more aggressively` with the new car.
But Mario Theissen insists that BMW Sauber should not yet be considered a top team, even if it is owned by a car manufacturer.
"But we want to become a top team as soon as possible," he concluded.
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