Gabriel Bortoleto joked that his lifts to races with Fernando Alonso might dry up if more incidents like their near-collision in Jeddah happen more often.

The Brazilian rookie is managed by Alonso’s A14 company, with the Spaniard a mentor figure for Bortoleto – a relationship that could have been tested if their near-miss in Saudi Arabia had resulted in a collision.

Gabriel Bortoleto: My lifts with Fernando Alonso depend on if I give him a slipstream!

During the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, Bortoleto’s move across to the racing line while in battle with Racing Bulls’ Liam Lawson almost took out Alonso, who was in close proximity on the outside, on the racing line.

Alonso was heard saying that Bortoleto had moved under braking, but his stance had softened following the chequered flag as he joked that his driver wouldn’t be “getting any dinner” on the plane back home – Bortoleto shares a lift to the racetrack on a private jet with the two-time F1 World Champion.

Speaking to the media in Miami ahead of this weekend’s race, Bortoleto laughed when asked about the atmosphere on the jet when the pair flew home together from Saudi Arabia.

“He was just kidding!” Bortoleto told media, including PlanetF1.com.

“He was all, ‘No dinner for you, no dessert,’ but it was fine.

“He understood I didn’t see him and we didn’t collide. It was just a scary moment there, but it was fine.”

Put to him that Alonso had seemed quite shocked by his move across the track, Bortoleto said, “Yeah, he was shocked like any other driver would be, if someone just closes the door. It happens.”

Asked whether he feared his lifts to races being taken away if such an incident did result in something more serious, the Brazilian rookie joked, “Let’s see if he allows me.

“[It probably depends on what happens in the two races], exactly! It depends on if I give him a slipstream.”

Alonso was asked for his take on their potentially awkward jet plane journey together, with the Spaniard joking that he had allowed his driver a chance to eat.

“Yeah, we flew back,” he said.

“It was OK, he had dinner but yeah… that was the last time!”

Turning serious, Alonso was full of praise for his young charge, saying that while Bortoleto may be quietly anonymous at the back of the grid, the Brazilian is adjusting to Formula 1 very well.

“It’s very difficult to see some of the performances,” he said.

“I think, in Australia, everyone was happily surprised with his qualifying as he made it to Q2 and things like that.

“Sometimes, when the car is not in the right window or not competitive enough, we are, both of us, fighting in Q1 and I think he will be, for sure, one of the rookies with the least results and the least headlines.

“But, at the moment, I think he’s doing a perfect job.

“He’s a great racer, and his awareness of things, his records in F3 and F2 finishing nearly all the races, and things like that, shows that his awareness and capabilities are very high.

“The biggest difference between junior categories and Formula 1 is just the amount of time you have to dedicate out of the car for the engineers, sponsors, media commitments, traveling… so he needs to settle down a little bit in Formula 1, like all the rookies we did in the past, and they are doing now.

“It’s a big change in any other formula compared to Formula 1. So that’s the thing he’s working on.”

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