Gabriel Bortoleto faces the trickiest task of the new crop of Formula 1 drivers in his rookie season with Sauber in 2025.
The Brazilian driver was a standout performer on his way to winning the Formula 2 title ahead of Red Bull junior Isack Hadjar last year.
Bortoleto was then signed by Sauber to a multi-year deal, which will see him pair up with Nico Hulkenberg when the team becomes Audi at the start of 2026.
The new technical regulations will arrive by then, but it means that a lot of their resources will be focused on their 2026 car rather than this year’s machine.
Fernando Alonso believes Bortoleto is 2025’s best F1 rookie but he faces a tricky task driving what is expected to be the slowest car on the grid for the second year running.
Hulkenberg has promised to make fewer mistakes at Sauber, which will be important considering that while his Brazilian teammate learns the ropes of the sport, their hopes of scoring points may hinge on him.
Gabriel Bortoleto faces a ‘difficult’ scenario in F1 rookie season with Sauber
Bortoleto has the most difficult task of any of the rookies in 2025. He’s joining a team that may give up on the year very early, and it could make some of the races feel like test sessions.
The Swiss outfit made some gains at the end of last season, but not enough to be comfortably fighting for points or a good position in the Constructors’ Championship.
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The Race’s Scott Mitchell-Malm thinks that switching their focus to 2026 early could leave the Brazilian driver to focus on gaining experience rather than achieving significant results this year.
“Bortoleto could be in a position this year where he’s not getting a huge amount of private running and the 25′ running that he’s doing is slightly uncompetitive in a car that’s not going to get developed that much,” he said.
“It could just be a do what you can in a difficult situation, bank a load of experience, get to grips with how the race weekend works, show what you can, learn as much as you can from Hulkenberg, learn the circuits etc so that you go into 2026 with the strongest foundation possible.”
Why Gabriel Bortoleto will be given time to develop in F1 by Sauber
Bortoleto was considered a phenomenal talent in his karting days and he backed that up with some terrific performances in single-seater racing.
He has won the Formula 2 and Formula 3 titles, with his 2024 campaign including a heroic drive from last to first at the Italian Grand Prix.
If Sauber’s car is unable to compete for points this year, it would be unfair to judge any of Bortoleto’s rookie performances.
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When he gets in a faster car and gains a bit of confidence, he should come into his own. He’ll also be able to deploy anything he has learned from teammate Hulkenberg.
It makes 2025 a bit of a free pass, allowing him to attack as aggressively as he wants to and discover where the limits of a Formula 1 car lie.
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