Rookie Gabriel Bortoleto experienced the highs and lows of F1 racing in a rain-soaked Australian GP.
A wet and wild start to the season
With rain causing the track to feel like a skating rink, multiple drivers, both rookies and seasoned drivers, fell victim to the treacherous conditions.
Bortoleto, making his F1 debut with Sauber at Australia, was no exception.
Reflecting on the early laps in the print media area, the Brazilian admitted it wasn’t an easy start.
“Obviously not an easy start. I would say it was a good weekend overall for every learning we got there. Unfortunately, it didn’t finish as we expected.”
The rookie’s race took a turn for the worse during a Safety Car period when he was handed a 5-second penalty for an unsafe release in the pit lane.
It was a costly mistake by the team, but one that Bortoleto attempted to take in his stride.
“Luckily for the team, Nico scored some good points and I’m very happy for them.
“I’m sorry for my mistake there. I tried to recover a bit what we lost in the safety car. We take some positives from this weekend. We learn from the negatives and heads up. It’s just the beginning of a long season.”
Silver linings for Sauber despite wet weather woes
Despite the challenges, Bortoleto embraced the wet conditions in Australia, viewing them as a chance to grow.
“It was amazing. I mean, racing in the wet for me, I was looking forward because I needed this type of experience. You know, at some point you need to drive in the wet to feel this type of cars and get more confident with it.
“I think when you get confident with the car in the wet, it’s much easier also in the dry because that’s the most tough conditions you have.”
His confidence in the wet was clear as he kept pace with teammate Nico Hülkenberg, showcasing glimpses of the talent that earned him the 2023 Formula 3 championship, and the F2 title last season.
However, the double-stack pit stop under the Safety Car cost him valuable time, alongside the unsafe release penalty.
“I think I was doing quite a decent job so far. I was very close to Nico the whole race on inters and then we went to pit and then we double-stacked. I lost a lot of time there with the Safety Car as well, with the unsafe release.
“Things that can happen in a race. But the pace was good. I was looking good. I was feeling good with the car. Looking forward to China.”
Crashing out and race retirement
The final blow came late in the race when Bortoleto spun off and retired, joining a growing list of drivers who fell victim to the slippery conditions at Australia.
Despite this, he didn’t seem deterred by the incident.
“Not only the rookies crashed, obviously. I’ve seen Ferraris spinning, I’ve seen McLarens spinning. Everyone. Unfortunately, I finished in the wall.
“If I had one more metre of space of the wall, I would have done a 360 and go back to the race and happy days. But it didn’t happen.
“Conditions like this are always tough, especially when you don’t have the safe margin of I’m leading the race, I’m safe in the points. When you’re pushing everything you have and trying the limits. In conditions like this, the chance of mistakes happening are high.”
He emphasised that pushing the limits was part of the learning process, even if it meant ending up in the barriers.
“Obviously, I’m not proud of it. I’m not proud of making my mistakes. But it’s not that I’m going to be here crying for it.
“I prefer to crash than going around the track as a passenger and finishing last. I prefer to push the car to the limit and try my best.”
Looking ahead to the 2025 F1 season
While the Australian GP didn’t go according to plan, Bortoleto is already looking ahead to the next challenge, the Chinese Grand Prix, which will also feature a sprint race.
“We have good pace. We have good speed in quali and in the race. It was good. Yeah, just looking forward to doing another weekend, learning a new track and understanding how these cars work in conditions like this.”
The sprint weekend format will add another layer of complexity, but Bortoleto is ready to face the challenges that F1 provides.
“It is what it is. Nothing I can do about it. Just try to adapt as quick as I can. Not doing any mistake that can cost me quali or the sprint race and trying to finish every session and get more mileage in the F1 car.”
