Gabriel Bortoleto and Valtteri Bottas vie for Audi seat
With mid-season already over, Gabriel Bortoleto and Valtteri Bottas are vying for the vacant Audi seat alongside Nico Hülkenberg. As the team looks to finalize its line-up for next season, the two drivers are the leading contenders for the position.
While many teams are still looking for their full list of drivers for the upcoming season, two of them are currently in the running for the Sauber seat, which will become Audi in 2026. While the current team’s drivers already seemed like an option, it is now a Formula 2 driver who is catching the eye.
A new candidate in Formula 1
Among the list of names mentioned to join Nico Hülkenberg at Audi in Formula 1, Gabriel Bortoleto could well be a potential candidate. Racing in Formula 2 this year, he currently holds second place in the drivers’ championship in his category. With the performances he has shown this year, including several victories, it seems that the team is interested. According to RacingNews365, the young Brazilian driver is in discussions with Stake F1.
For the moment, Gabriel Bortoleto is part of the McLaren Academy, which is intended to facilitate the entry of drivers into the team. However, with the long-term contracts of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, a place in the team is not currently possible. Nonetheless, his manager had been seen in discussion with McLaren during the Belgian Grand Prix. The former Formula 3 winner could therefore well leave Woking to eventually join Sauber by next year.
A battle between the old and the new
Although Gabriel Bortoleto is in discussion with Stake F1 for a potential transfer, Valtteri Bottas remains a rival for this position. With Carlos Sainz signing with Williams, the Finnish driver is no longer an option for the British team. With one last spot available at Sauber, current drivers Valtteri Bottas and Guanyu Zhou will have to compete for it. According to the most recent information, the Chinese driver is of least interest to the team.
Liam Lawson, reserve driver at Red Bull, had seemingly also caught the eye of Andreas Seidl at Audi. With the recent changes in the management structure, particularly the arrival of Mattia Binotto at the helm of the F1 project, it would no longer be an option.
At the moment, the only real candidates are Gabriel Bortoleto and Valtteri Bottas. With Nico Hülkenberg already committed, Audi already has an experienced driver. But will the team be ready to take on a rookie as soon as they arrive in Formula 1? While some teams already do not allow for the inclusion of new talent. Will a team that has just entered the discipline be able to take on this role? All these questions will guide the Valtteri Bottas/Gabriel Bortoleto topic in the coming weeks.
The final decision on the choice of driver for Audi is still pending for the moment. With the summer break, the team can take time to seriously consider it. With Mattia Binotto at Audi as operational and technical director and Jonathan Wheatley, team principal and spokesperson, they could have the final say on this decision. The former Ferrari team principal and former sports director of Red Bull have the opportunity to influence the final decision that will ultimately determine a spot for one of them.
With the need to have a competitive team from the start, as announced by Gernot Döllner, Audi director, the choice of the driver is therefore a matter to be resolved quickly. But we will have to wait a little longer for a definitive answer.
