Bortoleto fights off tears after nightmare Brazil GP debut
Gabriel Bortoleto endured a home race debut nightmare which brought the young Brazilian driver to tears.
"You always hope to do a good job, or at least have a solid race, and not being able to complete even a single lap was very hard to take in."- Gabriel Bortoleto.
Bortoleto's first race in his native land, Brazil, was one he will remember forever, but not for the right reasons. During the Sprint race he totalled his car in a 91G crash when battling Alexander Albon for position, leaving the Sauber mechanics with the impossible task to get the car ready for qualifying just three hours later.
Having skipped qualifying, the Brazilian took the 18th spot on the grid. Fighting his way through the tight pack, Bortoleto put his C45 on the outside of Lance Stroll's AMR25, ahead of Turn 10. The Canadian then squeezed the Brazilian onto the grass, triggering a spin and a subsequent crash that put him out of the race on the spot with the first lap yet to be completed.
Images from the paddock showed a distraught Bortoleto, who was comforted by his family, his Sauber team, including teammate Nico Hulkenberg and the Brazilian fans' cheers.
Speaking after the race Bortoleto said: "It's been a really tough weekend for me, even more so because it was my first home race and I was really hoping to have a good one in front of my family and fans.
"You always hope to do a good job, or at least have a solid race, and not being able to complete even a single lap was very hard to take in. I had a good start, gained a position right away, and was going for another move when I made contact with Lance."
Regarding the clash, Bortoleto refused to blame Stroll: "It was a first-lap racing incident, and these things can happen, that's racing."
Then the Brazilian rookie highlighted his compatriots' support, and the pride it instills in him as he looked ahead to the final three rounds of the 2025 season.
"The support from our fans this weekend has been incredible. Even through the difficult moments, they kept cheering, shouting my name, and showing so much love. I can't thank them enough – it means everything to me.
"Seeing how much it means to my country makes me proud and I hope I can give them something to celebrate soon. Weekends like this are tough for everyone, but we'll move on and come back stronger for the final three races of the season."
Sauber falls behind in battle for P6
Despite Hulkenberg's fine P9 finish, the Swiss-based team had to concede 8 points to Racing Bulls with Liam Lawson and Isack Hadjar placing P7 and P8, and another 8 to Haas after Oliver Bearman's standout P6 in Sao Paulo.
After the Brazil GP Racing Bulls now lead the fight for P6 with 82 points to their name, with Aston Martin trailing the Faenza-based squad with 72. Haas currently trail the British racing green coloured team by 2 points, with Sauber in P9 8 points adrift the American team's tally.
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