After winning last year’s Formula 3 championship, Gabriel Bortoleto is on track to take the Formula 2 crown in his rookie campaign. As he prepares to join F1 next year, Bortoleto reveals the extent of his intense simulator work.
Bortoleto: Extra preparation could make a difference
A multitude of rookies (Kimi Antonelli, Jack Doohan and Oliver Bearman) will join Bortoleto on the grid net season.
The Brazilian will step into a Sauber team yet to score points in 2024, as they work on transition into Audi F1 in 2026.
However, an update package in Las Vegas yielded some positive results for the Swiss outfit.
After a solid qualifying, Zhou Guanyu was firmly in contention for points on Sunday.
Although poor strategy ultimately cost Zhou a top-10 finish, Sauber have at least managed to be more competitive.
In any case, Bortoleto faces a huge challenge next year – irrespective of how competitive his machinery is.
He will drive alongside the immensely fast Nico Hulkenberg, who will be a very strong benchmark to face in his rookie campaign.
Vigorous simulator preparation
Speaking on the F1 Nation Podcast, Bortoleto gave some insights into his preparations for 2025:
“I do a lot of preparation in the simulator, especially when I’m home – I spend 7/8 hours a day doing simulator.
“And I don’t have anything else to do, that’s the truth, you know. I just go gym and simulator, so that’s what I can do…
“I don’t know if this makes a difference or not. But at the end of the day, if you do this every single day of your life, maybe on track it makes a difference.
“So when you see a racing situation and you have done it in a simulator hundreds of times at home, it’s automatic – you don’t even think about it.”
A critical phase for Sauber/Audi
Bortoleto’s comments are consistent with a prevailing theme amongst F1’s younger generation.
Max Verstappen is perhaps the driver most renowned for spending huge amounts of time in the simulator.
Considering that Bortoleto is a part of Fernando Alonso’s Management team, it is unsurprising that his training regime is vigorous.
Having signed a multi-year contract, Bortoleto will have some breathing space to adjust to F1 next year.
However, regardless of a driver’s contractual situation, there is always pressure.
As Audi build their long-term project, the 20-year-old will work to get up to speed as quickly as possible.
