{"id":22676,"date":"2024-08-02T05:08:21","date_gmt":"2024-08-02T09:08:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/?p=22676"},"modified":"2024-08-02T05:41:36","modified_gmt":"2024-08-02T09:41:36","slug":"bortoleto-emerges-as-shock-contender-to-join-sauber","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2024\/08\/02\/bortoleto-emerges-as-shock-contender-to-join-sauber\/","title":{"rendered":"Gabriel Bortoleto emerges as shock contender to join Sauber"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><strong>Mattia Binotto considers Gabriel Bortoleto a candidate to join Sauber next year<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>The F1 driver market continues to generate surprises. Front-runners and midfield teams alike have made completely unexpected decisions in 2024. There could be yet another twist in store, with Gabriel Bortoleto emerging as a candidate to join Sauber. <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2024\/07\/23\/mattia-binotto-makes-f1-return-with-audi\/\" target=\"_self\">Mattia Binotto<\/a>, recently appointed as CTO at <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2024\/08\/01\/audi-appoint-jonathan-wheatley-as-team-principal\/\" target=\"_self\">Audi<\/a>, sees Bortoleto as a candidate with potential.<\/p>\n<p>Whilst performance is king in Formula 1 (and all branches of motorsport), perception sometimes matters more than reality.<\/p>\n<p>Many drivers who perform at an exceptionally high level, for a combination of reasons, are often overlooked.<\/p>\n<p>Paul Aron is a good example of this. The former <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2024\/07\/26\/george-russell-mercedes-upgrades-can-bring-fight-to-mclaren\/\" target=\"_self\">Mercedes<\/a> junior is generally an afterthought in F1 headlines &#8211; despite running third in the F2 Championship.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"gyJvtWXdSLFEPpEWRWNDSQ\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2154287350\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'gyJvtWXdSLFEPpEWRWNDSQ',sig:'r5__InN4LlEjLs7QksEgfKRjq0poh9fkHiW3ndg4Xy8=',w:'594px',h:'385px',items:'2154287350',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Bortoleto goes under the radar<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>Gabriel Bortoleto is another driver who merits more praise than he is currently receiving.<\/p>\n<p>The 19-year-old is second in the F2 Championship, a hugely impressive feat given he is a rookie.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2024\/08\/01\/kimi-antonelli-has-clear-path-to-mercedes-f1-seat\/\" target=\"_self\">Kimi Antonelli<\/a>, another rookie in the series, is virtually guaranteed to join F1 next season.<\/p>\n<p>As outlined above, there are numerous factors that contribute to a driver&#8217;s perception.<\/p>\n<p>Antonelli&#8217;s age, status as a Mercedes driver and impeccable junior career have all contributed to the excitement surrounding him.<\/p>\n<p>Whilst the enthusiasm surrounding the 17-year-old is justified, there should be a comparable level of excitement for Bortoleto.<\/p>\n<p>Until now, the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2024\/08\/02\/mclaren-reveal-bold-upgrade-plan-to-topple-red-bull\/\" target=\"_self\">McLaren<\/a> junior has rarely been mentioned as a contender to enter F1. This is now changing, as <a  href=\"https:\/\/formu1a.uno\/it\/sorpresa-audi-binotto-pensa-ad-un-rookie-al-fianco-di-hulkenberg\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">formu1a.uno<\/a> reports he is under consideration at Sauber.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"PWoDbPfgTvxwNC4biNJL1g\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2152836885\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'PWoDbPfgTvxwNC4biNJL1g',sig:'Ll8fe1aP7TGENKunBeZ1U-iV5gFD43fWIGFKlQivN_M=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2152836885',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<h3><strong>Audi considers a change in direction<\/strong><\/h3>\n<p>With <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2024\/04\/30\/f1-news-carlos-sainz-could-be-running-out-of-time-for-audi-response\/\" target=\"_self\">Sainz<\/a> joining Williams and Ocon signing with <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2024\/07\/16\/esteban-ocon-set-to-join-haas-in-2025\/\" target=\"_self\">Haas<\/a>, there has been uncertainty about who Sauber\/Audi will put alongside Hulkenberg next season.<\/p>\n<p>The team&#8217;s direction regarding their driver line-up has been unclear for some time.<\/p>\n<p>At this stage last year, there were already conflicting reports about whether <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/2024\/08\/01\/valtteri-bottas-is-running-out-of-options-to-stay-in-f1\/\" target=\"_self\">Bottas<\/a> and Zhou were in Sauber&#8217;s long-term plans.<\/p>\n<p>It seems clear that neither driver is the main priority at Hinwil, given that others have already been pursued for a 2025 contract.<\/p>\n<p>With Audi seemingly unconvinced by the remaining established names on the grid, they could turn to a rookie.<\/p>\n<p>Bortoleto is a hugely exciting talent, even if the attention surrounding him is less than it should be.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"ooGTi0nQTXxqWywFYo41-A\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/2160287870\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'ooGTi0nQTXxqWywFYo41-A',sig:'Y09glbJVSmjVzpyZSaPSMkjMaYHtgmK6s0uSq7KGSO4=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'2160287870',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n<p>His arrival at Sauber would complete a hugely promising driver line-up at the team.<\/p>\n<p>As a rookie, the Brazilian driver would not impose huge expectations on Sauber &#8211; something they will surely welcome in this transitional phase.<\/p>\n<p>Moreover, based on this year&#8217;s results, he is certainly capable of being competitive in F1.<\/p>\n<p>Both in the short and long term, Bortoleto could become a huge asset to the team.<\/p>\n<p>It also goes without saying that the presence of a Brazilian would be a huge commercial boost for Audi and &#8211; by extension &#8211; F1 as a whole.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mattia Binotto considers Gabriel Bortoleto a candidate to join Sauber next year The F1 driver market continues to generate surprises. Front-runners and midfield teams alike have made completely unexpected decisions in 2024. There could be yet another twist in store, with Gabriel Bortoleto emerging as a candidate to join Sauber. Mattia Binotto, recently appointed as [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4927,"featured_media":22677,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3],"tags":[2220,206,68,2072,684,345],"class_list":["post-22676","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-formula-1","category-news","tag-2024-formula-1-season","tag-audi","tag-f1","tag-gabriel-bortoleto","tag-mattia-binotto","tag-sauber"],"modified_by":"Jaden Diaz-Ndisang","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22676","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4927"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22676"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22676\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/22677"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22676"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22676"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/motorsports\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22676"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}