In 2025, there will be six of them competing in their first full season in Formula 1: Liam Lawson, Oliver Bearman, Jack Doohan, Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Isack Hadjar and Gabriel Bortoleto. The latter, Formula 2 champion in 2024, will move to the next level next year with the Sauber team. And for Fernando Alonso, the Brazilian is the best among all the new drivers in the 2025 class.
“I find that [Gabriel Bortoleto] is the best, assured the double Spanish world champion, in Abu Dhabi at the beginning of December. I have nothing to add. First season in F3? Champion. First season in F2? Champion. I know there is a lot of talk about the younger generation, a lot of rookies as well next year. They are all very talented, but the best is Gabriel. This can be seen on the track with the same cars [en Formule 2]. It's obvious that next year he might not have the same car as some of the new guys, but I hope people don't forget that he's better than them, that he has been and will be. »
Well, it would be dishonest to hide from you that Gabriel Bortoleto and Fernando Alonso have a special bond: in fact, the young Brazilian is managed by the A14 Management agency, which is none other than the structure created by… Fernando Alonso himself . In Abu Dhabi, just after the Invincta driver's Formula 2 victory, the Asturian was one of the first to come and congratulate his protégé in the Parc Fermé…
© Antonin Vincent / DPPI
Will Bortoleto be able to show his potential at Sauber?
Obviously, the opinion of the Formula 1 veteran with 401 Grand Prix starts should be taken with a grain of salt. Nevertheless, Gabriel Bortoleto can indeed boast of having the best record among the six rookies who will make their debut in Formula 1 next year. The Paulist became the fourth driver to sign the Formula 3 – Formula 2 double in two years, after Charles Leclerc, George Russell and Oscar Piastri, no less. Champion in his first season in Formula 2, the Brazilian beat Isack Hadjar at the last meeting in Abu Dhabi, a few weeks after being confirmed by Sauber in 2025. The former McLaren academy protégé will become the first Brazilian driver to compete in a Formula 1 season since Felipe Massa in 2017.
Despite his golden career in the promotion formula, Gabriel Bortoleto was promoted to the worst team of the 2024 season, Sauber having finished 10th and last in the Manufacturers' championship with only 4 points. If the 20-year-old driver will certainly have difficulty making his mark in 2025 if the Swiss team struggles to progress, he will be at the center of the Audi project and the arrival of the brand to the rings from 2026…
READ ALSO > Can Bortoleto follow in the footsteps of Leclerc, Russell and Piastri in F1?
