Melbourne, Australia – Gabriel Bortoleto will start the Australian Grand Prix from tenth on the grid after a promising qualifying session marred by an as-yet-unidentified technical issue. Despite the challenge, the rookie driver expressed pride in his performance and the rapid progress of the Audi-backed Stake F1 Team RB, formerly AlphaTauri, in its first race weekend.
Bortoleto’s tenth-place finish marks a strong debut for the Brazilian driver and a positive start for the newly rebranded team. The qualifying session saw unexpected drama at the front of the grid, with George Russell of Mercedes claiming pole position and reigning champion Max Verstappen crashing out, as reported by Motorsport.com. Bortoleto, although, navigated the session with composure, setting a competitive time despite the late disruption caused by Verstappen’s incident.
“I think we should be proud of what this team has achieved in such a short time,” Bortoleto said. “First race for Audi, we managed to get to Q3. The next step is to be in Q3 and to run in Q3, because it was a little strange. But I think it was a good result today. I don’t think we could have been much better than ninth or eighth places, fighting with Racing Bulls. So, yes, there is a lot of work to do. I am very proud of everyone. And we will understand what happened today with the car, which we still don’t know and we will fix it.”
The young driver indicated the issue may be related to the car’s sensors, a common occurrence with new machinery. “But I don’t think there is anything to worry about, because the cars are new, the sensors fail here and there, and a sensor that fails can leave your car stopped on the track. We saw this kind of thing happen in pre-season,” he explained. Bortoleto initially set the fastest time in the first part of qualifying before 14 other drivers completed their laps, maintaining a position within the top ten throughout Q1.
When the session resumed after the red flag caused by Verstappen, Bortoleto’s earlier time was sufficient to advance to Q2, where he ultimately secured tenth place. Asked by google_news about his assessment of the team’s current performance, Bortoleto remained cautious.
“We’ll only know in the next race,” he stated. “At the moment it’s sixth, fifth, we were fighting with Racing Bulls the whole weekend, but it may be that in one or two races it will be better, it will be worse, we don’t know. It’s just living to find out.” He also acknowledged the unique challenges presented by the Albert Park circuit, which is considered the fourth most difficult track for energy recovery, potentially favoring teams with larger turbochargers like Audi.
The Australian Grand Prix is set to begin on Sunday, March 9th, with Bortoleto aiming to translate his qualifying performance into a points finish in his debut race. The team will be focused on diagnosing and resolving the issue that hampered Bortoleto’s session to maximize their potential in the race. The qualifying results place Bortoleto alongside veteran drivers and established teams, setting the stage for an intriguing race.
The stakes are high as the Formula 1 season unfolds, and the performance of Audi’s new partnership with Stake F1 Team RB will be closely watched. The team’s ability to consistently reach Q3 and convert qualifying positions into race results will be crucial in establishing themselves as a competitive force in the sport.
What impact will the technical issue have on Bortoleto’s race pace? Only time will tell as the Australian Grand Prix gets underway. Share your predictions in the comments below.
