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Verstappen praises young star: 'I would have signed him a long time ago'
- Nicole Mulder
McLaren junior Gabriel Bortoleto has impressed so far in Formula 2 and Formula 3. He is seen as one of the options for Sauber next year, although his chances seem to have reduced recently. Max Verstappen believes the young Brazilian undoubtedly deserves a Formula 1 seat.
Verstappen praises Bortoleto
"If I was Sauber, I would have signed him already," Verstappen said about Bortoleto. "Especially if that's the future, anyway with young drivers. And ‘26, big rule change. It's always good to get used to a team already for a year, make your mistakes here and there, get integrated well, understand the car a bit. You always feel much more prepared and comfortable when you then start in 2026," he added.
Oscar Piastri endorses the Red Bull Racing driver's words and remembers how he felt when Alpine put him on the reserve bench. "I think he's been doing a very impressive job. Obviously winning F3 as a rookie last year and now leading the championship in F2. So yeah, I think from my point of view, when you're achieving those kind of results, you deserve to be in F1," Piastri said.
"I have the personal experience of the pain of not getting a seat. So for his sake, I hope he doesn't have to go through that. I don't think anyone will ever go through quite the extent that I did. But I think he's been doing a very good job. Yeah, if he's doing it on merit, then I think he deserves a place in F1," the McLaren driver concluded.
This article has been created in collaboration with Matt Gretton