F1 News
Negotiations "are being finalised" as Sauber look to sign second driver
McLaren team principal Andrea Stealla has confirmed that conversations between their junior driver Gabriel Bortoleto and Sauber are "ongoing" and that they are "being finalised." It means that the current Formula 2 driver, who has ties to the British team, looks to be on the verge of joining the F1 grid for the 2025 season.
Sauber, who will become Audi from the 2026 season onwards, have been looking to make a decision on who will partner Nico Hulkenberg for 2025 for many months. There have been tasks with current drivers Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu, with the former looking the likelier out of the two current Sauber drivers to be asked back for next season.
However, rumours have been growing continuously around the Brazilian F2 driver and the Swiss team, and now he is very close to joining. Bortoleto currently leads the championship in the junior formula, and there have been many impressive performances from him, including a highlight win at the Italian Grand Prix after starting from right at the back of the grid.
Bortoleto may be making the move "very soon"
Speaking about Bortoleto, Stella confirmed that Sauber and McLaren are in talks to make the switch between teams possible for the Brazilian: "The conversations are ongoing, they are being finalised. This question (whether Bortoleto will indeed go to Sauber, ed.) will have an answer soon, so for the moment I will not comment. Let's get the agreement finalised. For me, the most important thing that I've always been saying is that McLaren will not stop Gabriel having a seat in Formula 1."
Bortoleto is reportedly in talks with Sauber over a multi-year contract to join Sauber. If the Brazilian does make the move from McLaren's junior ranks to the Swiss team, it means that the F1 careers of Bottas and Zhou, along with Haas F1 driver Kevin Magnussen, are over, at least for now. None of them are in the picture for the vacant seat at Visa Cash App RB, likewise, for the potential open seat at Red Bull Racing, should the Austrian team decide to move on from Sergio Perez.
There is an option for Bottas to return to Mercedes to become their regular test and reserve driver. Early in the season, the former teammate to Lewis Hamilton said he was open to that, only if he missed out on the Sauber seat for 2025. Zhou has not ruled out being a reserve driver somewhere in '25, but on the condition that he can be back in F1 in 2026.
This article was created in collaboration with Ludo van Denderen
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