Bortoleto is F1’s ‘best rookie of his generation’ – Alonso

Gabriel Bortoleto is “the best rookie of this generation” according to Fernando Alonso, after the Brazilian fought he and Max Verstappen on his way to a career-best sixth place in the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Sauber has delivered a clear step forward with the upgrades it introduced at the Spanish Grand Prix, culminating in the team scoring points in each of the last six rounds. All of Bortoleto’s points have come in the past four races, and in Hungary he joined fellow rookies Kimi Antonelli, Isack Hadjar and Liam Lawson in securing a top six finish this year.

“He's the best rookie of this generation,” Alonso – who also serves as part of Bortoleto’s management – told Spanish broadcaster DAZN. “If he were English or something like that and finished sixth in a Sauber, he'd be on the front page of every newspaper.”

On Sunday in Budapest, Bortoleto spent the first stint between Alonso and Verstappen, going on to beat the Red Bull in his best finish to date.

“Two-times world champ, four-times world champ and I'm in the middle,” Bortoleto said. “It's just something amazing that I'm so glad to experience already in my rookie season and be fighting against these guys. Honestly, I'm so happy. It was a great race and we did everything we could.

“[I’m] super satisfied. I couldn't be more satisfied than that because I think that's the real result we can achieve. More than this, it’s only if we have luck and if someone crashes or something happens. I think we really maximized the car we had – or even did better, because I overtook Lance [Stroll] on the first lap and we know the Astons had very good pace this weekend.”

Sauber was one of the teams to commit to a one-stop strategy early on in Sunday’s race, and Bortoleto said it was a display both he and the team can be proud of.

“I’m so happy with this result, it’s our best so far and it shows the amazing job we’re doing as a team," he said. "We’ve been making the right steps in the right direction, and this is just the beginning of what we can achieve together.

“The race itself was very intense and mentally tough, with 70 laps where you can’t afford a single mistake, but I gave everything I had and didn’t put a wheel wrong. We maximized every opportunity, from my driving to the team’s strategy and execution, and I’m so glad for everyone involved.”