Gabriel Bortoleto, a rookie in the 2024 F2 season, won the title and in the process secured a ticket to the pinnacle of motorsport. He will be part of the F1 grid in 2025 with Sauber, with huge expectations already placed on his shoulders.
His performances this year have drawn in comparisons with Max Verstappen, something Felipe Massa pointed out recently. The Brazilian driver, however, did not see similarities in their strengths, but in weaknesses.
Massa labeled Bortoleto’s driving style aggressive, which is a label Verstappen has been stuck with since he made his debut in 2015. Throughout the F2 calendar year, Massa noticed Bortoleto make some slipups which reminded him of Verstappen. “He also made some mistakes,” Massa said.
“But that happens when you have such an aggressive and fast driving style. We have seen that before with Max Verstappen, for example. ”
However, Massa also added that like Verstappen, Bortoleto could turn this into his advantage in the coming years. Talking about his strengths, the former Ferrari driver added, “He shows good things – especially his catch-up actions are impressive. He is more aggressive than other drivers, and his speed is also impressive. ”
At the same time, Bortoleto will have to be careful about not going overboard, something Verstappen has been deemed guilty of in his 10 years in F1.
What Bortoleto will look to avoid
Given the choice, Bortoleto would love to have the career Verstappen has had — four World Championship wins and the third-highest number of race victories ever (63). But in his first few years in F1, Verstappen had several on-track incidents that would result in crashes or tussles with other drivers.
These added to penalties and also made him perennially dangerous and aggressive in the eyes of many. Even today, the Dutchman tends to test the limits of the race officials, resorting to desperate measures to make overtakes or defend his positions.
Crash of Verstappen at Monaco 2015!https://t.co/VJOLon3o7U#racing #f1 #formula1 #formule1 #mv33 #MaxVerstappen #crash #monacogp #monaco
#f1monaco #tororosso #f12015 pic.twitter.com/AuWTuv141m— juan (@RampersadJay) February 17, 2021
This would be something Bortoleto may not want. However, he may not have to worry himself with this in his first season, as Bortoleto will be driving for Sauber — a team expected to be rock bottom, far away from all the action.
