Sauber (Audi) has signed Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto, whose career has been mentored by Alonso. A great success for his management company and a great incentive for a market with a huge fan base for Formula-1.
In a recent podcast on the Formula 1 website, in the final section of personal questions, the journalist asked Fernando Alonso about his first guest in case the driver himself had one of his own. It was a driver. “Max Verstappen,” the Spaniard replied.
No one knows better than Alonso to gauge the talent of another superstar. Hence the value that the Spaniard places on one of the first drivers of his driver management agency ‘ A14 Management’: the Brazilian Gabriel Bortoleto, whose signing for Sauber (Audi) was announced on Wednesday.
“Gabriel is simply a rookie (in Formula 2) with pure talent, it’s incredible” says the boss of his pupil. If Alonso says so… Bortoleto’s entry into Formula 1 is a double-team goal. For FOM and Liberty it means a wake-up call in one of the countries with the greatest tradition and enthusiasm for this sport, with three world champions in the past (Fittipaldi, Piquet and Senna) and 33 drivers in the history of the discipline, now including Bortoleto himself.
Sunday activity in the A14 Managment family, as we conduct a debrief of the recent FIA Formula 3 test from Jerez with @gabortoleto85, @JMMarti_oficial and @NikolaTsolov. pic.twitter.com/kbwJCcuGeD
— A14 Management (@A14Management) September 25, 2022
Secondly, because the Asturian has put the first stake in Flanders Formula 1 with one of his pupils, a great boost as an agent capable of guaranteeing access to Formula 1 given the necessary talent. There will be a queue from now on.
Does Bortoleto deserve such a high ranking, at just 20 years old? At the moment, his career history points to a special talent, with Fernando Alonso himself as the endorser.
Buy very cheap
The signing of the Brazilian cements the trend that began with Antonelli, Bearman and Colapinto. Youngsters of singular talent and youth, capable of adapting and shining in a short space of time, who are encouraging team managers to bet on a new generation that is beginning to displace several veterans. The three drivers mentioned have paved the way and Bortoleto has jumped on the bandwagon. The eldest of them, Colapinto, is only 21 years old.
Audi and Mattia Binotto have played a winning card by landing a potential champion to train next year without much pressure and with room to develop until the German manufacturer establishes its team in Formula 1. Because Bortoleto was better than the aforementioned drivers in his first year in Formula 2. Binotto has been able to buy Bortoleto’s shares at a very low price.
We are pleased to announce that Gabriel Bortoleto has joined the A14 Management team.
— A14 Management (@A14Management) September 15, 2022
Gabriel, from Brazil, is a race winner and multi-podium finisher in this year’s Formula Regional European Championship. pic.twitter.com/Bvv7sR7sIK
The higher, the better
“If there is one person who deserves a lot of credit for my season , apart from all those who work with me, it is him. He is a guy who has helped me a lot. I am very grateful to him,” explained Bortoleto about Alonso’s influence on his role as a driver. The Brazilian has received direct advice from the Spaniard in the different single-seater categories since he joined the stable of young thoroughbreds at the age of 16.
The Brazilian’s progress has honoured that trust , especially in the last two seasons, because his evolution has been extraordinary , with messages of a talent that could perhaps even surpass some of the newcomers to Formula 1.
Talent and humility
We are pleased to announce that @dani_juncadella has joined the A14 Management team.
— A14 Management (@A14Management) October 25, 2024
Daniel, from Spain, is since 2024 official driver for Corvette in the WEC and IMSA.
Welcome. #a14management #danieljuncadella #racing #motorsport pic.twitter.com/hvzmFbzKku
Alonso particularly values the fact that Bortoleto can achieve two consecutive titles without prior training and test mileage in both Formula 3 and Formula 2. Hence the label of “pure talent” that he gives him. If he finishes the job this season, he will join Charles Leclerc, George Russell and Oscar Piastri as the only drivers to win both titles at the first attempt and in successive years.
“He’s someone who takes things very seriously, which at his age is never a guarantee. He won the championship as a rookie in Formula 3 and is fighting for the championship as a rookie in Formula 2, but without the pre-testing of many other rookies ,” Alonso said of his protégé at the Azerbaijan GP last year . “He’s probably the only real rookie in the championship . So this has been an incredible achievement so far.”
In fact, without any prior testing, Bortoleto achieved pole position in his first race in Formula 2, in Bahrain. ” He has incredible talent, and he is also a very humble person, and I think that this is the most important thing we have to work on. He is a hard worker, in addition to his talent , and I think that is why he has progressed so much in Formula 3 and Formula 2,” said the demanding teacher Alonso about his young pupil.
A great success for ‘A14’
For the Spanish driver, Bortoleto’s arrival in Formula 1 is a major boost for his project of driver management , assuming a position outside the cockpit of a single-seater similar to that of Flavio Briatore , for example. It thus confirms his ability to manage and consolidate the careers of the drivers under his wing and his influence among the dominant figures in the paddock. In addition to Bottas and his management team, Williams and Colapinto have also been in contention for the Sauber job.