It was a weekend to forget for Audi’s Gabriel Bortoleto at the 2026 F1 Spanish GP. The Brazilian driver placed his Audi P12 on the starting grid after a difficult qualifying session on Saturday, where he ended up behind teammate Nico Hülkenberg.
Reflecting on his performance at the 2026 F1 Spanish GP, Bortoleto lamented the alternative tyre strategy Audi placed him on, which compromised him early on in the race. He also admitted that he was not aware he was used as a strategic anchor for his teammate. Nonetheless, the Brazilian is pleased he was able to help Audi bring home a valuable point.
Bortoleto reflects on frustrating 2026 F1 Spanish GP
Bortoleto’s weekend at the 2026 F1 Spanish GP was a strategic nightmare from the start. Audi had placed the Brazilian on a different tyre strategy, starting Bortoleto on the hard tyres, while Hülkenberg started on the softs.
The alternate strategy, however, meant that Bortoleto was unable to capitalise on the early VSC brought out by Lance Stroll on Lap 14 of the 2026 F1 Spanish GP after he stopped his Aston Martin in the run-off area at Turn 20. Unlike his teammate, Hülkenberg. The Brazilian ultimately was forced to stay out and stretch his set of hard tyres.
The 21-year-old admitted that he felt like a sitting duck for the majority of the race, revealing that he and the team were hoping for a second safety car or even a red flag to pit.
“Because we couldn’t pit with the hard compound, so we had just to accept that what happened. Virtual safety car, I think makes you 11 seconds more or less in our numbers. And yeah, after that there was no more safety cars, virtual safety cars or red flags. So I had just to, me and Pierre [Gasly], we were both waiting for a red flag, maybe to get lucky on our side and change tyres. But it didn’t happen, so we had to pit and P13.”
Bortoleto was unaware of any strategic tactics
Under the VSC, Hülkenberg was able to pit for a new set of hard tyres. This eventually allowed the German driver to take the chequered flag in P10, bringing home Audi’s sole point of the weekend.
Meanwhile, Bortoleto stayed out on track and held up the other faster midfield drivers with the likes of Alpine’s Franco Colapinto and Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad. This created a larger gap for Hülkenberg, ensuring he was able to finish in the points.
When asked if this was a deliberate decision by Audi, Bortoleto admitted that if it was, he was unaware.
Instead, the Brazilian driver emphasised that he did not plan to stay out that long and was hoping to capitalise on a second red flag or safety car. When the opportunity did not arise and he was eventually overtaken by Colapinto, Bortoleto finally told the pit wall to box him. Hence, he pitted late on Lap 47 and completed the 2026 F1 Spanish GP with a lonely P13.
“Maybe there was tactics the team did it, but I didn’t know. So I hope I was able to help somehow to collect that point. But from my side I was not aware.
“I think what we were trying for me was purely be patient and wait for a red flag. Or another safety car, but it never happened. And then Colapinto overtook me and I said guys, box, I don’t want to be overtaken by everyone with shit tyres. I’m done with this. Let’s go for another pit lane and then go for the softs.”
