Gabriel Bortoleto arrived in Montreal for the F1 Canadian GP this week, under far from ideal circumstances. The Brazilian rookie, who drives for Sauber, was the victim of a robbery in Zurich, Switzerland—just days before flying out to Canada.
According to reports first published by Band, Bortoleto was having dinner in Zurich when thieves broke into his car and stole his backpack, which contained vital belongings including his passports, computer, and racing gear.
“I had gone to dinner one day in Switzerland and they ended up opening the car and taking my backpack. I had my passports, everything inside, my computer, all my racing gear,” Bortoleto explained.
Last-minute recovery and race against time
With his documents missing, Bortoleto urgently replaced them to ensure he could travel to North America. The 2024 Formula 2 champion managed to secure a second passport and boarded a flight to Canada just in time to take part in the official Formula 1 weekend.
“It was chaos, but we managed to find the guy. Everything worked out in the end, I have my passports. We didn’t find everything, but we did find some things,” he said, confirming that police managed to track down the individual responsible and recover part of what had been stolen.
Despite the disruption, Bortoleto joined media duties in Montreal on Thursday, ready to tackle his first race at the iconic Circuit Gilles Villeneuve. Still hunting for his first points in Formula 1, the Sauber driver currently sits 19th in the championship and came close to the top ten with a P12 finish at the Spanish Grand Prix.
Looking ahead to this weekend’s challenge, Bortoleto said he’s excited but realistic about what street circuits demand from a rookie.
“It’s a street circuit, so I think that always makes the weekend a little bit more competitive – I don’t know if that’s the right word. I think it makes mistakes a little bit less acceptable,” he reflected.
Bortoleto eyes a clean F1 Canadian GP
Now past the chaos of the week, Bortoleto aims to keep his head down and deliver a clean performance in Montreal. With tight walls, unpredictable conditions, and the potential for upsets, the Canadian GP could present a valuable opportunity for the 20-year-old to impress—if everything goes right this time.
Co-author: Nicolas Lopes
