Andrea Stella Open To Releasing McLaren Junior Driver For Sauber F1 Seat

Chris Ladd | Sep 18, 2024

Race winner Lando Norris of Great Britain and McLaren, Second placed Max Verstappen of the Netherlands and Oracle Red Bull Racing, Third placed Charles Leclerc of Monaco and Ferrari and McLaren Team Principal Andrea Stella celebrate on the podium during the F1 Grand Prix of Miami at Miami International Autodrome on May 05, 2024 in Miami, Florida (Photo by Chris Graythen/Getty Images) / Red Bull Content Pool

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella is being pragmatic about Gabriel Bortoleto’s future, according to a report by PlanetF1. Acknowledging that with both Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri locked into long-term contracts, there’s little room for Bortoleto to race in F1 with McLaren in the near future. However, Stella is open to the idea of allowing Bortoleto to join Sauber, especially with Sauber’s transition to becoming Audi’s works team in 2026.

It’s also worth noting that Williams is interested in keeping Franco Colapinto on the grid, with Sauber as the primary option.

The dynamic of these young drivers competing for a limited number of seats while being linked to different teams is typical in Formula 1, and it will be interesting to see how things develop with Sauber, especially with Mattia Binotto reportedly having a say in future decisions.

“I tell Gabriel the same thing I tell the team, don’t look at the classification, just think about the chequered flag all the time, and race one race at a time, with the feet on the ground – and he does it,” Stella said of Bortoleto to media in Baku.

“For me, it’s similar to Oscar [Piastri], it’s not only the ability and the execution when he is in the car, from a driving point of view, it’s also how humble these guys are, how available they are to just get the learning, working with the team – at no point they are arrogant.

“When you combine talent with hard work and this kind of values and attitude, I think it’s where you can grow as a driver," Stella added. “Gabriel is another example of growing so rapidly, like if we think the start [of 2024], even though he’s had to campaign, he had some hiccups at times, not necessarily only due to his driving.

“He had some tough problems, but he didn’t give up. He stayed on the case, and now he’s building step by step. If Binotto came to me, when you have such a talent, definitely, you’re not going to stop him having a chance in Formula 1.

"At the same time, we will be definitely interested in finding a way to keep him in the McLaren family, because I think he’s a talent that in the future, could be important for McLaren. We are safe for the long term with our two drivers, we couldn’t be any happier, but definitely we would like to keep him in the McLaren family, but I’m sure we could find a solution.”