Primordiums, long term at F1 and Senna in helmet

He moved to Europe for less than 10 years to pursue his dream of becoming a pilot of Formula 1and achieved this goal with style. Gabriel Bortoleto has a special pedigree, with his junior career including consecutive titles at F3 and F2 – something that Charles Leclerc, George Russell and Oscar Pastri They can boast.

He is now the first Brazilian with a regular spot on the F1 grid since Felipe Massa left F1 in 2017. We talked to one of the 2025 F1 newcomers to talk about his trajectory, and about a pilot he considers his idol: Ayrton Senna.

Gabriel, what was it like moving from Brazil to a different continent when you were only 12 years old?

Well, it was obviously a risk. But when you are 12 years old and have a dream, you don’t even think about it. For me, to be honest, it was easy. I wanted to run in kart in the best championships – and the European kart was the best place for it. So what do you prefer? Go to school every day in Brazil or run in Europe? It’s very different! Obviously, jokes aside, being away from family is never easy, but I only suffered for the first year. I got used to the new life very fast.

Did you move together with your coach, Francesco Di Mauro?

Yes, he was my coach, exactly. And he was like the family. He is like a second father to me, even now. He was always great with me. At first, it was just me and him – we both living in the same house, cooking together, washing clothes, learning many new things. Because in Brazil, all this was careful for me, and for him too, for his wife – and here we had to take care of everything alone.

It was an amazing period in my life, a period when I also became much more responsible and mature. Later, his family also moved. But yes, I think that moment was very important to me.

For him, it must also have been a difficult decision to move away from the family to help you in Europe.

I called him right after signing my F1 contract – even before it was announced. I wanted to talk to him, obviously. We had a very deep conversation, because many things went through my head at that moment when I realized the dream. I was finally where I wanted to be – and that was his dream too.

I asked him during that call: “Why did you do that?” Because to do something like that, you have to believe it. I think he just loved me, and I loved him so much. I was also like his son – and he trusted that I could reach something big.

Honestly, every time I think about it, I see how this change was crazy to him – probably even more than me. And I’m very grateful to him.

His son, Gaetano, is a pilot, right?

He is a great pilot. He ran in the British Formula 3 [quando ainda era BRDC F4] At that time and it was very, very good. But for financial reasons, he failed to continue in Europe, so he returned to Brazil and became a professional pilot.

He is one of the top guys from there – and actually I wanted him to be my coach, because he was very good. I asked my father to talk to him, to see if he could work with me. I think I was about eight years at the time.

So one day I arrived on the track hoping Gaetano would teach me, but instead it was Francesco. And he said, “Don’t worry, I taught him.” And it was true. That’s how we started working together – and I think it was the best thing that could have happened to me.

How did the European kart treat you?

I think we were lucky to find a good team. Because there is a lot of politics in kart. It can be a little dirty too. You get a better engine here and there, there is a lot of money involved, but my father would never let us throw dirty.

I was lucky to find CRG, one of the main manufacturers. I approached a lot of [Giancarlo] Tinini, the owner and founder, and he welcomed me as a small project for his brand. So I made my entire career with them – from 12 to 16 years old, more or less. He trusted me and gave me the best material available. Even if it wasn’t the best overall, it was the best we got, and we got great achievements.

I would say my kart career was a success. I was not world champion, but I was among the first three in the European championship, I was runner-up at WSK. We had good results.

So Gabriel, to be frank, you didn’t look like a superstar when it moved to the monoposts. But you took a big step when you arrived at F3. Why?

To be honest, I don’t want to go into much controversy here, but let me say the following: F3 and F2 are much more professional than the lower categories. Formula 4 and the European regional formula are good championships, but I don’t think they have the same control over engines and cars – and sometimes there is a big difference between them.

I’m not saying that people want to give advantage to certain pilots, it’s just that the category can’t manage it so rigorously. And although I don’t like the word, I would say I didn’t have so much luck in this respect – to get good engines on F4 and Freca. But whenever I changed staff in the middle of the season, it immediately improved, winning podiums and victories.

How much helped to sign with A14 Management?

Very. I wanted to sign with Trident at F3, but my results were not so good. I was sixth in Freca – and with that, there is no guarantee that you can get a good spot in the F3. Without them, I would never have succeeded. But they had good contacts, and it is always the people who decide. Giacomo [Ricci, chefe de equipe] trusted them. He risked.

I remember having dinner and talked about statistics. He said he could see in the numbers the difference that the engines made in Freca – he knew these things and was a race pilot. He saw that I ended most races and carried the car home. When I had a car for fourth place, I was over. If the car only served for the sixth, I was sixth.

And he said to me, “If you get in our car at F3 and you have the same performance as before, you can fight for the title.” And that’s exactly what happened. He was right.

Even before our first test, we knew we had something. Then we won the first race at Bahrain and then in Melbourne. I remember having a second year pilot in my DRS throughout the race, and I kept him clean, without mistakes-I took everything home. That’s when I thought, “I think I’m ready to win this championship.”

The change to unbeaten racing in F2 was also crucial …

I have a pilot coach, Roberto Streit, with whom I still work. He is very good, was one of the stars in Brazil and even tested in F1. And together we are much oriented by data. We know who I am as a pilot, what kind of car I like – and early on, we saw that Invicta, which was Virtuosi at the time, had a car I could like. They have always been strong. It may not have won the title, but always second or third.

When we watched their performance tests, we could see that the car combined with my style. And the feeling was mutual. When I started hard on F3, we had already talked a lot. In the end, everything went well – and when I moved to F2, I knew their hit philosophy would serve me. They adapted things to me too, and it worked very well.

You are now in F1, part of a long -term project with Audi. Does this reduce the pressure in your first year? Unlike some of your fellow novices, you don’t have to perform well here and now. Everyone understands that you can learn and improve.

Well, it’s obviously better than having a one -year contract, right? But that doesn’t take away the fact that I want to prove my value – to myself. This is how I was always. Even with a long -term contract, I don’t feel more comfortable or anything like it. If I don’t perform well, the contract doesn’t matter. We know where we are as a team now and where we want to be in a few years. It makes me happy.

More than the contract itself, it is the project. We want to be candidates for the title. We want to win races and reach great deeds. It motivates me.

You were born in 2004 – an entire decade after 1994. But you talk about Ayrton Senna with true admiration. What do you mean, if you’ve never seen him run live?

I think if you ask any pilot on the grid, almost everyone would say that Senna was the best of all time. Of course, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton won more titles, and I don’t want to take anything from them – but for me, growing up as Brazilian, I became a Senna admirer not only for what he did on the tracks, but for whom he was and for what he did for Brazil, and still.

My father used to tell me that despite the country’s political and economic situation – with such poverty – Senna was the one who awakened everyone. People of all origins, rich or poor, watched him run and heard him. The way he represented Brazil was something grand.

So when you grow up listening to these stories, watching you on TV, reading about it, you become a fan. His legacy never died. The Ayrton Senna Institute still helps many children in Brazil today.

Did you really watch the Netflix series about it before the F2 final in Abu Dhabi?

Yes, I watched every night before the weekend of the race. I started a few days before – I only finished on Sunday. On Saturday night, I saw the episode in which Senna fights Martin Brundle for the F3 title. It’s the last race of the season – it takes its engine to Italy and then returns to the UK to the final. This was inspiring. Of course, it’s a series – there is a little fiction – but it was a great way to prepare for the title fight. It gave me an extra impetus.

Your helmet is inspired by Senna’s design. Doesn’t that increase the pressure?

No, it’s not. Last year was a deserved tribute – a 30 -year special for Senna. But it’s also the color of my country-our flag-and I’m proud to represent it. People will always mention Senna – so, yes, it’s hard to be compared to him, because no one will ever be what he was. We know where we are now, I’m not gaining races yet. But the fans understand.

It is a great advance compared to the time of mass and Rubens [Barrichello]. At that time, it was more like: either you win, or you are … It’s not good enough. But now, after so many years without a Brazilian in F1, we are back. I think fans understand our situation, our ambitions – and have been patient, supporting me and very kind to me.

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