Current F2 title challenger Gabriel Bortoleto might be the next Oscar Piastri of Formula 1! Remember the time when Oscar served as an Alpine reserve driver and the French outfit wanted to hire him for F1? At the start of the 2023 season, Fernando Alonso went to Aston Martin, and Alpine announced that they were promoting Piastri to take the 2-time World Champion’s spot in the team. However, the Aussie ditched the Enstone squad and went to McLaren instead. Now, Bortoleto has said something about his future plans that might indicate that he wants to drive for the papaya army too.

The constant rumors in F1 town have connected Bortoleto to a seat on the Audi team. As per Formu1a.uno, the German outfit’s CTO Mattia Binotto has some plans to hire Gabriel Bortoleto for Audi’s Formula 1 debut in 2026. But the 19-year-old has been a part of the McLaren Driver Development Programme since October 2023. And he has already expressed wishes to race for the papaya outfit in the future. So, F1 fans might once again see some drama unfold if Audi announces the Brazilian as their new recruit and Bortoleto refuses the offer publicly just like Oscar Piastri had done with Alpine.

Meanwhile, if Bortoleto does not want the Audi seat, current Sauber racer Valtteri Bottas stands a chance of inheriting it after the Audi takeover of Sauber. Motorsportweek quoted Gabriel speaking on his wishes to uphold his deal with McLaren as he said, “Let’s see what the future holds. I’m doing my job as best I can in F2, not in difficulty, but so that I’m ready to move up to F1. I’d say that’s my situation at the moment. I have a contract with McLaren, I’m their junior driver, I have a long-term contract.”

However, having ex-Ferrari leader Mattia Binotto take notice of his talents must be a big deal for Gabriel Bortoleto. So, what did he say about the sudden attention he is getting because of his links to Audi?

Bortoleto reveals he feels grateful for Mattia Binotto’s focus on him

At only 19, Bortoleto has already achieved the FIA F3 Championship victory and is one of the title contenders in his debut F2 season as well. In this regard, he is quite similar to Oscar Piastri since the Australian had also won the F3 and F2 titles before moving into Formula 1. And since Oscar is doing so well for McLaren, perhaps Mattia Binotto wants to hire Gabriel now. Thus, the Italian news outlet, Formu1a.uno shared news on the new Audi CTO’s interest in Bortoleto.

Overwhelmed to hear that one of the top F1 personnel is focusing on him, Gabriel Bortoleto told the media, “It’s gratifying to be mentioned by someone who deals with Formula 1 because that’s where I want to get to.” But the fact that the Brazilian youngster is a McLaren junior deserves special mention here because his career depends on Zak Brown’s decisions. If the CEO of the Woking outfit decides against it, Bortoleto will not be able to join Audi in spite of Mattia Binotto’s interests.

With McLaren and Audi being two potential places for Gabriel Bortoleto to move to, the future seems bright for the Invicta racer. Which team do you think he will go to if he gets offers from both of them?