Gabriel Bortoleto will be replaced by a rookie in Austria’s first free practice session as per FIA regulations
Brazilian driver Gabriel Bortoleto, representative of the Audi team in Formula 1, will not participate in the first free practice session for the Austrian Grand Prix, which is scheduled for this Friday morning (26) at 8:30 am (Brasília time). His place in the session will be taken by Estonian Paul Aron, who acts as Alpine’s reserve driver and was loaned to the German team specifically for this activity.
However, this change in formation for the initial session is a routine procedure within the category, and Bortoleto has confirmed his return for subsequent activities on the track. He will be present at the two remaining training sessions, one scheduled for Friday itself and the other for Saturday.
The International Automobile Federation (FIA) establishes a rule that obliges all Formula 1 teams to dedicate four free practice sessions annually to drivers classified as “novices”. This classification covers not only young drivers, but also those who have competed in a maximum of two races in the main motorsport category.
In accordance with this determination, each main driver must give up his car on two occasions during the season for these newcomers to participate in training. Interestingly, this requirement did not apply to Gabriel Bortoleto the previous year, as he himself was a newcomer to the category, and his first two F1 practice appearances were counted under this same rule. Currently, the only driver exempt from this rule for the season is rookie Arvid Lindblad, from the Racing Bulls team.
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Paul Aron, who now replaces Bortoleto on the Red Bull Ring circuit, had already participated in the initial training session for the Barcelona-Catalunya GP. On that occasion, he took over from German Nico Hulkenberg and demonstrated a good performance, reaching sixth place, ahead of Bortoleto, who faced problems with his car during the same activity.
With this participation, the Audi team has already completed two of the four training sessions with rookie drivers required for the year. Until the end of the season, both Bortoleto and Hulkenberg will need to give up their respective cars in one more activity each to complete the regulations.
For Bortoleto, the expectation is for a more robust and consistent performance in Austria, a place that holds good memories, as it was there that the Brazilian won his first points in Formula 1. In the two most recent races, the Audi driver finished in 11th place, remaining on the edge of the points zone; Now, the main objective is to return to the top ten.
The driver expressed his feelings about the moment: “We arrived in Austria aware that we should have scored points in recent events and that didn’t happen. Although it’s obviously frustrating, we are also clear about the performance we can deliver and are looking forward to another chance to get into the top ten. I have great memories of last year’s race in Spielberg: I got my first points in Formula 1 there, and it was a great day for the team, with Nico also scoring. It’s something we would love to replicate this year. I have confidence in the team’s work and I’m looking forward to it.” for the disputes we will have this weekend.”
In addition to Paul Aron, three other drivers considered rookies are confirmed for the first training session in Austria: Jak Crawford (Aston Martin), Ryo Hirakawa (Haas) and Luke Browning (Williams).
