Bortoleto judgment passed as Hulkenberg duel prompts F1 legend verdict

The F1 2025 season saw Jack Doohan (Alpine), Oliver Bearman (Haas), Bortoleto (Sauber), Isack Hadjar (Racing Bulls), Liam Lawson (currently at Racing Bulls) and Andrea Kimi Antonelli (Mercedes) make their debut or as far as Bearman, Doohan and Lawson are concerned, start their first Formula One campaign

Out of this year's generation of rookie drivers, Hakkinen believes it's Bortoleto who's stood out the most, particularly due to his lack of grave errors and his performances against seasoned Sauber teammate Nico Hulkenberg.

"There are many great rookie drivers," Hakkinen said. "First of all, F1 today is a very difficult sport for the young drivers, because the testing programme is very limited. When you don’t have so much testing, it’s difficult to find your limits.

According to the former McLaren champion, the car's difficulty also factors into the equation. Nevertheless, in the Finn's eyes, the Brazilian talent still stands out as the finest rookie of the 2025 campaign.

Hakkinen continued: "It’s quite difficult to say because every car is different. Some cars can be very difficult to handle. Some cars are easier to drive, but they’re a bit slow.

"I think Gabriel Bortoleto has, in my opinion, done quite impressive work. What he’s doing at the moment, against a very experienced teammate (Nico Hulkenberg)... I feel he’s been able to push the car to the limit without huge mistakes compared to other rookies," Hakkinen concluded.

Sauber boss Jonathan Wheatley has also praised the Brazilian talent for his work ethics, maturity and speed, going as far as to claim there are certain similarities between the rookie and four-time world champion Max Verstappen.

Hulkenberg has also showered Bortoleto compliments due to his raw pace and consistency.

Want to stay up-to-date with what happens in the F1 paddock? Then GPblog's F1 Paddock Update video is the perfect way to do it. Subscribe to GPblog's YouTube channel and turn on notifications to never miss the latest episodes.