Damon Hill shares what he’s heard about why Sauber signed Gabriel Bortoleto over Valtteri Bottas

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Sauber were the ninth team in the Formula 1 paddock to confirm their driver line-up for the 2025 season.

Having not scored a point all season, Sauber don’t have the same draw as many of their rivals in the paddock when it comes to attracting the best drivers.

Sauber wanted Carlos Sainz when it was clear he was losing his seat at Ferrari.

However, despite his father’s connection to the team having won the Dakar Rally with Audi, Sainz decided to join rivals Williams.

Esteban Ocon was another target for Sauber, but he chose Haas over the Swiss-based team despite the fact that last season they finished bottom of the Constructors’ Championship.

This left the team who will become Audi in 2026 searching around for a second driver having already confirmed Nico Hulkenberg earlier in the year.

After months of speculation, Sauber signed Gabriel Bortoleto, leaving Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu without a race seat for 2025.

Damon Hill was speaking on the F1 Nation Podcast and shared what he had heard about why Sauber went with Bortoleto over the experienced Finn.

Damon Hill shares what he heard about Sauber’s decision to hire Gabriel Bortoleto

Bottas looked well placed to stay at Sauber at one point but ultimately, Sauber wanted to pair the experienced Hulkenberg with a young driver.

It means Bortoleto is the fourth confirmed rookie joining the grid, with Liam Lawson and Franco Colapinto still hoping to join the 20-year-old in the paddock next year.

Talking about the move, Hill said: “From what I’ve heard, I’ve heard quite a few comments along the lines of Mattia has registered the way in which young drivers can jump in and be quite effective quite early on and I think that he’s looked at the F2 performances and obviously Gabriel is fantastic.

READ MORE: Who is 2025 Sauber driver Gabriel Bortoleto? Everything you need to know

“And I think there’s an element of a new broom sweeps clean.

“He’s got to have a fresh look team and the carryover sometimes is perhaps putting a young driver and an experienced driver together is a good combination.

“So, why he signed up Nico, look, he’s a German driver I mean, it sort of fits doesn’t it?

“Audi, German driver, I can understand that. So anyway, possibly that’s that’s my take on it.”

Gabriel Bortoleto already a huge admirer of Max Verstappen ahead of F1 debut

Bortoleto joins Formula 1 at an exciting time when there appears to be a changing attitude towards promoting young drivers.

The likes of Oliver Bearman, Franco Colapinto and Liam Lawson have changed many people’s perspectives on how quickly rookies can get up to speed in F1.

Bortoleto doesn’t have much experience in single-seater racing, but that makes his Formula 3 championship win and maiden F2 campaign – he’s currently leading the standings with two rounds to go – even more impressive.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Stake F1 Team Kick Sauber from team principal to Audi future

The likes of Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso, Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg are now in the minority given their vast experience at this level.

Instead, it’s Max Verstappen’s cohort that are now dominating the sport and Bortoleto has shared why he admires Verstappen so much ahead of racing against the 27-year-old.

Unfortunately for the Brazilian, unless Sauber make significant progress over the winter, the only time they’ll see each other on track is when Verstappen is lapping him.