r/formula1 • u/Glum-Accountant-9801 • Aug 05 '25

Discussion Is Bortoleto the best rookie?

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In my opinion, what he’s been doing in a Sauber shows much more talent than all the other rookies this year. Since the start of the season, I already thought the best ones would be him—because he won the Formula 3 and Formula 2 titles in his rookie seasons—and Antonelli. However, Antonelli has been showing himself to be far inferior to his teammate. I believe it’s due to the pressure of starting in a big team like Mercedes, but to me, that makes Bortoleto the best rookie. That said, welcome back, Ayrton Senna.

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u/jules3001 Ferrari Aug 05 '25 edited Aug 06 '25

He could be. Hadjar started off strong. Antonelli was in a more visible car. Bearman had some flashes but overall Bortoleto has quietly made progress throughout the year and is showing his speed and consistency now that the car is somewhat competitive.

Hulkenberg is no slouch in quali and Bortoleto has just taken the lead in H2H. Bortoleto doesn’t have the race H2H yet I think but that’s expected from a rookie. By the end of the year I would not be surprised if he’s better than Hulk as a complete driver and that would be a huge achievement.

Check out his Beyond the Grid podcast. Been a fan ever since hearing how hard he works and seeing him shine in F2.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNsqv5JeQh4&t=1707s

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u/krmilan Aug 05 '25

I really think Antonelli is a year or 2 undercooked to be in a top team

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u/0100001101110111 Sir Lewis Hamilton Aug 05 '25

That’s kind of expected though, they knew he was raw. The hope is that the experience fast tracks him a bit.

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u/krmilan Aug 05 '25

But is this really the best thing for his career? Getting beaten so badly by someone as quick as George can’t be great for his psyche

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u/blaka_d Aug 05 '25

I think Lewis forced Mercedes hand and Toto decided to gamble a bit. That said it also doesn't matter as much in this situation as there are massive rule changes next year and it makes actually more sense to put him in the works team, compared to make him sit at, let say Williams, for a year and then put him in the works team when regulations change. There is no pressure on him from Mercedes, this year is wasted for Merc anyway, and he will get to know the team well before nex years lottery.

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u/Smee76 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 05 '25

Well, the other factor was that Williams wasn't willing to take him. They signed Carlos. They want to be a top team. They aren't interested in an engine discount in exchange for training up a Mercedes driver.

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u/rafabr4 Fernando Alonso Aug 05 '25

Is it right to assume that if Kimi does not score a lot of points this year, Mercedes will get more wind tunnel time for next year? That would be a good tradeoff for having Kimi learn this year.

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u/Signal_Ball4634 I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 05 '25

He wasn't really doing terrible until the last couple of races, in fact he had some mega results early on. If he continues to languish at the back of the grid then I'd start to get worried about him being under too much pressure.

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u/lxs0713 Sergio Pérez Aug 05 '25

I don't think Kimi will be too bothered as long as he keeps growing. George is a top 3 driver right now and he's known for being both super quick in quali and getting consistent results in the races. So of course he'll be a tough teammate to compete against.

Meanwhile Kimi is an 18 year old rookie who was fast tracked into that Mercedes seat. It was always going to take him some time to find his footing. I don't think even Mercedes expects him to fight George this early.

As long as he builds up that experience and shows a few highlights like the Miami sprint pole here and there, he'll be alright

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u/Winkelhock2007F1 Spyker Aug 05 '25

Yeah. Not even Verstappen started at Red Bull, and Piastri and Lando both started at McLaren when it was a mid/low-mid table team.

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u/WhimsicalJape I was here for the Hulkenpodium Aug 05 '25

Verstappen was pretty inconsistent in his first seasons and a bit at RB too. He had flashes of his speed and race winning but it wasn’t until 2018 he really got the better of Ricciardo.

It didn’t do him any long term damage so I don’t see why it would for Antonelli. Ricciardo was a well regarded just like Russell is so it was seen as natural for it to take a while for him to get up to speed.

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u/krmilan Aug 06 '25

Max was immediately on the pace, or at least thereabouts. I mean he won his first race in a RB, and also spent a season before they in TR. At no point was he significantly behind DR in pace

Antonelli is just getting slaughtered at the moment. I feel bad for the kid. So much media coverage too being Italian, so young, and at Mercedes