The Bahrain International Circuit, in the Middle East, will host Formula 1’s first official on-track activity for the 2025 season. Over three days of testing, all 10 teams and 20 drivers will hit the track with the primary goal of fine-tuning their cars and gathering as much data as possible ahead of the World Championship opener.

After an eight-year absence, Brazil is back on the F1 grid. São Paulo native Gabriel Bortoleto, just 20 years old, will proudly represent the green and yellow colors in the world’s premier motorsport competition. Following his title victories in F3 (2023) and F2 (2024), Bortoleto enters F1 as the most decorated of the five rookies debuting this season.

Bortoleto will take on the challenge of driving for Stake F1 Team | Kick Sauber. He will have experienced German driver Nico Hülkenberg as his teammate and seasoned team principal Mattia Binotto—who has held leadership roles with other teams before taking charge of the Swiss team.

The on-track sessions in Manama will be split into morning and afternoon runs on Wednesday (26th), Thursday (27th), and Friday (28th). Each team is allowed only one car on track per session. According to Sauber’s engineering team, Bortoleto will participate in the afternoon sessions on Wednesday and Thursday and the morning session on Friday.

“I’m really excited to finally get behind the wheel for real this year. Since January, I’ve been working hard in the simulators, and now it’s time to put everything into practice on track. My main goal will be to provide engineers with all the data they need while also focusing on adapting to the car and the team’s working methodology. We have a very productive few days ahead, and I’m sure I’ll be able to cover a significant mileage to be well-prepared for the first race,” said the driver.

The subscription-based channel Band Sports will broadcast all three days of testing live.

Gabriel Bortoleto is personally sponsored by Banco BRB, Kit Kat, and Porto.

Photos: Courtesy | Stake F1 Team | Kick Sauber

Press office of Gabriel Bortoleto
Responsible journalist: Flávio Quick