In Barcelona, the Brazilian driver participated in three days of collective testing
On Thursday afternoon – April 25th – the collective testing session of the F2 World Championship concluded. All drivers and teams competing in the annual series took the track searching adjustments and performance improvements for their new Dallara models that debuted this year in the competition.
In his debut season in the Championship, Brazilian driver Gabriel Bortoleto seized every minute of open track time to improve his understanding of the new car and naturally dedicate himself to the new demands that this equipment requires, quite different from what he was accustomed to until last year when he was still competing in F3.
As has become tradition in F1 in recent years, the tests took place at the Barcelona Circuit, in Montmeló, Spain. The track, featuring corners of different radii and levels of difficulty, became an ideal stage for drivers and engineers to perform their testing roles for the upcoming stages. The 4,657-meter long circuit is punctuated by 14 turns and three straight sections.
With a very strict schedule for his duties in each of the six sessions, he took to the track (two per day), Bortoleto was a true employee within the schedule created by the team. He conducted several race simulations, qualifying runs, drove with a full tank, used tires, soft tires, and so on… Practically everything he could test.
In total, car #10 from the Invicta Racing team completed an impressive 1,150 kilometers, having completed 247 laps. When at his best performance condition, the current FIA F3 Champion did not disappoint and, with a time of 1m25s143, was the fastest in the second training session on Tuesday.
“I am satisfied with the work we developed here in Spain, and certainly, our engineering team is too. We tested almost every possible car adjustment, tire variations, fuel quantity, etc… Our goal was truly to seek maximum knowledge of this equipment, which is still very new to everyone. I am certainly tired, but above all, happy to have been able to complete my entire job list for these three days,” concluded the 19-year-old Brazilian.
Gabriel returns to Milan later today, the city where he has lived since last year. In the coming days, his focus will be on his physical preparation, as well as, in the simulator already looking forward to the fourth round of the Championship, which will take place between May 17th and 19th in Imola, Italy – his favorite track.
Pictures: James Gasperotti and Dutch Photo Agency
Press Office of Gabriel Bortoleto
Responsible journalist: Flávio Quick