Formula 2 title contender Gabriel Bortoleto has emerged as the frontrunner to land the second Sauber seat in 2025 - if the squad opts to pursue the young driver route.
The Brazilian, who won the FIA F3 title in 2023, is enjoying an encouraging F2 campaign where he has taken two feature race victories and is currently second in the standings.
He is just 10.5 points behind championship leader Isack Hadjar with events in Baku, Qatar and Abu Dhabi to go.
Bortoleto’s name first emerged as a Sauber option several weeks ago, at a time when it appeared incumbent Valtteri Bottas was the favourite to secure a cockpit there for next season.
However, on the back of an impressive F2 feature race victory for Bortoleto in Monza, sources have suggested that the team’s management has become more serious in recent days about the youngster becoming Nico Hulkenberg’s team-mate.
New Audi CTO and COO Mattia Binotto said recently that the squad needed to weigh up whether to slot in an experienced driver alongside Hulkenberg or opt for a youngster.
“It's definitely something that we need to judge: are we going for experience or something else?” he said.
“This is a project which is looking to a long-term objective, so what's the best for us from now to the final goal? Is it more having short-term experience and then moving to something different?
“We need to decide and today I think we are not in the position to answer. We are certainly listening to all potential drivers. We are certainly evaluating what the pros and the cons are for the best compromise.”
Pursuing Bortoleto as an option would require Sauber to reach an agreement with McLaren to either release him or loan him out, as he is part of its young driver programme. The Woking-based squad has invested in developing him and last week he completed his first F1 test in a 2022 McLaren at the Red Bull Ring.
Sources claim that McLaren has already indicated it will not stand in Bortoleto’s way if there is a chance of him landing an F1 seat elsewhere, but this has not been confirmed by the team.
However, rumours that McLaren has agreed to release him from his contract or sanctioned a loan deal are understood to be wide of the mark, as discussions have not got that far yet.
Interest in Bortoleto would appear to be bad news for Bottas, who is seeking a fresh contract from Sauber to carry through into next year.
Having endured a frustrating season with the Hinwil-based outfit, he felt that Binotto’s arrival had lifted hopes for the future and opened more interest in him remaining on board.
Speaking at the Italian Grand Prix, Bottas expressed confidence that Binotto would understand the value his vast experience could bring.
“Options are limited for me,” said the Finn. “That's how it is...[Mattia] really understands what he can get out of me for the team.
“So that's a good thing for me, obviously. And if I can get involved into a project for the years ahead, which is an interesting project, a car manufacturer, then I'm interested as well.
“There's interest on both ways. And, yeah, we've made some progress. But I don't want to give anything more than that."
Should Bortoleto get the nod for the Sauber seat, then he would be the third total rookie to step up to Formula 1 next year – alongside Andrea Kimi Antonelli at Mercedes and Jack Doohan at Alpine.
Oliver Bearman is also confirmed for a 2025 race seat at Haas, but the young Briton has already competed at a grand prix, as a stand-in for Carlos Sainz in Saudi Arabia, and is racing in Azerbaijan this weekend as a replacement for the banned Kevin Magnussen.
