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The identity of Kick Sauber’s second driver for 2025 is yet to be announced, but Max Verstappen believes that F2 championship leader Gabriel Bortoleto is the man the squad should sign to race alongside Nico Hulkenberg.
While Hulkenberg was announced back in April as joining the team next year ahead of their transition into being Audi’s works outfit in 2026, speculation has been continuing over who will partner the German, with the futures of current drivers Valtteri Bottas and Zhou Guanyu both unclear.
READ MORE: Bottas admits he ‘can’t do more’ with Kick Sauber’s car to ‘showcase’ why he deserves a seat in 2025
Another name linked to the seat is that of Bortoleto, the 20-year-old Brazilian who is part of the McLaren Driver Development programme. After winning the Formula 3 championship on his debut in 2023, Bortoleto has impressed so far in his first F2 campaign and currently leads the standings by 4.5 points from Isack Hadjar ahead of the final two rounds.
When quizzed about the young driver during Thursday’s press conference at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, Verstappen expressed his view that Bortoleto would be the best option for Sauber ahead of a new set of technical regulations being introduced in the sport in 2026.
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