Gabriel Bortleto became the first F1 driver to retire from both races at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix at Interlagos and admitted he was very upset.
The Sauber rookie was jockeying for position towards the end of the sprint when he suffered a major accident at Turn 1, losing control on the wet road and suffering an estimated impact of 57Gs. So Bortleto narrowly missed qualifying despite the team’s valiant efforts to rebuild the car for him, crashing out in a battle with Lance Stroll on the opening lap of Sunday’s race.
“It’s a tough weekend,” Bortleto said. “I’m very upset because it was my first home race. You always expect me to do a good job or at least race a little bit.
“I think it was one of the toughest weekends of my entire career, because I know my fans, my family, my team are here. It means a lot to them as well. I also had one of the biggest accidents of my career, probably the biggest accident…I think it was a combination of a few things.”
“And after a good start up until that moment, I hadn’t done a single lap in the race. I had already gained two positions and was about to make a third move and I think I just made contact with Lance. I don’t want to point fingers here and there. I just think this is a race thing. On the first lap, anything can happen.”
“I think obviously I was on the outside. I couldn’t get any space from him, but it was also hard for him to tell that I was there. So I just want to move forward and get to the next race.”
Although Bortolet was disappointed not to complete a competitive lap after the sprint, he said he was grateful for the enthusiastic support he received from the Interlagos crowd as he became the first Brazilian to race locally since Felipe Nasr in 2016.
“I just want to say thank you, thank you, because even in the difficult moments this weekend, they were there, supporting me, cheering me on, shouting my name, being there for me, so I can’t thank them enough.
“It’s really incredible to see my country so happy to have someone and I want to make them proud right away, because a weekend like this definitely makes no one happy, not just me. But thank you everyone, all the Brazilians there, and everyone around the world who is watching and supporting me this weekend.”
