Bortoletto off the pitch: Interlagos is not handling Brazilian matches for the first time

Sauber driver Gabriel Bortoletto has withdrawn from the main race of the Sao Paulo GP Team, at the Jose Carlos Pace Raceway, in Interlagos, south of the capital, Sao Paulo, after suffering an accident on the first lap, this Sunday (9/11). However, a look back at the circuit shows that the race was not kind to the Brazilians making their home debut.

Bortoletto withdrew from the race after colliding with Canadian Lance Stroll from Aston Martin. But this is not the first time a Brazilian driver has failed to score points on his home debut. The same happened with Nelson Piquet, Ayrton Senna, Rubens Barrichello and Felipe Massa. (See more less).

The only person to have achieved a remarkable victory on his debut at GB Sao Paulo, then called GB Brasil, was Emerson Fittipaldi, in 1973, when he was racing for the John Player Lotus team. On that occasion, the driver won the race – a result he repeated the following year, in 1974. Since then, no other Brazilian has scored on his Interlagos debut.

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Bortoletto retired from the GP Sao Paulo race at Interlagos after being touched by Lance Stroll on the first lap.

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The professionals are preparing Bortoletto’s car for the Grand Prix on Sunday (9/11)

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Gabriel Bortoletto, Sauber Formula 1 driver, at the media day of the 2025 Sao Paulo Grand Prix

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Bortoletto will break an eight-year drought without Brazilians at Interlagos in Formula 1

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Bortoletto was fifth.

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Bortoletto, Alonso and Verstappen

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In 2026, Binotto will head Audi’s Bortoletto team

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A quick look at the Brazilian drivers on their debut at Interlagos

Just like Bortoletto Pique He withdrew from the first race in which he participated at the Sao Paulo Circuit in 1979 after coming into contact with a competing car.
Sinawho made his debut in Brazilian racing in 1984, when the stages were still held in Rio de Janeiro, at the Jacarepagua circuit, also abandoned the race. He was driving in Tolman and the car suddenly stopped.
The Brazilian idol competed in motorsport for the first time at Interlagos in 1990. That year, he also suffered a hit from a competitor and had to change the front of his car, resulting in him falling back to the back of the grid.
However, Senna was able to return to the race and made a recovery ride, finishing third.
In addition to Piquet and Senna. Barrichello He also abandoned his first race at Interlagos in 1993, after a gearbox failure in the Jardon car, the team for which he was a driver.
Massa made his debut on the track in 2002 with Sauber, the same team that Gabriel races for today. On that occasion, he was hit by another car, forcing him to abandon the race.

Brazilians lead the number of columns in Interlagos

Despite their disastrous starts, Brazilian drivers still lead the pack Pole positions It was achieved at the Sao Paulo circuit. Statistics issued by Formula 1 showed that Brazil started from first place on the grid 14 times throughout history. There were six Poles One by Senna, three by Massa, three by Barrichello, one by Fittipaldi and one by Piquet.

Drivers from Great Britain have started from the front at Interlagos 12 times. The final pole was won on Saturday (11/8) by an English driver by Lando Norris, who leads the championship with McLaren. After that, Finland and Germany appear with six Pole positions all.

“Another race of the season”

On the eve of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, Bortoletto told the press that the 21st stage of the season, held at Interlagos, is like any other stage of the year. “We’ve done a lot, but I’m definitely more excited. I want to drive. I want to feel what Interlagos is like and everything, but I don’t see it as pressure,” the Sauber driver said.

“He doesn’t need to do better or worse because he’s in Brazil,” said the 21-year-old, who was a Formula 2 and 3 champion in his early years.

On Saturday (11/8), Gabriel was involved in a serious accident during qualifying practice, which prevented him from making a lap around the circuit to try to reach Q2 and forced him to start from 19th position, due to a penalty suffered by Max Verstappen, who changed the engine of the No. 1 car in Parc Vermé. Despite this, he said he hopes to have a good time in Sunday’s race.

Great start

The Brazilian excelled throughout the season, his first appearance in Formula 1, by scoring points on several occasions, even in a non-competitive car. Furthermore, he is the youngest driver to score points in the main category of world motorsport.

This year, Bortoletto has scored goals in Austria, Belgium, Hungary, Italy and the United States, reaching 19 points, which places him 19th in the tournament.

Next year, the driver will continue in the same team alongside his teammate Nico Hulkenberg. However, Sauber will be transferred to Audi, the promising team that bought the rights to enter Formula 1.