Sauber have received perhaps unexpected advice over their driver conundrum from 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:Max Verstappen.

The only available seat remaining in the 168澳洲5最新开奖结果:2025 F1 driver line-up is with the team who ♒will evolve into Audi a year later.

Sauber are weighing up whether to keep Valtteri Bottas alongside their new signing from Haas, Nico Hulkenberg, or to give a chance to rookie Gabriel Bortolet🌠o.

F1 champion Verstappen unequivocally backed Bortoleto🦄 in the 🎶battle for the drive.

“Yeah, I mean,♏ if I was Sauber, I would have signe⭕d him already,” Verstappen insisted.

“I mean, especially if that's anyway the future, 𒉰you know, young d♎rivers. And ‘26, big rule change.

“It'ܫs always good to get used to a team already for a year, make your mistakes here and there, get integrated well, understand the car a bit.

“You🌺 always feel much more prepared and comfortable when you then start in ‘26.”

Bottas has been in talks with Sauber for several weeks over extending his stay but has still not been offered the chance toไ put pen to paper.

Bortoleto is currently impressing by leading the Formula 2 championships and enters his home round in B🔜razil this weekꦉend. He is the reigning F3 champion too.

But he is contracted by McLaren providing an additional hurdle if Sauberౠ opt to give him the nod.

“I think he's been doing a very impressive job,” McLaren’s Oscar Piastri s🌺aid.

“Obviously winning F3 as a rook🍌ie las🔴t year and now leading the championship in F2.

“So yeah, I thin🧜k from my point of view, when you're achieving those kind of results, you deserve to be in F1.

“ And I have the personal experience of the pain of not getting a seat♓. So for his sake, I hope he doesn't have to go through that.

“I don't think anyone will ever go through quite the extent that I did. But I think he's been doing a very go🍸od job.

“Yeah💝, if he's doing it on merit, then I think he deserves a 𓄧place in F1.”

McLaren team principal Andrea Stella has previously indicated that he would be willing to thrash out a deal with Sauber which enables Bortoleto to drive their♓ F1 car - but with a catch.

“If Mattia Binotto came to me, when you have such a talent, definitely you’re not going to stop him having a chance in Formula 1,” Stella pr🦩eviouslyܫ said.

“At the same time, we would be definitelಌy interested in finding a way to keep him in the McLaren family.

“Becaus𒁃e I think he is a talent that in the future could b🅠e important for McLaren.”