Gabriel Bortoleto expressed full confidence that Audi will be able to overcome its current power deficit and become one of the leading engine manufacturers in Formula 1 in the future.
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The German team made its debut in the category at the Australian GP last weekend, after taking over the operation previously known as Sauber, and Bortoleto took the R26 to ninth place, a result considered very good for a car still in the adaptation phase.
Despite the good performance, the race at the Albert Park circuit revealed limitations of the power unit, designed internally by Audi at the newly renovated Neuburg factory.
“I have no doubt,” Bortoleto stated when asked about the evolution of Audi’s V6 engine. “I can’t say when we’ll get there, but I can guarantee we will. Whether it’s this year or next, I don’t know, but I have full confidence that we will be one of the leading engine manufacturers in the future. We understand the reasons for the lack of power, and it’s just a matter of working and learning. Some teams have been doing this for fifteen years, and we are in the first year of building our engine, so it’s not easy,” the Brazilian driver said.
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Team principal Jonathan Wheatley reinforced that the new hybrid engines are still in the early stages and will continue to evolve in the coming years: “We are in the early stages of this set of technical regulations, which is the biggest technical change of my career, perhaps of all time. As the cars become more sophisticated, the engines become more efficient and the racing more balanced,” he explained.
The 2026 rules were designed to give opportunities to disadvantaged manufacturers, allowing additional engine updates based on performance relative to the season benchmark. Bortoleto highlighted that the current focus is on the upcoming races, and that the team is still learning how to use the car’s energy strategically: “It’s fascinating to see how the cars use their energy during the lap, trying to overtake. It was exhausting, not only physically but mentally, because of the energy use and recovery,” the young driver concluded.
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