Bortoleto praises Audi’s first F1 chassis but pinpoints engine deficit

Bortoleto sees strength in Audi’s first F1 platform

Gabriel Bortoleto believes Audi has delivered a “very strong” first Formula 1 chassis, even if the Brazilian is clear that the team’s biggest performance gap remains on the power unit side.

The margins have been particularly sharp in recent races. Hulkenberg finished ninth on the road in Monaco before a 10-second penalty dropped him out of the points. In Barcelona, he was running in the points behind Liam Lawson before a gravel stone kicked up by the Racing Bulls driver hit the ERS kill switch, denying the German what would have been his first points finish of the season. Lawson went on to finish eighth.

Engine performance remains the central target

“I think it’s clear that we have a chassis that is very strong,” Bortoleto told media, including RacingNews365. “It’s not a championship-winning chassis yet; we don’t have that car yet that, if we had a great engine in it, we would have been able to win races, but we have a chassis that is very competitive today.”

That view aligns with the broader picture around Audi’s current development challenge, with the team’s power unit programme already under close focus. For more background on that technical push, read our analysis of why Audi is facing a complex power unit push after a difficult F1 start.

ADUO data underlines the gap

Bortoleto also pointed to ADUO data as evidence of the deficit. “It’s clear also from the ADUO that we have a deficit on the engine. It’s clear that we are losing quite a lot per lap,” he said.

The Brazilian referenced Mattia Binotto’s previous suggestion that the loss can be more than a second per lap, depending on the circuit, adding that this was “not an exaggeration” but simply the reality of Audi’s current position.

“This is the truth about where we are standing, and it’s normal, because it’s the first season of our engine,” Bortoleto said. “We develop everything in-house with people who have been in Audi for many years now. So, yeah, I think that the place where we have the most margin to improve is definitely the engine.”