“I was lucky and blessed”
Formula 1 driver reports after horror crash
November 9, 2025 – 12:29 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
On the last lap of the sprint race in Brazil, Gabriel Bortoleto crashed into the barriers. Now the Formula 1 driver is in touch.
It was a shocking moment on Saturday afternoon German time when Formula 1 driver Gabriel Bortoleto suddenly drove into the inner barrier, was thrown away from there and his car then took off before crashing into a barrier again. The 21-year-old’s car was completely destroyed after this accident on the last lap of the sprint race in Brazil.
The Sauber driver himself remained uninjured and has now spoken out about his accident on Instagram. In his story, the German driver’s teammate Nico Hülkenberg wrote: “I was lucky and blessed that I survived my accident today uninjured. It was a violent impact, but I’m still standing on my own two feet, and that shows not only the quality of today’s vehicle design, but also the progress we have made in terms of safety over the years.”
Bortoleto then thanked his team, especially the mechanics, who wanted to get him back on track for qualifying. But nothing came of it. “They worked hard to rebuild my car from the ground up and we almost got it there in time,” said the young racer. Since he was unable to take part in qualifying, Bortoleto will have to start from last place in Sunday’s race.
But he is grateful for this opportunity: “I just want to get in the car, drive, do my best and enjoy the time on the track.” However, he admits that, based on Hülkenberg’s times, a good placing would have been possible for the Sauber drivers. “I really think our car was competitive enough to achieve something this weekend,” said the Brazilian.