KICK Sauber F1 Team saw its run of six consecutive points finishes come to an end at Zandvoort, as Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto brought their Sauber C45s home in 14th and 15th place at the Dutch Grand Prix.
The weekend proved a difficult one for the Hinwil-based squad, which had shown stronger pace in recent rounds. Three Safety Cars shaped the flow of the race, but the green-and-black cars were never able to capitalize, slipping back from the fight for points.
Team Principal Jonathan Wheatley called the day “frustrating” after missed opportunities compounded a lack of outright speed. Hulkenberg made a solid launch but lost out strategically under every Safety Car period, then was pushed wide by Franco Colapinto at the final restart — a clash that cost him a potential shot at 11th.
For Bortoleto, the race unraveled early. A poor getaway left him on the back foot before contact with Colapinto damaged his bodywork, blunting performance. A late gamble to keep him out on worn tires didn’t hold, forcing a switch to fresh softs that left him finishing 15th.
The result dropped Sauber from seventh to eighth in the Constructors’ Championship, a setback after weeks of steady momentum. Still, Wheatley noted the positives elsewhere in the paddock, congratulating Isack Hadjar on his maiden podium.
“Altogether, a bad day in the office,” Wheatley admitted. “But we will return to Hinwil, refocus, rebuild, and come back stronger for the next round in Monza.”
With the final European race of the season just around the corner, the team now turns its attention to Italy. Sauber’s consistent form this year has marked it as one of the strongest midfield players in the run-up to Audi’s official F1 entry — and Zandvoort will be viewed as a stumble rather than a reversal.
Jonathan Wheatley, Team Principal
“First and foremost, I want to congratulate Isack [Hadjar] for his maiden podium: he delivered a great performance throughout the whole weekend, and I hope he truly enjoys this moment. Looking at our race, it has been a very frustrating day at the end of a challenging weekend here in Zandvoort. When it comes to both drivers’ races, there were missed opportunities and an overall lack of pace. Gabi had a poor start, something we will need to investigate thoroughly; he also sustained bodywork damage early on from a contact with Colapinto, hampering his performance significantly. Nico, by contrast, had a good start but missed out under every Safety Car, whether by bad timing or by decisions that, in hindsight, didn’t work out.
His race was further complicated by being pushed off track by Colapinto at the final restart, without which he could have finished 17 th
“At the final Safety Car, we opted to keep Gabi out on worn tyres in an attempt to retain track position, but we just didn’t have the pace to stay ahead of our rivals, so we fitted new softs as he went on to finish 15th. It’s disappointing to see our run of point-scoring races end, and our championship position drop from seventh to eighth. Altogether, a bad day in the office: but we will return to Hinwil, refocus, rebuild and come back stronger for the next round in Monza.”
Nico Hulkenberg (car number 27)
Race result: 14th
Fastest lap: 1:14.912 (Lap 61)
Strategy & Pit Stops: Start (New Soft) – Lap 19 (New Hard) – Lap 53 (New Medium)
“There’s definitely a feeling of missed opportunity today. We need to review everything in detail, but a lot was going on out there, and the timing of the two Safety Cars really didn’t play into our hands. It gave others a free stop and pushed us further back, which made an already tricky race even more difficult. From there, we were stuck in traffic and making progress was almost impossible.
“It’s frustrating, especially when you see what some of our direct competitors managed to extract from the race. That obviously doesn’t help the mood, given how tight the Constructors’ fight is at the moment.
“Still, setbacks are part of the sport. It’s not the result we wanted, but we’ll analyse everything, reset, and go again in just a few days in Monza.”
Gabriel Bortoleto (car number 5):
Race result: 15th
Fastest lap: 1:14.307 (Lap 63)
Strategy & Pit Stops: Start (New Medium) – Lap 22 (New Hard) – Lap 60 (New Soft)
“It’s been a rather frustrating race for us. I suffered an issue on the clutch at the start, which put me straight to the back – something we will analyse to understand exactly what happened. From there, it was always going to be a tough challenge, but I feel we also missed a couple of opportunities: I had some on-track contacts, which caused damage to my car, as well as being unlucky with the Safety Car timing. Congratulations to Isack [Hadjar): it was nice to see him on the podium. Overall, it hasn’t been the easiest of weekends for us, but that’s racing: we’ll review and move on, already looking at Monza in a week’s time.”
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