Gabriel Bortoleto is not expecting a clean getaway at the 2025 Canadian Grand Prix, and he is being refreshingly honest about why. The Audi-Sauber rookie has flagged a recurring launch problem with the team’s first-generation Formula 1 power unit, warning that losing positions off the line in Montreal is the most likely outcome unless something extraordinary happens elsewhere on the grid.
A Problem That Cannot Be Hidden
The sprint race at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve made the issue impossible to ignore. Both Bortoleto and teammate Nico Hulkenberg dropped four positions each at the sprint start, a mirrored result that immediately pointed toward a systemic car or power unit problem rather than individual driver error. When two experienced competitors suffer the same fate in the same moment, the cause is rarely coincidence.
Bortoleto acknowledged the situation openly, noting that avoiding position loss at the grand prix start would require an exceptional launch on his part combined with mistakes from rival drivers. It was a candid and grounded assessment from a rookie who has quickly earned a reputation for clear-headed communication in his debut season.
The Root of the Issue: Audi’s First F1 Power Unit
The problem traces back to the very foundation of Audi’s 2025 Formula 1 project. The manufacturer debuted its own power unit this season as it assumed full operational control of the former Sauber team, marking the brand’s first works presence in Formula 1’s top category. Developing a competitive power unit from scratch is a monumental undertaking, and the launch control software and off-the-line power delivery have emerged as a clear weakness in the early months of the campaign.
Montreal is a particularly unforgiving circuit for this kind of vulnerability. The long run from the grid to the first braking zone at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve gives faster-launching cars significant time to pull away, meaning any deficit in launch performance is amplified compared to tighter street circuits or shorter run-off zones. A poor start here does not just cost a position or two at the first corner. It can shape the entire race strategy.
Reports indicate that the Audi engineering team is actively working to address the launch software and power unit response ahead of the grand prix, but the sprint result suggested that a full resolution before Sunday’s race is not guaranteed.
Bortoleto’s Bigger Picture
Despite the frustration, Bortoleto has not publicly escalated the issue into a crisis. His approach has been measured, a quality that has defined his early Formula 1 career and reflects the composure that made him a Formula 2 champion. He is clearly aware that Audi’s 2025 season is as much about building foundations as it is about results, and that a first-generation power unit will carry teething problems.
Still, the timing is not ideal. The Canadian Grand Prix is one of the marquee events of the Formula 1 calendar, broadcast to a global audience and carrying significant commercial weight for any team looking to attract attention and investment. A strong result here, or even a well-managed race, would mean considerably more visibility than at many other rounds. Losing four or five places before the first corner makes that outcome considerably harder to achieve.
Hulkenberg, the more experienced of the two Audi drivers, suffering the same fate in the sprint offers Bortoleto some context. This is not a confidence problem or an adaptation issue from a driver still finding his feet in Formula 1. This is an engineering challenge that applies equally to both sides of the garage.
What Audi Must Solve
For Audi’s longer-term ambitions in Formula 1, resolving the launch weakness matters beyond any single race result. The manufacturer entered the sport with significant expectations attached, and while 2025 was always going to be a year of learning and infrastructure building, consistent position losses at starts represent a tangible and visible performance gap that will draw scrutiny as the season progresses.
The team is understood to be targeting improvements to both the launch control mapping and the power unit’s initial torque delivery, two areas that interact closely during the critical moments after the lights go out. Progress in this area will not only benefit race results but will also give both drivers more confidence going into standing starts, removing a mental burden that currently sits on top of every other strategic consideration.
Gabriel Bortoleto goes into Sunday’s Canadian Grand Prix with eyes open and expectations managed. He knows the launch is likely to cost him places, and he has said so publicly with a clarity that reflects well on both the driver and his willingness to speak plainly about where the team stands. The more pressing question is how quickly Audi can turn this known weakness into a solved problem. Montreal may deliver another difficult start, but the development race that follows across the remainder of the 2025 season will reveal far more about whether Audi’s Formula 1 project is truly on the right trajectory.