2026 Japanese Grand Prix – Sunday 🇯🇵
Audi Revolut F1 Team finished just over a second away from the points at Suzuka, with Nico Hülkenberg charging through to P11 after dropping to 19th on the opening lap. Gabriel Bortoleto also faced a busy race in the midfield and came home in P13.
Audi Revolut F1 Team finished just over a second away from the points at Suzuka, with Nico Hülkenberg charging through to P11 after dropping to 19th on the opening lap. Gabriel Bortoleto also faced a busy race in the midfield and came home in P13.
With Formula One now pausing until the Miami Grand Prix in May, the team will use the break to analyse the opening three races and continue developing the R26. The signs so far are encouraging, with Audi proving it can fight around the points.
Mattia Binotto said the race brought mixed feelings. On the positive side, both cars completed the full distance, reliability was strong, and the operation ran cleanly, including solid pit stops. He added that the pace was encouraging too, with Nico’s recovery drive showing the car has the potential to compete around the top ten. Gabriel also had the pace to be in that fight, but the conditions of the race did not allow him to show his full potential.
At the same time, Binotto was clear about the areas needing improvement. Starts remain a weakness, with both cars losing significant ground on lap one, which compromised the good work done in qualifying. Drivability and energy management also remain key areas of focus as the team continues to learn with a young package.
Nico Hülkenberg (Car 27)
Race: P11
Fastest lap: 1:33.732 (Lap 47)
Strategy: New Medium → New Hard (Lap 23)
Nico said the pace was strong enough to fight for points, but a poor start made life difficult. Falling from P13 to P19 left him stuck in traffic for much of the race. He added that racing these cars remains tricky because of current energy management and overtaking dynamics, but completing the race gave the team valuable data ahead of Miami.
Gabriel Bortoleto (Car 5)
Race: P13
Fastest lap: 1:34.164 (Lap 40)
Strategy: New Medium → New Hard (Lap 22)
Gabriel said the race was reasonably positive overall, with the Safety Car helping his strategy, but admitted the start once again hurt the result. He stressed that starts are an area the team has known it must improve since the opening race, and said the long break now gives everyone time to work together and return stronger in Miami.
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