Jonathan Wheatley has admitted that Gabriel Bortoleto\u2019s level of maturity is the aspect of the rookie\u2019s debut season in F1 that he has been \u201cmost surprised by\u201d.<\/p>\n
Bortoleto<\/a> was one of a number of new arrivals on the grid this year, having made the step up from his championship-winning F2 campaign to join Kick Sauber<\/a> in the top echelon.<\/p>\n Since then the Brazilian has gone on to score points on five occasions \u2013 which included a career-best P6 in Hungary \u2013 while his partnership with veteran team mate Nico Hulkenberg<\/a> has so far brought home a total of 60 points.<\/p>\n Sharing his thoughts on Bortoleto\u2019s rookie season during the Mexico City Grand Prix weekend, Wheatley<\/a> \u2013 who joined Kick Sauber as the squad\u2019s new Team Principal in April \u2013 praised the 21-year-old for how he has approached his first campaign in the sport.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s the maturity that I\u2019ve been the most surprised by,\u201d said Wheatley. \u201cWhen you consider his age, the way he handles things \u2013 the frustration, the natural things you’d imagine from a driver in his first season \u2013 he handles them with such maturity.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve talked before about his work ethic; if he can be in the simulator, he\u2019s in the simulator \u2013 if he can be on a simulator, he\u2019s on a simulator. And I think on top of that, the way he\u2019s knitting his engineering team around him \u2013 the way they\u2019re working together \u2013 is hugely encouraging as well.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd the final piece in the puzzle for me is when he\u2019s at a tricky circuit, he builds up to it. Monaco, he built up to it \u2013 his only contact with the barrier was in the race. Same in Baku, same in Singapore.<\/p>\n \u201cHe just has such a mature approach, so I\u2019m hugely encouraged by his performance so far.\u201d<\/p>\n Entering into the final races of Bortoleto\u2019s maiden F1 season, much of the focus for Kick Sauber will be on the tight midfield battle in the Teams\u2019 Championship<\/a>, with only 12 points covering those placed between sixth and ninth.<\/p>\n