Bortoletto admitted to a mistake in fighting Alonso.

      On the previous stage in Austria, Gabriel Bortoleto scored his first points in Formula 1 by finishing eighth. During the race, the Brazilian fought with Fernando Alonso, and at Silverstone, Gabriel admitted that he failed to overtake the Aston Martin driver due to his own mistake.

      Gabriel Bortoleto: "I believe I made a mistake when attempting to overtake Fernando at the third turn, and then he gained DRS on the exit. Perhaps I should have waited and gained DRS myself on the turn exit. Probably, then I could have overtaken him. That was a key moment because I had one or two laps to make the move, as it was happening closer to the finish.

      When I attempted to overtake, Fernando slowed down. I also tried to slow down, but I was already committed to the pass and couldn’t stop before the DRS detection line, passing it earlier than Fernando. He played it very smartly and was able to overtake me immediately, then keep me behind for another lap.

      Then I started to see blue flags because of Lando Norris, and I had to let him through for a lap. After that, I didn’t try to overtake Fernando anymore."

      Bortoleto added that fighting with Alonso on the track is not so easy for him, partly because Fernando is also his manager: "I’ve followed Fernando's performances since childhood, and now he is also my manager. But when you put on your helmet visor and race on the track, you don’t really think about such things. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t deny that fighting with Fernando is different from fighting with other drivers.

      I gave it my all, although I could have done some things better. Fernando defended brilliantly and positioned his car properly on the track during the blue flag situations."