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Is one of F1’s new teams at risk of losing momentum after race cancellations?
Audi has started the 2026 season strongly, but could the Formula 1 spring break halt this charge?
Audi has enjoyed a strong start to the 2026 Formula 1 season, and Gabriel Bortoleto is determined to continue this momentum through the unscheduled spring break, despite the disruption to the “huge learning curve” of the new regulations.
F1 reacted to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East by cancelling both the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix. While the move was met with approval, it has resulted in a five-week break between the Japanese and Miami rounds, with no racing taking place in April.
While all teams may be in the same boat, for those enjoying a strong start to the campaign, like Audi, it risks halting the positive momentum gained.
“I don’t think it matters, right? I think it’s the same for everyone,” said Bortoleto. “Obviously, the teams that are a bit more on top of things, probably for them, it matters a bit less than for teams that are still in a huge learning curve, but we also have nowadays in F1, we have a lot of facilities that help us, tools that help us to develop the car and things offline, when we are not on track.
“So we will still be making a lot of progress and work in the dyno, and a lot of simulator things. Obviously, the biggest learning you can get is when you are on the track, but also, we are happy to be doing work in the dyno sessions and in the simulator sessions.”
In a bid to continue the early positivity, Bortoleto will not be spending more time at home than normal, adding: “To be honest, I filled my calendar with splitting the simulator days in Switzerland and Germany, where we have the simulator facilities for the engine, so we have a lot of work to be done in both of the sims.
“I basically will be spending a lot of time in both the facilities and just hope to optimise the time that we would be on the track, spending time with the engineers and improving things that we need to.”
Audi may have only scored two points so far, both through Bortoleto in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, but the team has been a constant challenger for a top 10 berth on the grid, and has been pushing for further points in both China and Japan, with Nico Hulkenberg taking the flag one place shy on both occasions.
While there is a risk to this forward momentum, the pause could also help Audi to reset after the sudden departure of team principal Jonathan Wheatley, who left the outfit following the Chinese Grand Prix and has been linked to a position with backmarkers Aston Martin.
As for the team personnel, time away from the factory has been severely limited in recent months, with the late finish of the 2025 season rolling into the final preparations for 2026, and launch season. This unexpected break, while used for development, will also allow some extra family time, something that is all too rare in the F1 sphere.
“I think it’s incredible for them,” said Bortoleto. “I think they all deserve it. As a racing driver, even if I am on track, I always put these people; they normally arrive earlier than I do, and they leave after I do, because they have much work to do, so for them, it is good to spend some time with family and be able to be a bit more at home, for sure.”
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Audi has started the 2026 season strongly, but could the Formula 1 spring break halt this charge?
Audi has enjoyed a strong start to the 2026 Formula 1 season, and Gabriel Bortoleto is determined to continue this momentum through the unscheduled spring break, despite the disruption to the “huge learning curve” of the new regulations.
F1 reacted to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East by cancelling both the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix. While the move was met with approval, it has resulted in a five-week break between the Japanese and Miami rounds, with no racing taking place in April.
While all teams may be in the same boat, for those enjoying a strong start to the campaign, like Audi, it risks halting the positive momentum gained.
“I don’t think it matters, right? I think it’s the same for everyone,” said Bortoleto. “Obviously, the teams that are a bit more on top of things, probably for them, it matters a bit less than for teams that are still in a huge learning curve, but we also have nowadays in F1, we have a lot of facilities that help us, tools that help us to develop the car and things offline, when we are not on track.
“So we will still be making a lot of progress and work in the dyno, and a lot of simulator things. Obviously, the biggest learning you can get is when you are on the track, but also, we are happy to be doing work in the dyno sessions and in the simulator sessions.”
In a bid to continue the early positivity, Bortoleto will not be spending more time at home than normal, adding: “To be honest, I filled my calendar with splitting the simulator days in Switzerland and Germany, where we have the simulator facilities for the engine, so we have a lot of work to be done in both of the sims.
“I basically will be spending a lot of time in both the facilities and just hope to optimise the time that we would be on the track, spending time with the engineers and improving things that we need to.”
Audi may have only scored two points so far, both through Bortoleto in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, but the team has been a constant challenger for a top 10 berth on the grid, and has been pushing for further points in both China and Japan, with Nico Hulkenberg taking the flag one place shy on both occasions.
While there is a risk to this forward momentum, the pause could also help Audi to reset after the sudden departure of team principal Jonathan Wheatley, who left the outfit following the Chinese Grand Prix and has been linked to a position with backmarkers Aston Martin.
As for the team personnel, time away from the factory has been severely limited in recent months, with the late finish of the 2025 season rolling into the final preparations for 2026, and launch season. This unexpected break, while used for development, will also allow some extra family time, something that is all too rare in the F1 sphere.
“I think it’s incredible for them,” said Bortoleto. “I think they all deserve it. As a racing driver, even if I am on track, I always put these people; they normally arrive earlier than I do, and they leave after I do, because they have much work to do, so for them, it is good to spend some time with family and be able to be a bit more at home, for sure.”
Audi has enjoyed a strong start to the 2026 Formula 1 season, and Gabriel Bortoleto is determined to continue this momentum through the unscheduled spring break, despite the disruption to the “huge learning curve” of the new regulations.
F1 reacted to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East by cancelling both the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix. While the move was met with approval, it has resulted in a five-week break between the Japanese and Miami rounds, with no racing taking place in April.
While all teams may be in the same boat, for those enjoying a strong start to the campaign, like Audi, it risks halting the positive momentum gained.
“I don’t think it matters, right? I think it’s the same for everyone,” said Bortoleto. “Obviously, the teams that are a bit more on top of things, probably for them, it matters a bit less than for teams that are still in a huge learning curve, but we also have nowadays in F1, we have a lot of facilities that help us, tools that help us to develop the car and things offline, when we are not on track.
“So we will still be making a lot of progress and work in the dyno, and a lot of simulator things. Obviously, the biggest learning you can get is when you are on the track, but also, we are happy to be doing work in the dyno sessions and in the simulator sessions.”
In a bid to continue the early positivity, Bortoleto will not be spending more time at home than normal, adding: “To be honest, I filled my calendar with splitting the simulator days in Switzerland and Germany, where we have the simulator facilities for the engine, so we have a lot of work to be done in both of the sims.
“I basically will be spending a lot of time in both the facilities and just hope to optimise the time that we would be on the track, spending time with the engineers and improving things that we need to.”
Audi may have only scored two points so far, both through Bortoleto in the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, but the team has been a constant challenger for a top 10 berth on the grid, and has been pushing for further points in both China and Japan, with Nico Hulkenberg taking the flag one place shy on both occasions.
While there is a risk to this forward momentum, the pause could also help Audi to reset after the sudden departure of team principal Jonathan Wheatley, who left the outfit following the Chinese Grand Prix and has been linked to a position with backmarkers Aston Martin.
As for the team personnel, time away from the factory has been severely limited in recent months, with the late finish of the 2025 season rolling into the final preparations for 2026, and launch season. This unexpected break, while used for development, will also allow some extra family time, something that is all too rare in the F1 sphere.
“I think it’s incredible for them,” said Bortoleto. “I think they all deserve it. As a racing driver, even if I am on track, I always put these people; they normally arrive earlier than I do, and they leave after I do, because they have much work to do, so for them, it is good to spend some time with family and be able to be a bit more at home, for sure.”
[analyse_source url=”http://crash.net/f1/news/1092854/1/one-f1s-new-teams-risk-losing-momentum-after-race-cancellations”]