Valtteri Bottas has offered Gabriel Bortoleto crucial advice ahead of the Brazilian's rookie F1 season, with the Finnish driver noting that it is important to "not be too harsh on yourself".
Bortoleto is racing for Stake F1 in the 2025 season, with the reigning Formula 2 champion and Nico Hulkenberg having replaced Bottas and Zhou Guanyu.
Bottas is without a seat for the new season, and has returned to Mercedes as a reserve driver having left the Silver Arrows at the end of the 2021 campaign.
There is much anticipation over Bortoleto's competitive F1 debut, having performed magnificently on his way to the F2 title in 2024.
The 20-year-old is one of six full-time rookies on the 2025 grid, marking one of busiest silly seasons in the pinnacle of motorsport's history.
However, Bottas is expecting this year to be a difficult one for Bortoleto, due to Stake's largely uncompetitive package.
The Hinwil-based team scored just four points in 2024, resulting in a miserable 10th place in the constructors' standings.
With so much focus being on the new power unit regulations in 2026, Bottas is expecting little change in the cars going into the upcoming season.
It could make for a difficult start to life in F1 for Bortoleto, although Bottas is expecting the young driver to take everything in his stride.
"Well, to any new driver, my advice always is to not be too harsh on yourself and give yourself some time," Bottas told select media including RacingNews365 in Abu Dhabi.
"It takes lots of learning in this sport, but the drivers nowadays they're so well prepared, they have lots of support.
"So I think he'll be fine, but I'm expecting a tough season. The regulations are not changing for next year, all the cars that the teams have now, they're not going to change massively.
"So I don't think it's going to be an easy rookie season, but I think he's got Nico on his side that he can learn from. Nico has got lots of experience, but yeah, I'm expecting a difficult season."
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