Key Max Verstappen advice to F1 rookie revealed

Gabriel Bortoleto has revealed the biggest piece of advice he received from Max Verstappen during his rookie F1 season.

Bortoleto joined the Stake F1 team last year alongside Nico Hulkenberg as he embarked on his first campaign as an F1 driver.

The Brazilian impressed throughout the season, scoring 19 points while showing respectable pace alongside his more experienced team-mate.

However, he also endured some hardships - most notably at his home race from Brazil, where he suffered a heavy crash during the sprint race.

Four-time champion Max Verstappen is known to be a close ally of Bortoleto and gave him various messages of support during his maiden F1 campaign.

When asked by media including RacingNews365 what the best advice he received from Verstappen was, Bortoleto said: “He gave me many, I think it's difficult to put one.

“But let’s put one that I heard recently from him. It’s that in my rookie season, I already did a lot this year, and that I should not worry much in case mistakes happen.

“Mistakes are the moments that you improve the most and they're going to happen to everyone.

“I shouldn’t just kill myself inside, because it happened once or twice that I did something wrong, they're going to happen eventually.

“I just need to learn from them and move on. 

“It's a simple thing that a lot of people say, but when you hear it from someone who's achieved so much in the sport, it means a lot more.”

Bortoleto will return to the grid this year as part of Audi's first-ever venture into the sport following its takeover of Sauber.