Audi reflects on Malaysia Bahrain GP points miss after penalty and last-lap pass

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

Audi closed out a busy Bahrain Grand Prix weekend in Malaysia with a pair of bittersweet outcomes: Nico Hulkenberg stayed in contention for points late in the race but finished just short after a last-lap overtake, and Gabriel Bortoleto’s afternoon unraveled after contact with Carlos Sainz that drew a 10-second time penalty. The team also faced regulatory consequences from the pit lane, receiving a fine tied to an unsafe release involving Hulkenberg.

For qualifying, Bortoleto progressed to Q3 and started the race from P10, while Hulkenberg made Q3 but lined up from P15 on the grid. Both drivers’ starts were immediately challenged by the race-day conditions, with heavy rainfall delaying the event and leaving the track still damp when the cars switched to soft tyres early.

Both Audi cars later made gains after an early stop for intermediates, but Bortoleto’s progress faltered after he made contact with Carlos Sainz’s Williams. Sainz subsequently received a 10-second time penalty for the incident, while Bortoleto later said he accepted responsibility for the collision, describing it as damage to both cars and stating that the result left him too far back to fight for points.

Hulkenberg, meanwhile, remained in the fight for a points finish until the closing stages. Audi’s bid ultimately failed on the final lap, when Racing Bulls’ Arvid Lindblad passed Hulkenberg to take the position that would have delivered Hulkenberg a scoring result. Audi’s Racing Director Allan McNish later characterized the pace as there, but said the margin for points was not quite enough by the end.

In addition to the last-lap outcome, Audi reported that it was handed a fine for an unsafe release of Hulkenberg during a pit stop. The penalty included a suspended portion for 12 months, contingent on the team avoiding a similar incident during that period.

Hulkenberg framed the result as frustrating but grounded in circumstances. He acknowledged that he has “just missed out” on points more than once recently, and said that while the package offered a route toward scoring, it was not sufficient to hold on at the end. He also pointed out that Audi reached the right part of the race due to retirements and troubles ahead.

Bortoleto, for his part, said he wanted to apologise to Carlos Sainz for the contact, adding that it damaged his own car as well, and that he then encountered additional issues during the race that were difficult to manage. He also said his run was essentially over after the collision, while still insisting there were “a lot of positives” to take forward heading to the next round.

McNish echoed the performance-focused takeaways. He said Audi had the car’s pace demonstrated in qualifying and that the team had put the car into the right operating window, including praise for Bortoleto’s Q3 showing. He added that Hulkenberg was on a similar pace up to Turn 14, before the end-of-race battle shifted, and described another late-lap overtake as frustrating—particularly given that safety-car timing left Audi feeling more exposed. McNish said the team understands where its strengths and weaknesses lie as it looks to move on from a weekend that delivered speed but fell short of points.

According to Audi’s post-race remarks, both drivers’ immediate focus now shifts to Singapore, with Bortoleto citing momentum from an upgrade demonstrated earlier, and McNish pointing to an overall pace improvement while recognising that the final margins—and operational details such as pit execution—must improve to convert contention into points.