Audi deliver impressive opening day in Monaco as Hülkenberg and Bortoleto both break into the top ten

Audi continued their upward trajectory in 2026 with a highly encouraging start to the Monaco Grand Prix weekend, placing both cars inside the top ten in both Friday practice sessions.

On a circuit where confidence, precision and mechanical grip are everything, the team’s strong baseline immediately stood out — and their consistency across FP1 and FP2 suggests they could be genuine contenders for Q3 on Saturday.

The morning session saw Nico Hülkenberg use his experience to great effect, finishing P7 with a 1:15.343, while rookie Gabriel Bortoleto slotted into P9 with a 1:15.750 despite what he later described as “a few hiccups” early in the session.

Bortoleto was encouraged by how quickly the team recovered: “It was a decent day overall. Despite a few hiccups at the beginning of FP1, we managed to get the car into the top ten, which is quite encouraging.”

The afternoon session reinforced the team’s strong form. Hülkenberg again led the way for Audi, finishing P8 with a 1:14.094, while Bortoleto improved to P9 with a 1:14.359, closing the gap significantly to his team‑mate.

Hülkenberg described the day as calm, productive and full of potential: “It was quite a decent Friday for us. That said, everyone will be working hard overnight to find improvements, so we need to make sure we analyse everything from today and put the best package on track tomorrow.”

He also emphasised the importance of staying composed ahead of Monaco’s decisive qualifying session: “Qualifying is obviously very important here, but there's still plenty to get right across the weekend. The focus now is on staying calm, doing our homework and making sure we're ready to maximise our opportunities tomorrow.”

Bortoleto, meanwhile, felt increasingly at ease as the day progressed: “FP2 felt smooth and clean, and I was able to consistently improve throughout the session. It took a little time to put together a strong lap with the traffic out there, but I'm happy with what we managed in the end.”

The Brazilian also highlighted the value of the team’s learning curve: “We learned more about our balance and where our limitations are, which gives us a good direction for tomorrow. There's still plenty we can improve, and we'll be working hard tonight to find those extra gains.”