F1 rookie Gabriel Bortoleto is excited ahead of locking horns with Max Verstappen in the 2025 Hungarian Grand Prix. Bortoleto is slated to start the race from P7, with Verstappen right alongside him on row 4 in P8.Max Verstappen has been struggling since the start of the on-track action at the Hungaroring in his RB21. The Red Bull challenger has not proved potent around the track, and this is one of the reasons why the Dutchman was only able to manage a P8 starting position in Saturday's qualifying.However, Gabriel Bortoleto, in his Sauber racecar, was able to put in a mighty shift in qualifying. He secured P7 when his veteran teammate, Nico Hulkenberg, was knocked out in Q1.In line with the prospect of 'fighting' against Max Verstappen in the upcoming Hungarian Grand Prix, Bortoleto recently said:"Of course, I look forward to fighting with him, because he is a good friend of mine. I’ve learned a lot from him lately, so maybe we'll have some nice overtakes."After the first 13 rounds of the 2025 F1 season, Bortoleto is currently in 19th place in the drivers' standings with six points. Nico Hulkenberg is way up in P9 with solid 37 points.The upcoming race is important for Sauber from the point of view of the Constructors' Championship, and it is also crucial for Verstappen, who would look to carve his way through the field to secure at least a top-five finish."It was not a shock": Max Verstappen on P8 in Hungaroring qualifyingF1 Grand Prix of Hungary - Qualifying - Source: GettyWhile Gabriel Bortoleto is eager to show what he can do against Max Verstappen in the Hungarian GP, the latter did not see ending up way down in P8 in qualifying as a shock. If anything, he was just grateful to make it into Q3, considering the woes of the RB21.In line with this, he had an in-depth interaction with Motorsport after qualifying and said the following:"Looking at the whole weekend, I think we are happy to be in Q3. Because I've been more outside of the top 10 than in. It's been difficult this whole weekend. No grip, front and rear. It was the same in qualifying. For me, it was not really a shock. I just drove to what I already feel the whole weekend."Max Verstappen is the reigning world champion in the pinnacle of motorsport. However, the way the 2025 season is panning out, he is slipping further and further away from the drivers' championship contention.Verstappen is currently in third position, but is way behind the high-flying McLaren duo of Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. The Red Bull driver has so far secured 185 points in comparison to Norris and Piastri's 250 and 266.