Oliver Bearman stole the headlines with his excellent debut at the Saudi Arabian GP. On a tough track like Jeddah, Bearman was quite impressive in handling the Ferrari SF-24 and brought home a P7 finish. He did all this on short notice as he got into the car only before FP3. Even Guenther Steiner commended the 18-year-old’s debut performance, praising his “calmness” and citing that the young Briton has a good future in F1. The former Haas boss then even went on to vouch that the F2 sensation is ready and that he would give him a race seat right away.
In his new column on the official F1 website, Steiner said, “Based on his performance in Jeddah, after what I saw from him, I’d put him in a race seat. Obviously, it depends on the circumstances and what seats are available. You need to see the whole landscape, but he would be a candidate.”
Bearman‘s debut in Jeddah has made him a stronger contender for a 2025 F1 drive. Previously, many touted the Briton to be a good option for Haas next year. After his stand-in performance for Ferrari, these voices have only gotten stronger. However, Steiner feels they could fasten things up and finalize the Briton’s 2025 contract.
Bearman became the talk of the town after scoring points on debut and proving his mettle in Saudi Arabia. Many drivers, including Charles Leclerc, cited that it’s just a matter of time before the F2 driver makes his way to the pinnacle of motorsport.
While the ex-Haas boss is vouching for Bearman to make a step up to F1 as soon as possible, not long did he oppose bringing in rookies. Back then, the American-Italian mentioned how taking a rookie is “risky business” for a team like Haas.
Oliver Bearman has turned the tide for young drivers in F1
In 2023, F1 teams were quite averse to onboarding and betting on young talent coming from the junior formulas. As a result, teams like Haas, AlphaTauri (now Visa Cash App RB), Williams, and, Sauber retained their original lineups for this season.
However, the notion surrounding rookies now seems to be changing following the recent strong performances of Oliver Bearman and Liam Lawson. Although Lawson drove a few races for AlphaTauri last season and impressed many people, he still did not get a full-time seat and is still a reserve driver for the team.
However, Lawson’s performances did put some doubts as to why the Kiwi and some of his peers are not getting a chance, even if they deserve it. Now, Bearman’s debut in 2024 has succinctly solidified the notion that these talented drivers from F2 deserve a shot in F1.
This also kickstarted a discussion among F1 forums as to which experienced drivers should make way for these young rookies. Especially teams from the lower half of the grid can perhaps take the risk by signing someone like Lawson or a Bearman to bring some much-needed spark of young dynamism to the F1 grid.
This year’s F2 grid is also oozing with several rookie drivers keen to make an impression. Andrea Kimi Antonelli has already started making headlines as a bold replacement for the outgoing Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes.
Meanwhile, Oliver Bearman would certainly be on many teams’ radar now, besides Haas. Liam Lawson too would certainly want to secure a drive after missing out in 2024. Meanwhile, F2 champions Felipe Drugovich and Theo Pourchaire may also want to take advantage of a chaotic silly season to get their shot.
