After impressing the F1 grid with his standout performances in 2024, Oliver Bearman is gearing up for the next big step. He will race for Haas in 2025, teaming up with Esteban Ocon, marking the start of a new era for the team.
While this is an exciting opportunity, Bearman has made it clear that his ultimate dream is to be a Ferrari driver, possibly succeeding Lewis Hamilton to team up with Charles Leclerc.
He has already realized that dream, somewhat, since he replaced Carlos Sainz (out with appendicitis) at the Saudi Arabian GP earlier this year. It made him the youngest Ferrari driver and points scorer of all time at the age of 18.
Bearman got this opportunity because he was a part of the Ferrari academy and those same links made him long for a full-time return soon. “Growing up and racing for Ferrari has been the greatest pride of my career. I hope to wear the red again very soon,” he told Gazzetta dello Sport, per Autoracer.
Eighteen years old and points on his F1 debut
Take a bow, Ollie Bearman #F1 #SaudiArabianGP @ScuderiaFerrari pic.twitter.com/cF2ozAt85l
— Formula 1 (@F1) March 9, 2024
Bearman is thrilled to join Haas, but he is also thinking about his long-term future, which he envisions with a bigger team — Ferrari. The 19-year-old certainly has the talent for such ambitions, as he showed by finishing P7 for the Scuderia in Jeddah.
Later in the season, he secured a P10 finish for Haas at the Azerbaijan GP, once again stepping in as a replacement, this time for Kevin Magnussen.
While his promotion to a full-time seat was largely deemed to be a result of his performances in F1 in 2024, Bearman insisted later on that he would have gotten the spot even if he wasn’t called in as a substitute.
2025: A fresh start for Haas
Bearman joins Haas as part of a revamped driver lineup, teaming up with Esteban Ocon. The team is riding a wave of momentum after finishing seventh in the constructors’ championship in 2024 — a remarkable improvement from their last-place finish the year before.
Haas is looking to build on this progress, and Bearman is eager to contribute. “I can’t wait to face the challenges that await me and finally measure myself against some of the best in the world. The travel and commitment will be much more, so my life will be more eventful and complicated, but I can’t wait for anything else,” he said.
Despite it being his first full-time season in F1, Bearman is expected to compete strongly against drivers from midfield teams like Alpine, Williams, and Red Bull. These early battles will provide invaluable experience as he adapts to the demands of the sport.
