Oliver Bearman burst onto the F1 scene with his blistering debut at the 2024 Saudi Arabian GP. The 19-year-old was drafted in as a last-minute replacement by Ferrari for Carlos Sainz who was suffering from appendicitis. And without even a proper Free Practice session under his belt, the British rookie went on to finish P7 at the chequered flag — ahead of the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris.
Fast forward a few months, and he landed a full-time race seat with Haas from 2025 onwards. Many in the paddock believe this was due to his impressive debut race at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit. However, Bearman himself begs to differ.
“Maybe things would have gone more slowly without that weekend, but I know I would have gotten there anyway,” he said per La Gazzetta dello Sport. In fact, the F2 driver was already in talks with the Kannapolis-based team before his surprise F1 debut.
BREAKING: Ollie Bearman graduates to @F1 with Haas!
Congrats, Ollie! #F2 #RoadToF1 pic.twitter.com/bpd6ddvbeE
— Formula 2 (@Formula2) July 4, 2024
While Bearman only got the deal to drive for Haas from next season onwards, fate allowed him to get used to his machinery in racing trim this season. The 19-year-old filled in for Kevin Magnussen twice this year in Azerbaijan and Sao Paulo — finishing in the points yet again at the Baku Street Circuit.
Bearman wasn’t flustered by his last-minute Ferrari call
The situation escalated very quickly in the Ferrari came during the Saudi Arabian GP weekend as Sainz was rushed to hospital for his surgery. Naturally, the call-up for Bearman was surprising and very last minute. But as he explained, he was so caught up in preparing for it that he did not feel an ounce of nervousness.
“Having such a short time available, I didn’t have time to get nervous or nervous, because I was too busy learning what I would need in the race. However, I would say that the word fear is the most correct one to describe what I felt at that moment, because the track in Jeddah is very demanding, even for the most experienced drivers,” he added.
His efforts behind the wheel of the SF-24 did not go unnoticed by the drivers as well. Hamilton was the first one to jump out of his W15 and hug the Britsh prodigy — who had successfully managed to keep him at bay during the dying embers of the Grand Prix.
