Who is Ollie Bearman? Ferrari's teenage F1 supersub set for Haas drive
F1
- Last updated: September 6th 2024
Teenage sensation Ollie Bearman will race in F1 for Haas next year, as well as the 2024 Azerbaijan GP in place of Kevin Magnussen. We profile the rapid Ferrari junior driver
Ferrari reserve Oliver Bearman will make his F1 race debut for the team in Saudi Arabia
The 2025 Formula 1 grid will see highly-rated Ferrari Junior Ollie Bearman racing for Haas, following on for his impressive substitute performance for Carlos Sainz at this year’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
He will now make another 2024 cameo, replacing the banned Kevin Magnussen at Haas for the Azerbaijan GP.
The 19-year-old Bearman was just 18 in March when he became the youngest-ever driver to race for the Scuderia in F1. He was its first British pilot since Nigel Mansell in 1990.
His ‘super-sub drive’ to a seventh place finish, on one of grand prix racing’s most daunting circuits, and with minimal preparation, was so surefooted that it virtually assured him of a place on next year’s grid, which has now been confirmed at Haas.
“On the data, he didn’t do a single mistake all race,” said a visibly impressed Frederic Vasseur, Ferrari’s team principal, after the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. Bearman had just a few hours warning that he would be making his F1 debut, after Carlos Sainz was diagnosed with appendicitis.
He had already taken pole position for his Prema F2 team when the call-up came just before the final practice session of the weekend. He qualified 11th on the high-speed street circuit that rewards total commitment, but punishes the slightest error, and finished seventh in the race.
His team-mate for the weekend Charles Leclerc praised the “incredible job” Bearman did. “Everyone has noticed how talented he is and it is just a matter of time before he is in F1,” he added.
Despite car-related struggles in this year’s F2 championship, Bearman’s star has remained high ever since.
Here’s how the British-born racer made it to the top.
Ollie Bearman: Ferrari F1 substitute’s early years
Essex-native Ollie Bearman was born in 2005, with the precocious racer taking to the karting track aged eight.
After graduating from his local karting club, he claimed the 2017 Kartmasters British Grand Prix, as well as a tranche of top-level karting championships.
Bearman impressed in junior categories before being picked up by Ferrari
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For 2020, he moved up to the Germany-based ADAC F4 series, taking a debut win at Hockenheim. He returned for the next season, where six race victories was enough to clinch the title.
That same year he competed in the Italian F4 series where devastating form – 11 race victories and 15 podiums in total – saw him claim that crown too.
In 2021, he scored a victory in the GB3 series, by which time the serial winner was on Ferrari’s radar. He was signed up to its junior academy at the end of that year.
Placed with Prema, often a port of call for Scuderia juniors, Bearman then enjoyed a strong FIA F3 campaign in 2022 which brought a third-placed championship finish, earning him a run at F2 in 2022.
Ollie Bearman’s F2 heroics
Baku pole with broken steering wowed the grand prix paddock
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At just 17 years old, Bearman joined an F2 grid packed with talent and experience.
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Cambridge Kisby
With the clock ticking down and no time to make repairs, Bearman fought on and was paid back for the gamble – and then some.
The Essex man wrestled his complaining Prema round the unforgiving Baku street circuit, his steering wheel askew down the long straights, before stunning onlookers as he snatched pole with a 1min 52.652sec lap, beating Enzo Fittipaldi by just 0.012sec.
“That was the scariest lap of my life!” he exclaimed on the radio afterwards. “Driving it was quite tough, I put myself in a lot of unnecessary difficulty, but still we managed to do the pole.”
Once the steering had been straightened out, he then swept the weekend by winning both races, adding two more victories before the end of the year to finish sixth in the championship and earn himself another shot at the title in 2024.
What does the F1 paddock say about Ollie Bearman?
Bearman is now Ferrari reserve
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Bearman was rewarded for his Baku heroics with a brace of free practice outings for Ferrari customer Haas during 2023, and again the Brit displayed promise.
He completed a Mexico GP FP1 cameo in 15th place, just 0.3sec behind veteran Haas driver Nico Hülkenberg.
Then-director of engineering, now team boss, Ayao Komatsu was impressed:
“I don’t think we can fault him,” said Komatsu. “He’s done really well, all the way from the very initial preparation he’s been very professional, very, very easy to deal with.
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Bearman was given another Haas free practice (FP) outing in Abu Dhabi, with Ferrari boss Fred Vasseur saying it had laid the groundwork for him to make more appearances in F1 cars in the future.
“We have three tests during the winter,” said Ferrari boss Frederic Vasseur. “It means that it’s quite difficult to adapt to the F1 [car] and the rookies [are] not always successful.
“We have to prepare in advance and it’s why we give him two FP1s this season with us and, probably, much more next year, and we will prepare him for the future. So far, he’s doing a very good job in the junior series but we know that it’s a long way.”
Bearman was further rewarded by being named a Ferrari reserve driver for 2024.
Brit impressed in Haas Mexico FP appearance
Ollie Bearman: Ferrari’s teenage F1 history-maker
Bearman will become Ferrari youngest-ever driver
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By appearing at the age of 18 in a Ferrari seat early in the 2024 season, Ollie Bearman became the youngest driver to ever race for the Scuderia.
The young Brit was called up last minute for FP3 of the Saudi Arabian GP after Carlos Sainz was struck by appendicitis, clocking an assured 10th fastest time, only 0.8sec off session-leading Max Verstappen.
Come qualifying, Bearman just missed out on making it through to Q3, starting the race in 11th place.
When the lights went out on Saturday night, Bearman held his position in a fierce midfield fight before pulling off impressive overtakes on Yuki Tsunoda and Nico Hülkenberg.
He and his Ferrari team utilised a one-stop strategy to hold off Lewis Hamilton late in the race, eventually finishing seventh.
“Destroyed,” was how he said after making his debut none of F1’s toughest tracks on the body.
“Physically it was a really difficult race! Especially in the end, when I had the two guys on soft behind me, I had to basically push flat out and it was a mentally difficult race as expected, and physically I was struggling too, but great fun out there.”
“As you can imagine, when I asked Ollie to jump into the car on Friday for the quali, I didn’t expect [such] a robust weekend. He did very well yesterday, taking it step by step in free practice, doing a very strong quali – because he missed Q3 for a couple of thousandths,” said impressed Ferrari team boss Eric Vasseur.
“Today I was a bit scared with the procedure of the start, the pit stop and so that he didn’t do before, but he was very solid and he didn’t do a single mistake in the race, and he was even able to speed up at the end when we told him that [Lando] Norris and [Lewis] Hamilton were behind him. Overall it’s a fantastic job.”
“Last year when we had him in FP1 sessions in Mexico and Abu Dhabi, straight away it was obvious that he’s a total package,” said Bearman’s future Haas team boss Ayao Komatsu.
“He’s so impressive, so I was very happy that we got him for six FP1s this year. [I’m] very happy for him.”
Traditionally a team which has gone for experience over youth, the previous-youngest driver to compete for Ferrari in the world championship was Ricardo Rodríguez at 19 years and 208 days.
The Mexican protege immediately proved a sensation by qualifying second at Monza on his debut at the 1961 Italian GP, fighting for the lead until a fuel pump issue ended his race.
The following year at Spa Rodríguez became the youngest ever driver to score a point in F1 – a record he held until Jenson Button broke it at the 2000 Brazilian GP – before being tragically killed in a crash at Mexico later than year.
Rodríguez has therefore held a special place in Ferrari’s history, but both records were taken in Saudi Arabia by the young Bearman, aged 18 years and 305 days.
The young Brit will now have the chance to shine again in Baku in the Haas.
