Oliver Bearman is trying to seal a spot on the 2025 Formula 1 grid with Haas. He’s combining his F2 duties at Prema with an extensive FP1 programme for the American team.
Bearman drove the VF-24 in the opening session at the Emila Romagna Grand Prix earlier this month. He’ll be back behind the wheel in Spain in a couple of races’ time.
That will be the second of six free-practice outings for Ayao Komatsu’s squad this season. Those will go a long way towards deciding whether the team make him an offer.
But they’ll also have an eye on his F2 campaign. This is Bearman’s second season in the series after he finished a commendable sixth on debut last year.
The 18-year-old isn’t as high up the standings as many would have expected. Of course, it’s worth noting that he missed both races in Saudi Arabia (having qualified on pole) after he was called up to replace an unwell Carlos Sainz at Ferrari.
But he’s still only managed to pick up 18 points across the other four rounds. He did at least gain significant ground in the Monaco feature race with a season-best P4.
Peter Windsor says Oliver Bearman reminds him of George Russell
En route to that 12-point haul, Bearman executed a switch-back overtake on Prema teammate and Mercedes junior Kimi Antonelli at the Loews hairpin. Damon Hill thought their battle was more entertaining than Sunday’s Grand Prix.
He also got past Trident driver Richard Verschoor with a DRS-assisted overtake on the start-finish straight. It was a showing that impressed F1 expert Peter Windsor, who likened him to Mercedes driver George Russell in a video with Cameron F1.
That’s quite a compliment indeed given that Russell has scored 11 podiums and a Grand Prix win in his F1 career to date. He also finished ahead of the sport’s most successful driver Lewis Hamilton in 2022, their first year as teammates.
He said: “I thought Bearman was really good. His pass on Verschoor was really good as well. He’s definitely a George Russell, isn’t he, Oliver Bearman? I look forward to him having a regular seat in Formula 1.”
Gene Haas has concerns about signing Oliver Bearman
Speaking at Imola, Sky Sports F1 presenter Rachael Brookes said she was ‘hearing’ that Bearman would get a seat at Haas for 2025. Journalist Edd Straw added that he was ‘as close as’ possible to securing the drive without receiving official confirmation.
Haas have a clear vacancy after Nico Hulkenberg agreed to join Audi. But a deal for the Briton isn’t yet guaranteed.
Team owner Gene Haas isn’t fully convinced about signing Bearman just yet and wants to assess other candidates. He’s wary of signing another rookie after the difficulties the team had with Mick Schumacher and Nikita Mazepin in 2021.
Both Schumacher and Mazepin were off the F1 grid by the end of 2022, with Haas shifting towards the far more experienced line-up of Hulkenberg and Kevin Magnussen. But Magnussen has caused the team considerable problems this year himself.
The 171-race veteran has only finished in the top 10 once this season, and he’s also amassed 10 penalty points. That means he faces the immediate threat of a race ban until March 2025, showing that experience alone doesn’t guarantee stability.
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