November 1st 2024.
Oliver Bearman was unexpectedly called upon to drive for the Haas Formula 1 team in Brazil, filling in for the unwell Kevin Magnussen. Despite being only 19 years old, Bearman is already set to join Haas full-time in 2025, making him one of the youngest drivers in the sport.
It was a last-minute decision by the American team, who announced on Friday that Bearman would participate in free practice, sprint qualifying, and the sprint race on Saturday. There was still a possibility for Magnussen to return for the main race on Sunday, but unfortunately, his sickness prevented him from doing so.
In a statement on social media, Haas confirmed that Bearman will now complete the entire weekend in Magnussen's place and wished the Danish driver a speedy recovery. This is not the first time Bearman has had to step in for another driver, having previously filled in for Carlos Sainz and Magnussen in other races this season.
Despite his limited appearances, Bearman has already shown promising results, scoring points at both races he participated in. This has placed him 17th out of 23 drivers in the current standings. In fact, in qualifying for the sprint race, Bearman impressed by securing 10th place on the grid, two places ahead of experienced driver Nico Hulkenberg.
After his successful qualifying session, Bearman expressed his excitement, saying that the car had felt great all day. However, he also mentioned a small mistake he made in the first sector, which cost him some time. Still, he was proud to have made it to the third stage of a qualifying session for the first time.
Bearman also shared a humorous anecdote about how he found out he would be driving in Brazil. He revealed that his team principal, Ayao Komatsu, had called him at 6:30 am, and although he was initially annoyed at being woken up, he was relieved when he saw it was Komatsu calling and not his mom who might not have realized the time difference.
Despite being happy to have the opportunity to drive in F1 once again, Bearman also sent well wishes to Magnussen, acknowledging his success at this particular track where he had previously secured pole position. Looking ahead, Bearman is set to become a full-time F1 driver next season, partnering with Esteban Ocon.
[This article has been trending online recently and has been generated with AI. Your feed is customized.]
[Generative AI is experimental.]
