Wake up, F1 is calling! The joy in the eyes of who had their first time

Almost a year later from his clean sweep in Baku, to the question, “Is Oliver Bearman the next big thing?”, we can firmly say yes.

A new reserve driver in town

During winter break Oliver was announced as Ferrari and Haas’ new reserve driver, so what we said last year about Ferrari having their eyes on Bearman, turned out to be true on all aspects, and it’s not suprising considering his insane talent.

Ollie will have the opportunity to do 6 FP1’s with Haas this year, so let’s see what he’ll be able to do, but it doesn't end here...

Last minute call

The Saudi Arabian weekend was certainly one for the books. After a difficult weekend in Bahrain where the Prema F2 cars struggled with the pace, Bearman was able to take a sigh of relief after an outstanding lap around Jeddah Corniche taking pole position, a very important moment for Ollie and the team.

Starting 10th for the Sprint race, Oliver had woken up with the mindset to recover as many places as possible to score as many points as he could to make up for the pointless weekend of Bahrain, but Jeddah had other plans for him…

A last-minute call from Ferrari, after confirming that Sainz was at the hospital with appendicitis, was about to change the course of the weekend for the young Brit. Oliver Bearman is called to step in to replace Carlos, a moment that shocked the whole internet, and surely him too.

No time to test, let's get to it

As the call was made on Friday morning, Bearman had no time to test the car properly, in fact he jumps in the car from FP3, taking P9 at the end of the session. Going into qualifying nobody was sure of what he could achieve given the little time spent on the car, but Oliver was ready to go all in. After a messy qualifying session, he missed Q3 by only 0.036s, taking P11 for his first ever F1 race, a lap literally on the limit as we could see from his father’s face live on tv, slightly tapping the walls. A very emotional day for all motorsport enthusiasts but mainly him and his family, with a bittersweet taste after missing Q3 for so little, the Brit stated in his interviews that he was hoping for more and he knew he could do more, and with his fiery attitude the race could only be better.

A remarkable debut

After a great start the youngster begins battling right away with Tsunoda, trying to take the position over him, showing from the start his determination to get in the points. On lap 7 Stroll crashes bringing out the SC, after the restart Bearman starts the real race, as he begins to get past his opponents, crossing the line in P7. A difficult race physically and mentally, as it was his first-time racing for 50 laps in such a challenging circuit, but Oliver managed to bring the car to the finish line and even score points, exceeding everyone’s expectations. After barely managing to jump out the car, he was already surrounded by all the other drivers who were congratulating him on such a big achievement. The 18-year-old Brit was already one of them.

The joy in the eyes of who had their first time

Something that hasn’t gone unnoticed was the joy in his eyes while making all the interviews. That joy that we almost don’t see anymore, as the drivers are used to race around those circuits year after year, that joy that expresses all the efforts and the love for this sport. While staring into the cameras Oliver Bearman managed to warm everyone’s heart, and snatch a smile amongst all the fans, bringing everyone together from Ferrari fans, to Mercedes, to Mclaren, and all the others, everyone was cheering for him, for the 18-year-old boy from Chelmsford, and that day he made history. All this joy wrapped around him and his fathers’ hug, one that felt like such a relief but also a moment of unconditional pride and love.

The next big thing?

P6 in the 2023 FIA F2 championship with 4 victories, 1 less from his teammate Vesti who was the only one to get more than him, a clean sweep in Baku that shocked everyone and a remarkable performance in all FP’s he debuted in, and now points scored in his first ever F1 race. Ferrari is all eyes on the young Brit, and he surely isn’t one to disappoint with a bright future ahead, so let’s see what he can achieve this year, but he’s without a question going to be up there fighting for the championship title. Oliver Bearman once again confirmed to be the next big thing, and the future of Formula 1.