The Ferrari Driver Academy member recounts his Formula 1 debut by replacing Carlos Sainz: “I took a crash course in electric energy use during the race. I was inefficient at first but then I got it.” The 18-year-old Englishman admitted to a physical decline: “I thank Lewis for pulling me out of the cockpit in parc fermé.”
“The strangest thing? Not watching the Grand Prix on TV, I can’t remember the last time I missed one. I’ll watch it as soon as I get home.” Oliver Bearman smiles at everyone, his youth only really showing in his exhausted embrace with father David at the end of a race spent standing in the Ferrari garage.
Praise pours in, with Lewis Hamilton being the first to congratulate Ollie upon exiting his car, having finished just behind him under the checkered flag. A special gesture for Ollie Bearman, embraced by the driver he has admired on TV for many years, winning Grand Prix and world championships.
What was it like to beat Lewis?
“Well, what can I say… it was a fantastic race. When Hamilton and Norris came back onto the track with fresh tires, I saw their silhouette in the mirrors, and at that point, I thought they would catch up quickly with the softs. But lap after lap, I saw that their tires weren’t that fast, and my lead stabilized at two and a half seconds. Five laps from the end, I realized that if I didn’t make any mistakes, I could finish the race ahead of them. And so it was.”
Must be special for you to finish the race ahead of Lewis and Lando…
“I grew up watching these drivers, yeah, it was nice. We didn’t face each other closely, but it was thrilling to be on track with them as well as to receive their compliments.”
Were you nervous before the start?
“Honestly, no. It might surprise, but as I was preparing, in the end, it felt like all the other races I’ve competed in. The procedures are a bit different compared to an F.2 race start, but once the lights went out, I focused as I always do. We had a fast car in the race, and this helped me against Lewis and Lando; the goal was to run a clean race, without mistakes. Succeeding in that makes me very happy and satisfied.”
Did you feel the fatigue?
“At the end of the race, Lewis practically pulled me out of the car! My first Grand Prix took place on one of the most demanding tracks, here there’s no degradation, and you push from start to finish with many lateral Gs. It was quite impressive.”
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What do you need to do now to be a regular in F1?
“I don’t think I’ll be in F1 for the rest of the season. My goal was to take this opportunity to put in a good performance, and in the end, I think I did a good job. Then I’ll continue to push in Formula 2 and keep my fingers crossed.”
Do you have options for 2025?
“This year I’ll be on track on several Fridays with Haas, the goal is to build a good relationship with them and gain experience in the car. If a door opens, that would be fantastic.”
Do you have a chance to race in Melbourne?
“Honestly, I don’t know anything about that, Carlos seems to be recovering well, and I’m happy for him, after all, it’s his car and his championship.”
You managed to make your way through with several overtakes…
“During the restarts (after the SC), I managed to pass Tsunoda, I think I caught him by surprise. I had a much better pace than my direct opponents, but they were better than me at managing energy consumption, something I had never done before. I practically took a crash course on the job.”
“When I found myself battling with Hulkenberg, after a while, I understood he was using the battery at the right points, unlike me, it took me a few laps to figure it out. When you run out of charge, you have to wait another full lap to try again, I was a bit inefficient in this aspect, but I stayed calm trying to improve lap by lap.”
You showed remarkable calm over the weekend. Is this a natural trait for you?
“I wasn’t always like this! Looking back at my time in F.4 and F.3, I was often more nervous, but over the years, I’ve learned to stay calm, especially in very intense situations like the one I experienced this weekend. We knew the race would get better lap by lap, I stayed calm and waited for the performance to increase. I think we did a good job.”
When you return to F.2, will you be able to maintain this positive momentum?
“After securing pole in F.2, it was disappointing not to be able to capitalize on our potential in the race. But when you’re offered an opportunity like this, you can’t not take it, I’m really happy I tried, and I think I made a good impression. Now my focus shifts back to F.2, I’m facing a challenging championship having missed two races. At this moment, I have more points in F.1 than in F.2.”
How will you celebrate these two days?
“I have some debriefings with the team, and I think I’ll have a nice dinner with a great dessert, I think I’ve earned it, or maybe a burger!”
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