Why Fred Vasseur preferred Ollie Bearman over Antonio Giovinazzi as Carlos Sainz's replacement

Why Fred Vasseur preferred Ollie Bearman over Antonio Giovinazzi as Carlos Sainz’s replacement. Why did Frederic Vasseur prefer Oliver Bearman over Antonio Giovinazzi in Jeddah?.

Scuderia Ferrari’s choice to bet on Oliver Bearman instead of Carlos Sainz, who was struck by appendicitis on the eve of the weekend in Saudi Arabia, left many surprised, with Antonio Giovinazzi who has always been the reference point as a reserve driver from 2017 to 2023.

Yet, Frederic Vasseur wanted to trust the very young talent of the Ferrari Driver Academy instead of opting for an experienced driver like the former Alfa Romeo man, who can boast three years of experience as an official Formula 1 driver.

So what is the reason for this choice? The answer came from the French manager himself, who, aware of the busy schedule of the Italian driver in the Endurance World Championship (the same goes for Robert Shwartzman), preferred not to add to his current commitments.

“I made the decision in winter because last year I found it a bit silly to ask Antonio to come with us in 22 or 24 races when he was simultaneously running the LMH program.” – the Ferrari boss explained – “LMH is very important for us, a huge challenge, and I don’t want to ask Antonio or Shwartzman to travel with us and do Formula 1 the week after Qatar and a race in between. That’s why we decided that when Ollie is with us, he will be the reserve, and when he’s not with us, he’ll be in the simulation.” – the French manager continued.

And so Oliver Bearman did, being ready for the last-minute call he received. The PREMA talent fulfilled his dream of racing in Formula 1 and for Ferrari with a stunning debut, finishing his first Grand Prix in seventh position, ahead of Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton.

However, barring any setbacks in Carlos Sainz’s recovery process, the Englishman will return to racing in Formula 2 next weekend in Australia: “In Melbourne and Imola, he will return to the F2 project, and the biggest challenge for Ollie will be this.”

Nevertheless, Oliver Bearman will still find room in Formula 1 this year: “He will soon start FP1 sessions with Haas. This will also be important for us to give him experience and mileage in the car. But surely with Jeddah, he already has the result in his pocket.” – Scuderia Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur concluded.