Bearman reflects on hard battles with 'best ever F1 driver of all time'
F1 News
Oliver Bearman has reflected on his first on-track battles with 'best F1 driver ever' Lewis Hamilton as he prepares for 2025. The Haas driver netted three Grands Prix under his belt last year, twice for the American team and once for Ferrari. The British star impressed, scoring points for Haas and Ferrari on two of the three occasions when he jumped in as a late super sub. Speaking to BBC Look East, Bearman admitted that he was still flattered to be lining up full-time on the F1 grid.
"I had a taste of it last year, three races, which left me wanting more. And this year I get 24 shots, so I'm really looking forward to it," he began "The first race with Ferrari, I was more nervous than anything. The most difficult day of my life to be thrown into an F1 car, particularly a red one."
The now 19-year-old replaced Carlos Sainz for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix. The Spaniard was suffering from appendicitis and was unable to compete. Ferrrai turned to their rising academy and F2 star Ollie Bearman, who cemented himself as a serious contender for a future Formula 1 seat. Bearman was quickly snatched up by Haas and was needed for two more races, Azerbaijan and Brazil, in place of Kevin Magnussen. The Dane was replaced after receiving a race ban due to an accumulation of penalty points and after falling ill.
"But to then to get another two shots and actually be able to prepare for it, knowing that that would be the car I'm racing next year, which is this year now, was really nice and I was able to take it all in and learn a lot."
Hamilton is 'the best driver we've ever had'
"It actually turned out that in every race I've done I've been fighting on track with Lewis so that was really just a dream come true, to race against someone so famous and so talented as well, the best F1 driver we've ever had." Bearman concluded. The Haas driver will be hoping for more battles with the seven-time world champion this year as he makes his full-time debut in the sport.
Want more Formula 1? Then follow GPblog on our various social media channels too!