Oliver Bearman is one of the five full-time rookies who will be taking to the F1 grid for the 2025 season, having made his impressive debut in 2024.
The Haas driver will be paired with Esteban Ocon for this years campaign, as the American team fights to finish higher up the competitive order.
Bearman has already driven for Haas having substituted for Kevin Magnussen at two races last season; the Azerbaijan and Sao Paulo Grands Prix.
Magnussen was forced to miss Baku because he was serving a one-race ban for accumulating 12 penalty points on his super licence, and Bearman managed to score points in the dying laps by overtaking Nico Hulkenberg.
Team principal Ayao Komatsu recalls how there was one thing that he ‘did not believe’ when the team first tested Bearman last year.
Ayao Komatsu ‘could not believe’ Oliver Bearman was only 18 years old
Another opportunity to impress for Bearman came at the Sao Paulo GP, although the Briton suffered a tricky weekend with the abnormally condensed schedule.
Former Haas boss Guenther Steiner said Bearman was ‘lucky’ to finish the race, while Magnussen would also go on to regret missing Brazil given it was a track he excelled in previously.
Bearman was up to speed pretty quicky with Haas having ran in their simulator before, but Komatsu was also impressed by another factor that made him seem like an old head on young shoulders.
“We’ve been running Ollie Bearman since Mexico last year. He was only 18 years old but it was clear to me, not just the speed, but what was most impressive was his ability to understand the bigger picture and cognative ability to understand what more he needs to apply,” said Komatsu.
“He’s very positive as well, really motivational. I couldn’t believe he was 18, we’ve been working together on FP1 sessions and he’s 19 now but I see a lot of potential. For me, it was a no-brainer.”
Oliver Bearman set to take part in first Testing of Previous Cars test with Haas
The American team has historically never ran tests outside of its usual time on track in order to keep costs down, but that has now set to change in 2025.
Haas have partnered up with Toyota, which enables the team to begin taking part in Testing of Previous Cars (TPC) runs. This gives drivers a chance to run older-spec cars outside of regular testing, providing they do not run any new parts or use current tyres.
READ MORE: All to know about Haas F1 Team from team principal to Ferrari and Toyota ties
Short runs of up to 1,000km across a year are allowed to be conducted outside of the Pirelli tyre tests and three pre-season test days.
Bearman will be taking part in Haas’ first TPC test alongside Ocon and reserve driver Ritomo Miyata.
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