Oliver Bearman has received a 10-place grid penalty for the 2025 Monaco Grand Prix after the Haas driver overtook Williams rival Carlos Sainz under a red flag in practice.
The stewards in Monte Carlo took a very dim view of Bearman ignoring the rules which state drivers are not allowed to overtake any cars under a red flag. Situations like his usually merit a five-place grid penalty, but Bearman’s justification for passing Sainz drew a stricter verdict.
McLaren star Oscar Piastri crashed nose-first into the barrier at Sainte Devote during FP2 on Friday to cause a red flag period. But Bearman failed to follow the regulations which state F1 drivers have to immediately reduce their speed and slowly go to their garage in the pit lane.
Bearman acknowledged that the Haas driver had seen the red flags as he went through the Swimming Pool section. Yet he still overtook Sainz before La Rascasse as the 20-year-old felt it would have been more dangerous to abruptly slow down than to pass the Williams ace.
Damon Hill tells Oliver Bearman to exploit F1’s 2025 Monaco GP two-stop rule after his grid penalty
Haas rookie Bearman now faces a very daunting maiden F1 Monaco GP given the Briton will start 10 places worse off than wherever he qualifies due to his penalty. But Damon Hill feels Bearman’s race is not run just yet as the 2025 Monaco GP will see two mandatory pit stops.
F1 and the FIA agreed to implement a one-off rule change to make the 2025 race a two-stop event after Charles Leclerc won the 2024 Monaco GP without pitting. Sergio Perez and Kevin Magnussen’s first lap crash triggered a red flag period, in which drivers changed their tyres.
READ MORE: Who is 2025 Haas driver Oliver Bearman? Everything to know
So, Hill thinks Bearman can rescue his 2025 Monaco GP by pitting at the end of the opening lap and completing one of his two mandatory tyre changes. The Haas driver would not be at a disadvantage by pitting early and can benefit from any possible dramas unfolding later on.
Hill said on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 2 (24/05, 11:38): “Ollie Bearman, he’s almost certainly going to come in after Lap 1 and change tyres because he’ll catch them up again because the first few laps of the Monaco Grand Prix are so slow.
“The guys at the back literally want to go faster [but] they can’t because the guys at the front want to save their tyres.”
What time is qualifying for the 2025 Monaco Grand Prix to watch in the UK?
Bearman adhering to Hill’s radical suggestion would see the Haas driver avoid Bernie Collins’ fear of traffic ruining a driver’s Monaco GP strategy as he would have clean air to close up to the field after pitting at the end of the opening lap, which might be a game-changing tactic.
But former McLaren strategist Collins thinks drivers will stop after Lap 1 to negate the 2025 Monaco GP’s two-pit rule as, like Hill says, they can benefit from the potential of clean air in the early stages. A red flag or a full safety car would also bring those who pit early into play.
Haas may also not be too keen to pit Bearman early if he can qualify well for the Monaco GP and still start in the middle of the field after his 10-place grid penalty. F1 fans in the UK can watch Bearman in qualifying for the Monaco GP at 15:00 with it starting at 16:00 local time.
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