Oliver Bearman will hope to be Lewis Hamilton’s replacement at Ferrari whenever the opportunity should arise. As the leading member of the Scuderia’s driver academy, he’s the natural choice.
Hamilton is under contract until the end of 2026, though there may also be an option for 2027. In the meantime, Bearman must impress at Ferrari’s engine customers Haas.
Building on his strong stand-in showings in 2024, the teenager has started well. David Croft said Bearman sounded ‘broken’ on a nightmare Australian GP weekend, but the speed of his recovery was impressive.
| EVENT | Q | R |
| Australia | 20 | 14 |
| China Sprint | 12 | 15 |
| China | 17 | 8 |
| Japan | 10 | 10 |
| Bahrain | 20 | 10 |
| Saudi Arabia | 15 | 13 |
He was in the points just a week later in China (P8), and strung three straight scores with P10 finishes in Japan and Bahrain. He needs to find more consistency, but crucially, he’s comparing well to race-winning teammate Esteban Ocon.
Heading into this weekend’s Miami Grand Prix, Bearman leads the qualifying head-to-head 3-2 (including Sprints). The two drivers are tied at 3-3 in the races.
Oliver Beaarman has adapted to Haas demands, but Lewis Hamilton is set in his ways at Ferrari
Meanwhile, the other British driver on Ferrari’s books is struggling. Hamilton is 0.3% slower than Leclerc on average in qualifying, and he isn’t much closer on a Sunday.
Indeed, Hamilton finished more than 30 seconds behind Leclerc in Saudi Arabia. He can’t seem to gel with the SF-25, and it’s sapping his optimism.
Hamilton’s preferred technique is ‘not possible’ in this generation of F1 cars. Speaking on Sky Germany’s F1 podcast, Ralf Schumacher said he had a similar problem late in his career.
By contrast, a youngster like Bearman isn’t set in his ways, which makes him better able to adapt.
“It’s a question of driving style, and he just has to manage it now,” Schumacher said of Hamilton. “That’s something I didn’t manage to do towards the end of my career because I always wanted exactly what I wanted, and the car should do it.
“A young driver is more used to that. They have a fixed car, so they’re used to driving with what they have.
“Ocon is also having some difficulties with Bearman because Bearman says, OK, this is the car I have, I have to drive it.”
The damning comparison between Lewis Hamilton and Oliver Bearman’s Ferrari debut
Andrew Benson reckons Oscar Piastri, Lando Norris, Max Verstappen and George Russell are long-term options for Ferrari. They tend to shop in the superstar market.
That’s a daunting list of possible competitors for Bearman, but the team have also had success promoting from within. Leclerc matched Fernando Alonso’s Ferrari podium tally with his 43rd last time out.
If Bearman tests the 2025 Ferrari at some point, the team will be able to compare his data to Hamilton. He’s already had a surprising edge over the seven-time world champion.
Hamilton was further behind Leclerc than Bearman was on his emergency Saudi Arabia debut in 2024. Given the monumental difference in experience levels, that’s a source of embarrassment for the 40-year-old.
