The debut in Formula 1 by Oliver Bearman in Saudi Arabia did not convince Ferrari Team Principal Frederic Vasseur that the young driver is ready for a full-time seat in 2025. Bearman replaced Carlos Sainz, who had appendicitis, and finished seventh , but benefited from late stops by some rivals. Vasseur told RacingNews365 that Bearman cannot be judged on just one race and that his main focus remains F2.
Ferrari F1 Vasseur
“I don’t want to jump to conclusions about Ollie,” Vasseur said. “We need to give him time, give him other opportunities to drive the car in FP1 and in testing. We have to do things well.
“He has a big challenge ahead of him in F2 this year. He has shown he has talent and potential.
Vasseur praised Bearman for withstanding pressure from Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton, who attacked him in the closing laps in Jeddah.
“It was an incredible weekend for Ollie,” he said. “We called him at the last minute for FP3, in a difficult circuit like Jeddah. He did a good job, he improved with every lap. He just missed out on Q3.
“In the race I was a bit worried because in F1 there are many things to manage: the start, the pit stops, the steering wheel, etc. But he was good, he didn’t make any mistakes.
“He also pushed on the final lap to keep Norris and Hamilton behind. He wasn’t conservative, he was courageous. He surprised me positively.”