Oliver Bearman became Britain's youngest-ever Formula 1 Grand Prix driver as he took part in qualifying for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix at Jeddah Corniche Circuit on Friday.
Having won pole for this weekend's F2 feature race the day before, Bearman only heard about the change in plans on Saturday morning when it was confirmed that Carlos Sainz had been diagnosed with appendicitis.
"I woke up this morning fully prepared and ready for my F2 race," he said. "I got the call pretty late in the day, just a couple of hours before FP3 that I would be doing it.
"I honestly didn't have time to get nervous or overthink it. Because it was so late, I literally had to focus straightaway on trying to get up to speed and catch up for lost time.
"Having missed out on Thursday made my life difficult, so I was pretty much flat out with the engineers trying to figure out everything and get up to speed as quickly as possible."
Bearman only heard about the change in plans from three hours before final practice, but was ready to head out in FP3 and then embarked on his first F1 qualifying session, taking place under the floodlights.
He made it through the first round but was narrowly pipped by 0.036s at the end of Q2 meaning he was not able to take part in the final top ten pole shoot-out.
"Of course not the circumstances in which I would like to make my F1 debut," he admitted. "I wish the best to Carlos and I hope he recovers well. But nonetheless it's a fantastic opportunity."
Bearman appeared in two FP1 practice sessions in 2023 with Haas, and recently had a taste of a previous Ferrari F1 car in a test for the Scuderia.
“He drove before the old car a couple of months ago and he did very well,” commented team principal Frederic Vasseur. “Last year, he did two FP1 with Haas in Mexico and he did a good job on these two.
“For sure, it’s a different story when you have to jump into the car in Jeddah, FP3. It’s not an easy one," he noted. “On the other hand, he did F2 yesterday, did very well because he won pole - I think it was good preparation.”
Bearman's performance was hailed by the drivers up and down pit lane, including his Ferrari team mate Charles Leclerc. "He’s done an incredible job, obviously, with only one session in FP3.
Leclerc said that making a race debut for Ferrari was a "very special day" for any racing driver. "The first race in Ferrari having done only one session, I guess is even more special.
“He was straight up to speed and comfortable with the car, so it’s good - I’m happy for him, obviously," he added. "I hope that tomorrow we can have a great race, both of us and score good points for the team.”
If Bearman's final lap had come together and allowed him to improve, he would have bumped Lewis Hamilton out of qualifying, something not lost on the seven time world champion.
"He did an amazing job in practice," observed Hamilton. “To jump into a car in P3 and deliver the way he has is really, really impressive."
Hamilton’s team mate George Russell was also quick to praise Bearman. "I’m really impressed by Ollie," he said. "I watched him in F2, I remember watching his laps in Mexico last year in Haas, I thought he was driving really well."
“He definitely exceeded my expectations because being thrown in, in FP3, is a challenge at the best of times, let alone on a circuit like this," the Mercedes driver added. "So well done to him.”
Bearman himself was thrilled by the surprising events of the day."It has been such a quick progression in my career," the 18-year-old from Chelmsford, England said afterward.
"Two or three years ago I was in F4 still, I only did my first F1 test three or four months ago," he added. "It has been a really quick progression and to make my F1 debut in [Ferrari] red. "Hopefully it's a sign of things to come."
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