“The strangest thing? Not having seen the Grand Prix on television, I can't remember the last time I missed one. I'll watch it as soon as I get home.” Oliver Bearman has a smile for everyone, the eighteen-year-olds emerged only in the embrace with his father David, exhausted like his son at the end of a race spent standing in the Ferrari garage.
It's raining compliments, as soon as he got out of the car the first to congratulate Ollie was Lewis Hamilton, who arrived behind him under the checkered flag. A special gesture for Bearman, embraced by the driver who for many years he admired in front of the television winning Grand Prix and world titles.
Nico Hulkenberg, Haas VF-24, Oliver Bearman, Ferrari SF-24
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
What was it like to beat Lewis?
“Well, what can I say… it was a fantastic race. When Hamilton and Norris returned to the track on fresh tires I saw their silhouette in the mirrors, and at that point I thought that with the soft tires they would get behind me very quickly. Then lap after lap I saw that their tires weren't so fast, and my lead stabilized at two and a half seconds. With five laps to go I realized that if I hadn't made any mistakes I could have finished the race in front of them. And so it was.”
It must be special for you to finish the race ahead of Lewis and Lando…
“I grew up watching these riders, oh yes, it was nice. We didn't compete closely, but it was exciting to be on track with them as well as receive their compliments.”
Oliver Bearman, Scuderia Ferrari
Photo by: Mark Sutton / Motorsport Images
Were you nervous before leaving?
“Honestly, no. It may be surprising, but as I prepared for the end it was like all the other races I've done. The procedures are a little different than at the start of an F.2 race, but once the lights were on I concentrated as I always do. In the race we had a fast car, and this helped me in the comparison with Lewis and Lando, the aim was to run a clean race, without errors. Having succeeded makes me very happy and satisfied.”
Did you feel the fatigue?
“At the end of the race Lewis practically pulled me out of the car! I took part in my first Grand Prix on one of the most demanding tracks, here there is no degradation and he pushes himself from the start to the finish line, with lots of lateral Gs. It was pretty impressive.”
What do you have to do now to be a starter in F.1?
“I don't think I'll be in F1 for the rest of the season. My goal was to use this opportunity to put in a good performance, and in the end I think I did a good job. Then I will continue to push in Formula 2 and keep my fingers crossed.”
Do you have any options ahead of 2025?
“This year I will be on track on several Fridays with Haas, the aim is to build a good relationship with them and gain experience in the car. If a door opens then it will be fantastic.”
Oliver Bearman, Ferrari SF-24
Photo by: Glenn Dunbar / Motorsport Images
Any chance of racing in Melbourne?
“I honestly don't know anything about it, Carlos seems to be recovering well and I'm happy for him, in the end it's his car and his championship.”
You managed to make your way even with several overtakings…
“In the restart phases (after the SC) I managed to pass Tsunoda, I think I caught him by surprise. I had a much better pace than my direct rivals, but they were better at it than me
manage energy consumption, it's something I've never done before. I practically took a course on… work”.
“When I found myself in a tussle with Hulkenberg, after a while I understood that he was using the battery in the correct places, unlike me, it took me a few laps to understand it. When you run out of charge you have to wait another full lap to try again, I was a bit inefficient in this aspect, but I remained calm and tried to improve lap after lap.”
You showed an enviable calm over the weekend. Is it a natural gift of yours?
“In the past I wasn't like this! If I think back to my experience in F.4 and F.3 I was often more nervous, but over the years I have learned to stay calm, especially in very intense situations like the one I experienced this weekend. We knew that the race for us would improve lap after lap, I remained calm and waited for the performance to grow. I think we did a good job.”
When you return to F.2, will you be able to maintain this positive momentum?
“After obtaining pole in F.2 I was disappointed not to be able to realize the potential we had in the race. But when you're offered an opportunity like this you can't miss it, I'm really happy I tried and I think I made a good impression. Now the attention returns to F.2, a difficult championship awaits me because I lost two races. At the moment I have more points in F.1 than in F.2.”
How will you celebrate these two days?
“I have some debriefs with the team and I think I'll have a nice dinner with a big dessert, I think I've earned it, or maybe a burger!”
#Bearman #understand #hybrid #Hulkenberg
