F1 | Haas: Bearman in FP1 at Imola also to… protect himself from Kevin

Oliver Bearman will test the Haas VF-24 for the first time this weekend in Imola. The nineteen-year-old Englishman from the Driver Academy will take part in the first of the six free practice sessions scheduled for him by Ferrari last winter, tests aimed at making him familiar with the single-seater and the working system of a Formula 1 team. The events that have happened in the last However, two months have changed the scenario around Bearman quite a bit, and today the Imola test (as well as the subsequent tests) has taken on greater importance.

The first unscheduled event was the debut in the Formula 1 world championship which took place in Jeddah, a (short) weekend in which Bearman performed very well, significantly increasing his status. Subsequently, the agreement between Audi and Nico Hulkenberg was made official, which will thus leave a seat vacant at Haas for next season. Finally came the barrage of penalties rained down on Kevin Magnussen, today at serious risk of disqualification for a Grand Prix. Everything seems to be going in a clear direction.

“Working directly with Oliver will allow us to get to know him better – explained Haas team principal, Ayao Komatsu – we will have a more complete judgment than what can be perceived by observing his season in Formula 2. What he has done so far has been impressive , and we will evaluate it carefully.” There is great interest in 2025, but in reality Haas will make the most of this evidence to include Bearman in the team. The possibility that Magnussen could miss a Grand Prix soon is far from remote, given that the Dane is just one penalty away from being forced to miss a race weekend.

The weekend in Miami was a nightmare for Magnussen, author of two infringements punished by the college of sports commissioners with five penalty points on the license, thus reaching ten of the twelve points (over a 12 month period) granted by the sporting regulations. In the case of Magnussen, all the points accumulated are linked to infringements committed in 2024: 3 points for the collision with Alexander Albon in last year’s Saudi Arabian Grand Prix (9 March) and 2 for a contact with Yuki Tsunoda in the Chinese Grand Prix . Until March 8, 2025, Kevin will only need one more infraction to trigger his disqualification. In such a scenario it is understandable that Haas already has the suits and seat ready for Bearman to get into the car.

At Haas, it’s not just the need to use a third driver for a race that has set off the alarm. The first part of the season highlighted a notable difference in performance between Hulkenberg and Magnussen, with Nico currently boasting four placings in the points compared to just one tenth position for Kevin. With a view to 2025, the team will need to support Bearman with an experienced driver, but Magnussen’s performance at the moment is not what is required of whoever is called upon to be the team’s point of reference, at least in the first half of the season.

There is no great rush, given that until the positions of Verstappen and Sainz are clear the market will most likely remain on stand-by, but Haas will evaluate other options. There is no shortage of candidates, from the current Alpine tandem to Valtteri Bottas, net of twists and turns that could involve larger-scale names who could find themselves excluded from the choices of the top teams.