Bearman: “I hope one day I can fight for the world championship with Antonelli” | FP

The convincing performance of Oliver Bearman in the preparatory categories of F1, combined with the excellent 7th place in this year’s Saudi Arabian GP with Ferrari, when he was called by Maranello to replace Carlos Sainz, have convinced the Haas to bet on the young English driver for next season, with the 19-year-old taking part in his first full-time F1 campaign with the US team.

A future therefore already known for the British driver from the Ferrari Driver Academy, unlike his teammate at Prema, where he competes in the F2 championship: Andrea Kimi Antonelli. The talent from Bologna is in fact one of the main candidates to inherit Lewis Hamilton’s seat in Mercedeshaving also been a great promise for team principal Toto Wolff for some time, but there are still no developments on what could be his actual promotion to F1.

While waiting for official confirmation, Bearman wanted to talk about his current teammate, hoping to be able to face him once again next year in the Circus: “We’ve always followed each other and we leveled up more or less at the same time. – the British driver explained to Sky Sports F1 – I’ve known Kimi for a long time, we’ve raced a bit in F4, a lot in the simulator, and now we’re teammates in F2. I hope for his sake that he can also get to F1because he deserves it. One day I hope to fight for a world championship with himbecause I think that’s the path we’re both aiming for.”

A hope, that of being able to compete one day with Antonelli in the top series, which is added to another dream that Bearman hopes to be able to realise with the team that allowed him to debut in F1 in Jeddah: “I think Ferrari is one of the most iconic brands in the world, obviously in racing and F1. – he added – if you draw a car, it’s red. It’s a brand that is synonymous with racing, victories, successes and also fantastic drivers. First of all, having made my debut with Ferrari is something that hasn’t happened for a long time, and becoming the youngest Ferrari driver was something very special for me. Of course I want to win the world championship and do it with Ferrari, it’s my dream. They have supported me since 2021. They saw something in me from the beginning. They decided to trust me and even just putting me behind the wheel in Jeddah was a big risk on Ferrari’s part. This shows that they believe in me, that they have faith in my abilities, and of course one day I would like to win a championship, especially with Ferrari.”