The rumors of the last few hours have been confirmed. Oliver Bearman, after making his Formula 1 debut in place of the unavailable Carlos Sainz in Saudi Arabia, will make his second appearance at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku. Bearman, who is set to enter the top category in 2025 with Haas, will replace a driver from his future team, namely Kevin Magnussen, disqualified for accumulating maximum penalty points on his super licence. The delay in the official announcement was caused by Haas team principal Komatsu's need to obtain Ferrari's approval to sign Bearman.
Haas picks Bearman to replace Magnussen
Despite the choice being almost obligatory, Haas decided not to focus on its third driver, Enzo Fittipaldi, but to rely on Oliver Bearman. Also in view of his debut as an official driver next year. A sort of early test. Bearman needs no introduction. It was enough to see him in action with Carlos Sainz's Ferrari in Jeddah to understand his potential. In fact, on his debut, he scored his first world championship points, surprising everyone who had seen him struggle in Formula 2 this season, along with Andrea Kimi Antonelli, another rookie about to make his debut in 2025.
The Haas announcement
Haas has statement the choice on your own channels, announcing Bearman's return for the Baku GP weekend. The Englishman was due to race in the Formula 2 championship.
Oliver Bearman: “It’s definitely a bigger challenge going into the race as a reserve driver, with limited preparation time and so on, but I’m fortunate to have done that earlier in the year with Scuderia Ferrari, so I can at least draw on that experience. I’ve also done four FP1 sessions with MoneyGram Haas F1 Team in the VF-24 this season, so no doubt that will also prove invaluable as we get through the full race weekend in Baku. The team is in good shape at the moment and I’ll do my best to be prepared with the time I have. The aim is to get out there and have a good weekend in Azerbaijan.”
These are the words of Haas Team Principal, Ayao Komatsu: “I am thrilled that Ollie will be driving the VF-24 alongside Nico in Baku. He has already shown great promise in FP1 and post-season testing, and performed very well when driving for Scuderia Ferrari in Saudi Arabia, scoring points. This is another excellent opportunity for Ollie and the team to work together, this time over a full race weekend, and he couldn’t ask for a better teammate than Nico to provide him with a reference point.”
What happens to Fanta F1?
With Oliver Bearman replacing Kevin Magnussen over the weekend Azerbaijan Grand Prix in Baku, there will be some interesting implications for those who play Fanta F1. Bearman will temporarily take Magnussen's place in the Haas team and, consequently, his cost will be the same as the Danish driver's. This means that for this race, all points earned by Bearman will be counted as if Magnussen had earned them.
This situation represents a special opportunity for those who participate in Fanta F1. If Bearman can replicate the good performance of his debut in Saudi Arabia, when he scored his first world championship points at the wheel of Carlos Sainz's Ferrari, he could prove to be a winning bet. However, it must be remembered that his appearance is temporary: as already happened with Sainz, Bearman will be present only for this race, waiting for his official quotation as a regular driver in the next championship.
For the Baku weekend, therefore, the Fantamanagers will have to carefully consider whether to keep Bearman as Magnussen's replacement, taking into account the young driver's performance and the dynamics of the Azerbaijani circuit, which is particularly demanding and often the scene of twists and turns.
