Haas boss Komatsu convinced Bearman is a future Ferrari F1 driver

Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu is in no doubt that Oliver Bearman will be a future Formula 1 driver for Ferrari.

The Italian team has started working with Lewis Hamilton this week, but fellow Briton Bearman, who is part of the team’s driver programme, is also entering this season as a full-time F1 driver.

Bearman has been shipped out on loan to Haas after a string of impressive performances during FP1 sessions for the Banbury-based team in 2023 and 2024.

The 19-year-old also filled in for the stricken Carlos Sainz to drive for Ferrari in the 2024 Saudi Arabian GP when the Spaniard had appendicitis.

He defied expectations to finish seventh which earned him plaudits, but Komatsu said he never doubted Bearman from the moment he had his Haas debut in FP1 at the 2023 Mexico GP.

When asked by Autosport if he saw Bearman as a future Ferrari driver, Komatsu said: “Yes. He is a Ferrari driver and we’ve got him for two years – plus an option for an extra one – but if we do a good job and if Ollie does a good job, there’s no way Ferrari can ignore that.

“It’s funny about Ollie being a rookie because I don’t treat him as a rookie in the sense, because we pay lots of attention to what he has to say.

“Of course he’s got good experience in Ferrari’s education, simulator, etc. And he’s been driving our car – VF-23 and VF-24.

“Every time he gets in the car, his feedback’s been excellent. The approach has been excellent, speed has been great.

“You saw in Baku and Interlagos, both qualifying sessions he out-qualified [former Haas driver] Nico [Hulkenberg], who was our reference.”

Komatsu has made it clear that he has been impressed by Bearman’s feedback and his attitude, shelving his own attempt to show his speed by working through the team’s programmes during his FP1 outings.

The Haas team principal is now eager to see how Bearman progresses with his F1 career and will see Ferrari to discuss how it will be monitoring his development.

“I’m sure Ferrari want regular feedback,” Komatsu added. “I’m actually going to see them in the first week of February so I can understand exactly what kind of feedback they would like.

“But I’d like to give them feedback as well, because they have been a crucial part of his career, so they know Ollie better than us, so any help we can get from that side would be beneficial as well.

“I’d like to work quite closely with the guy who has been dealing with Ollie.”