Bearman Reportedly On Top Of Haas's List As Replacement For Hulkenberg

Oliver Bearman is reportedly Haas's priority driver to replace Nico Hulkenberg after he departs at the end of the 2024 season.

Today, April 26th, the Haas F1 team announced they would be separating their ways with Nico Hulkenberg. The German driver will be heading to Sauber (future Audi) in 2025 with a multi-year deal.

This means that rumors about Audi's interest in the 36-year-old German driver were true. While Hulkneberg's next destination is now clear, who will take his place in the America F1 team isn't.

The driver whose name came up a lot in connection to a future seat in Haas was Ollie Bearman, mainly after his strong showing during the 2024 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

The 18-year-old Britton amazed everyone when he managed to jump in Carlos Sainz's Ferrari with almost no preparation and delivered a P7 result at one of the most challenging circuits in the F1 calendar.

According to F1 presenter and journalist Lawrence Barretto, Bearman is at the top of Haas's list of potential drivers at the moment. He wrote on X (formerly Twitter) after the American team announced Hulkenbergs departure:

Bearman is part of Ferrari's F1 academy. The Italian manufacturer happens to supply Haas with power units and other components for their car.

In other words. Scuderia is an essential partner of the American team, which means they might have an influence on who gets to drive in their cars, for example.

Ollie Bearman showed huge promise during the one opportunity he got in a Grand Prix race, and Ferrari will most likely want to get him into F1 as soon as possible.

The team from Maranello and Haas prepared quite a few practice sessions for Bearman during this season. They are seemingly doing what they can to prepare the teenager for F1. Would you like to see the 18-year-old in the Haas seat next year?