Former Haas boss Guenther Steiner has urged Formula 1 teams to hand Oliver Bearman a 2025 seat following his standout exploits in the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
Bearman was handed an unexpected F1 debut at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit when Carlos Sainz was diagnosed with appendicitis, ruling the Spaniard out of action.
Despite receiving one hour of practice in unrepresentative conditions, the Briton hit the ground running to come within a narrow margin of reaching Q3 in qualifying.
But Bearman pulled off a series of assured overtaking manoeuvres to complete a mistake-free run to seventh place, ahead of both Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris.
Bearman is scheduled to complete six FP1 sessions with Haas this term, having made two appearances in practice for the squad in Mexico and Abu Dhabi last season.
Steiner, who was in charge of the American outfit up until the end of last season, notes that Bearman’s stand-in showing convinced him he is prepared for a promotion.
“Based on his performance in Jeddah, after what I saw from him at Haas, I’d put him in a race seat,” Steiner wrote in his new column for the F1 website.
“Obviously, it depends on the circumstances and what seats are available. You need to see the whole landscape, but he would be a candidate.
“It’s not 100% that he will succeed. It’s still a risk. But the way he handled himself in qualifying and the race in Jeddah, having just had one hour of practice, suggests the risk is smaller.”
Steiner believes that Bearman’s seamless run would have removed the doubts that have seen teams become reserved when it comes to giving rookies opportunities.
The Italian also highlighted how multiple drivers being out of contract at the end of this season could present multiple openings for the 18-year-old across the F1 field.
“For prospective employers, that drive will have taken a lot of doubts away of what he is able to do,” he added. “He’s in a good place as at the end of this year, there are a lot of contracts up with drivers, so he can put himself in good a position. He can’t go anywhere he wants, but I believe there is more than one opportunity for him.
“He has a contract with Ferrari, I don’t know how long it is. If you were interested in him, you’d go and speak with Ferrari and see what they want to do and see if something can be achieved.
“You of course need to see what is happening in your team with the drivers. Do you want him or are you happy with what you’ve got?
“I think a lot of teams will proactively look at him now after his performance last weekend.
“If I see the potential, other people will see it as well, so I think there is a good possibility for him to get a seat next year.”
