Haas boss Ayao Komatsu has insisted that the team won’t be treating Oliver Bearman as a rookie in 2025, despite the upcoming season representing his first in Formula 1.
Bearman is among five newcomers on this season’s grid, but he stands as the most experienced in that crop having competed in three races during the recent campaign.
The Briton raced to an impressive seventh on debut in Saudi Arabia when Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz dropping out with an eventual appendicitis diagnosis saw him called upon.
Bearman backed up that with another point in Baku as the banned Kevin Magnussen’s replacement at Haas, while he also drove in the Dane’s place at the Brazilian Grand Prix.
Along with those stand-in appearances, Bearman amassed more mileage in the seven FP1 sessions that he appeared in last term, six with Haas and one with Ferrari.
Komatsu has admitted Bearman slotting into a permanent seat more prepared than a traditional rookie will impact how the team manages his maiden campaign in the sport.
“We’re not really treating him as a rookie driver,” he said via Mirror F1. “He’s got such a mature head on his shoulders, and he can offer a lot with his young age.
“He’s got lots of experience and of course he’s been exposed to the Ferrari side of things as well, so he’s been learning a lot pretty quickly.
“So in terms of development stages, he’s not like a normal rookie and he’s already got a lot to offer for us, pushing us, pointing to us what we need to improve on as a team, but in the right way, so we’re really excited about that.”
Bearman won’t be shoved into support role
A revised line-up at Haas will see Bearman partner the much more established Esteban Ocon, a one-time race winner with 156 starts to his name since debuting in 2016.
But Komatsu has denied that the vast gap in experience that exists between the pair will prompt Ocon to be prioritised as its team leader once the season begins in March.
“Honestly, we don’t have a lead driver or non-lead driver, we just work as a team,” he stated.
“I’d like to think that both of them push and challenge each other in a good way and then push the team forward together.
“We don’t set out saying like, ‘Oh, Esteban, because of his experience, he’s the team leader’. Both of them bring different positives to the table.”
Haas not concerned about intra-team rivalry
There has been the perception that Ocon’s record when it comes to clashing with team-mates could cause Haas a headache as Bearman aspires to prove his credentials.
However, Komatsu isn’t concerned about his drivers coming to blows and believes that the internal competition between them will serve to be an asset that benefits the team.
“I think [Bearman] will be fine,” the Japanese team boss expressed. “I’m not worried about his competitiveness. I think they push each other in a good way.
“I think what we’re looking for from Oli is – he’s only done two races with us, plus one race at Ferrari – so that consistency across many races. It’s a tough season, right?
“It’s very different being a full-time F1 driver to perform week in, week out, keep that consistency, keep the drive, drive the team together, etc.
“So we’re looking for that kind of consistency and determination to push the team forward as well as himself.”
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