Oliver Bearman demand made as Haas F1 boss makes instructions very clear

Formula 1 race winner Esteban Ocon, 28, is joined by rookie Oliver Bearman, 19, as Haas field a new-look driver line-up in 2025 after the exits of Kevin Magnussen and Nico Hulkenberg

Britain’s newest Formula 1 star Oliver Bearman won’t be forced into a wingman role in his maiden campaign.

That’s the pledge made by Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu who has paired the teenager with Esteban Ocon for the 2025 season. Frenchman Ocon, 28, is an F1 race-winner and by far the more experienced driver but Komatsu insists that won’t see him preferred over Bearman, 19, this year.

The Japanese boss said: “Honestly, we don’t have a lead driver or non-lead driver, we just work as a team. 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.”

Bearman had already impressed Haas with his maturity in practice appearances long before his super-sub role for Ferrari in Jeddah last year. Then just 18, he made his F1 debut at short notice as Carlos Sainz needed surgery for appendicitis and finished seventh, above fellow Brits Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton.

Bearman followed that up with more points when called up by Haas for the Azerbaijan race and also drove for the American team in Brazil, deputising for Kevin Magnussen on both occasions. Now he has taken the Dane’s seat on a permanent basis, Komatsu says the teenager will be expected to hit the ground running this term.

He said: “We’re not really treating him as a rookie driver. 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.”

Ocon has been feisty with team-mates in the past and lost his Alpine seat last year, in part, because he crashed into team-mate Pierre Gasly in Monaco. But Komatsu is not currently worried about any needle between his drivers and said: “I think [Bearman] will be fine. 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.”