Oliver Bearman is keeping his feet firmly on the ground as he prepares for his second Formula 1 season. For the young Haas driver, the true leap forward will not come from pure speed, but from the ability to manage every race weekend with precision and consistency.
Bearman: “I won’t get faster, I need to become more consistent”
After an impressive 2025, Ollie Bearman stood out for both maturity and speed, but he does not expect major gains in single-lap performance. Following the Barcelona tests, the British driver explained that his priority for 2026 is refining his overall weekend execution.
“I don’t expect to become a faster driver or to gain a few tenths. It’s not realistic,” he stated. According to Ollie Bearman, the speed that took him from junior categories to Formula 1 is now established; the real areas for growth lie elsewhere: in the quality of feedback to engineers, session management, and overall weekend preparation.
This mindset, he emphasizes, can only be developed through experience—there are no shortcuts.
Free practice as the key to stronger qualifying
The nineteen-year-old sees improving the quality of free practice sessions as the decisive step to achieving more consistent results.
“I don’t believe my final lap will be faster overall. But if I can put together cleaner weekends, I can bring the car into a better position… and thanks to more effective free practice sessions, I can gain something in qualifying as well.” – the Haas driver pointed out.
A pragmatic approach to 2026
Oliver Bearman’s analysis reflects a mature and pragmatic approach: instead of chasing hard-to-find tenths, he focuses on reducing the variability typical of young drivers and maximizing performance repeatability. With the 2026 technical revolution on the horizon, this philosophy could prove to be a valuable tool for tackling a season full of uncertainties.
Ollie Bearman, a member of the Ferrari Driver Academy and seen by many as a potential future at Maranello, continues to build his career with clarity and realism. No quest for showy moves, just solidity, method, and consistency: the most concrete foundations for growing and establishing himself at the highest levels of Formula 1.
Oliver Bearman’s pragmatic outlook on his 2026 development therefore suggests a deep understanding of the professional demands required to transition from a “promising rookie” to a “grid staple.” By acknowledging that raw speed is already a constant, Ollie Bearman is wisely shifting his focus toward the procedural excellence—such as cleaner practice transitions and technical feedback—that often separates the midfield from the frontrunners. In a season where the 2026 regulations will introduce unprecedented complexity, Bearman’s commitment to consistency over flashiness could make him the ideal asset for Haas as they look to capitalize on the new technical era.
The Ferrari junior is prioritizing weekend execution and consistency over raw lap time for the 2026 season, believing that a more methodical approach to Free Practice will naturally lead to better results on Sunday.
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