Haas confirms first driver for 2025 F1 season

The Haas F1 Team — the sport's only American outfit — confirmed the first of its two drivers for the 2025 Formula 1 season on Thursday.

Oliver Bearman, a 19-year-old Ferrari rookie, will join the team for 2025 and beyond.

"It's an exciting thing to be able to give a young driver as talented as Oliver his first full-time seat in Formula 1," Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu said , per Phillip Horton of Autoweek. "He's developed into an incredibly mature driver under the guidance of the Ferrari Driver Academy."

While this is Bearman's first full-time F1 seat, it is not his F1 debut. He filled in for Carlos Sainz at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in March after Sainz fell ill with appendicitis.

Bearman's super-sub performance expectations in Saudi Arabia were low, but he drove Sainz's Ferrari into seventh place and received rave reviews for his grit and technique. Rumors flew about Bearman's F1 future from there.

With Ferrari's lineup of Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton confirmed for 2025, Haas — a customer team of Ferrari's engines — seemed like the most likely landing spot for the 19-year-old phenom.

Bearman's contract announcement comes on the back of Haas's strongest performance of the season.

Both of its drivers — Nico Hulkenberg, who is confirmed for a seat at Kick Sauber next season, and Kevin Magnussen, who is still looking for a place to drive — finished in the points at the Austrian Grand Prix.

"It's amazing," Komatsu said of his team's strong showing at the Red Bull Ring. "Honestly, the whole team effort, two pit stops that were really, really tight, the boys did an amazing job to get our drivers out ahead of our competition. It's an amazing team effort and I couldn't be happier."

The timing is perfect for Haas, but it's great for Bearman, too.
The announcement comes just days before his home Grand Prix at Silverstone, where he will drive the Haas during the first free practice session of the weekend.

Bearman will get to celebrate his contract in front of friends and family while getting a feel for the life he'll be living come 2025.

"It was a flood of emotions," Bearman said of receiving his Haas contract, per the Formula 1 website. "You think of all the moments you've had in your career since day one, the amount of hours you've put in, all those wet days in karting, and those cold days with snow on the track, those early wakeups and missing a lot of memories with friends — and it all becomes worth it."

Bearman will make his post-contract debut with Haas this weekend at the British Grand Prix during the first free practice session on Friday. The British Grand Prix will begin on Sunday at 10 a.m. ET.