Lewis Hamilton commended Oliver Bearman’s impressive debut performance for Ferrari at the Jeddah Corniche Circuit, stepping in at short notice.
Bearman secured the 11th spot on the grid for tomorrow’s race, stepping in for Carlos Sainz Jr. with less than three hours notice before the final practice session commenced.
The Ferrari stand-in missed entering Q3 by a mere three-hundredths of a second, with the last spot going to Hamilton, who is set to join Ferrari next year.
“I didn’t see his qualifying but I think he did an amazing job in practice,” Hamilton told the official F1 channel. Bearman ended his first session in a Ferrari within 0.7 seconds of team mate Charles Leclerc.
“To jump into a car in P3 and deliver the way he has is really, really impressive,” Hamilton continued. “Really happy for him to have the opportunity.
“It also highlights the car is pretty good – one of the drivers is in number two [on the grid]. But a great, great effort for today and I’m sure tomorrow he’ll have a great time.”
The 18-year-old’s opportunity to debut arose following Sainz’s hospitalization for appendicitis, after which he underwent surgery and is currently on the mend, according to the team.
Hamilton’s teammate, George Russell, also expressed admiration for Bearman, who participated in two practice sessions for Haas the previous year.
“First, we wish Carlos well and hope he’s doing okay,” said Russell. “But I’m really impressed by Ollie.
“I watched him in Formula 2, I remember watching his laps in Mexico last year in Haas, I thought he was driving really well.
“He definitely exceeded my expectations because being thrown in, in FP3, is a challenge at the best of times, let alone on a circuit like this. So well done to him.”
Charles Leclerc also praised Oliver Bearman, describing his qualification for the 11th spot on the grid for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix as an “incredible job.”
“First of all, I hope Carlos will recover quickly,” Leclerc said. “Then on Ollie’s side, I mean, he’s done an incredible job, obviously, with only one session in FP3.
“He was straight up to speed and comfortable with the car. So it’s good. I’m happy for him, obviously.
“It’s a very special day – the first race in Ferrari having done only one session, I guess is even more special. So I hope that tomorrow we can have a great race, both of us and score good points for the team.”
