Rookie wins and Championship memories: Oliver Bearman on the moments that made him

15 August 2023

Once more a rookie in 2023, Oliver Bearman has taken to Formula 2 about as well as he has done in every other Championship before.

A multiple-time race winner already, the PREMA Racing driver looks back at some of the moments that helped him arrive on the F2 grid and made him the driver he is today.

First win in single seaters, Hockenheim 2020

“Let's go in chronological order. It would be my first race in single seater cars. That was in 2020 and Formula 4 around Hockenheim. It was a really cool race and while I don't remember exactly what happened because it was quite a while ago now - I think I was P4 or something and I had some good pace and I managed to win and that was kind of the start of it, of everything really. My first win in cars was a really cool moment.

“It was my first race weekend in Hockenheim and my first season in German F4. I think it was like the third or fourth round, and that was kind of the start of a better second half of that Championships so it kicked off a change in form. “I remember there was Gabriele Minì, he was leading at the time, but he made a mistake. He bounced over the kerbs, there’s a funny clip of him flying for a few metres in the air. It’s amazing. That’s partly why I won the race, it was quite fun.

“It was my first podium actually, so that was also quite nice. It was my first year in F4, so coming in with a lot of the Red Bull Junior Team drivers. a lot of well-known guys - to win a race was really cool and a good confidence boost.”

Italian and German F4 Champion, 2021

“Winning the F4 Championships in 2021, that was what we set out to do at the start of that season and also part of why I'm here now because it enabled me to join the Ferrari Driver Academy as well. It was not really a moment but that whole year was a kind of a combination of hard work and good performances.

“Winning both was the goal of course. You don't want to say it or to set your expectations too high. But in the back of everyone's mind, we knew what we were setting out for. Both of the championships started quite well and with good results, and we were fighting on the front and we just knew that if we put a lot of effort and minimise the mistakes, it would be possible to do both. And that was such a cool moment.

“It was really, really nice, especially with the team I was with Van Amersfoort Racing. We worked really, really well together and it was nice to bring back some success for them. It was just a really good year and I really enjoyed that and I learned so much as a driver as well.

“I think the last race weekend of the season Monza when I won all three races stands out. it was a weekend where we were struggling quite a lot for pace as a team. Monza is a track where you need a lot of top speed and we were struggling a bit with that. still, I managed to win all of the races S it was quite a cool moment to sign off my F4 campaign and go to F3.”

Spa-Francorchamps, 2022 FIA Formula 3 season

“I would say the second half of my F3 season last year, which was really really good. For example, last year at Spa-Francorchamps, I had a really good weekend. That was P1 and P3 in the races, it was like a late championship charge. That kind of helped me to step up into F2. So I would say Spa last year was a really good moment for me. Everything was just working really well and the results were coming.

“I think just as you build up the experience, you kind of become a bit more savvy and read the races a bit better. I started life in F3 as kind of an F4 driver still, going for every possible opportunity, giving everything but it's not really the case, you have to be a bit smarter in F3 and even more so in F2. So, I think we were fast from the start but as I gained experience, I started getting the results. That was the difference.

“I'd say Spa was my favourite weekend because actually it was my first and only race win in F3. I was always P2 or P3 and I only won one race and it was there. Even though it was just a Sprint Race, it was really nice to finally get on that top step. But also to bring back P3 in the Feature Race was really really good.”