The second grand prix of the 2024 season was held on 9 March. The Saudi Arabia Grand Prix was a huge success. However, the Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz Jr. could not be part of the GP. He had to sit out due to an appendicitis operation held on the race weekend. The Ferrari driver was replaced by Oliver Bearman, an 18-year-old professional racer currently racing in Formula 2.
The British driver is under the Ferrari Driver Academy. He is making his debut in Formula 1 as the replacement for Carlos Sainz Jr. The 18-year-old driver gave a spectacular performance at the Saudi Arabia GP. Even though he didn’t finish on the podium the driver completed in the top 10 and scored points for the team. The British driver even went on to break a record that hadn’t been broken in more than a decade.
Oliver Bearman won Driver of the Day
The Saudi Arabia GP ended with Red Bull drivers Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez finishing 1st and 2nd. The third place was secured by Charles Leclerc in a Ferrari. Even though the race leaders finished with an impressive lead, the rookie driver Oliver Bearman stole fans’ hearts. The replacement driver is the youngest driver to debut in F1 after Max Verstappen and Lance Stroll.
Bearman is the youngest driver to debut for Ferrari in 52 years. Oliver started 11th on the grid, however he managed to finish 7th in the end helping the team win 6 points. The rookie driver showed his skills with beautiful overtakes against Yuki Tsunoda, Zhou Guanyu, and Nico Hulkenberg. Other than these impressive stats the driver also secured the Driver of the Day accolade.
Oliver Bearman finishes in P7 on his Formula 1 debut with Ferrari!
The 18 year old Brit is also is the Driver of The Day, with nearly 50% of the votes.#F1 #SaudiArabianGP pic.twitter.com/S4GYz71GLU
— Fastest Pitstop (@FastestPitStop) March 9, 2024
Bearman is not just the youngest to debut for Ferrari after more than 50 years, he also scored most points by a driver on the day of debut in the past 10 years. With his impressive overtakes and finishing above Lewis Hamilton and Lando Norris impressed everyone. The rookie won the hearts of racing fans with his debute, he won 48.3% of the votes for the Driver of The Day.
While Sainz Jr. is set to return to his seat for the Australian GP after making a recovery from his appendicitis surgery. Ferrari is also replacing Carlos sainz with Lewis Hamilton in the 2025 season. Looks like Bearmna will be returing to racing in the Formula 2 series for now.