F2 boss sees Bearman in F1 next year: 'I would be very happy about that'

For Ferrari reserve Bearman, his debut in the top class of motorsport came completely unexpected. Sainz was stricken with appendicitis in Jeddah, which required immediate surgery. As a result, the then-18-year-old Bearman was called up to replace the Spaniard. The F2 driver scored highly with his performance at the challenging Jeddah Corniche Circuit, where he immediately picked up six points despite the very short preparation he had.

F2 boss: 'Bearman deserves permanent F1 seat'

For F2 CEO Michel, Bearman's performance did not come as much of a surprise. "I was not surprised by his talent. I know Bearman is a talent. And we've seen him in Formula 3 and we've seen him already last year, in F2. And Bearman has some outstanding weekends. You remember when he did last year in Baku," he told GPblog and others. Referring to Bearman's impressive performance in Baku 2023, where he took pole position as a rookie and won both races.

"It was absolutely amazing for a rookie. Then he didn't finish as well in the championship as he should have because he had a little bit of lack of consistency over the season last year. But Bearman is definitely a talent. He's a very, very strong driver. Does he deserve a seat in F1? Yes, absolutely. And I would imagine that next year he will have one. And I'm very, very happy about that," concluded the Formula 2 boss.

Currently, Bearman is nineteenth in the F2 championship after three races run, of which he missed the weekend in Saudi Arabia due to his stint with Ferrari. In the last F2 weekend in Australia, he was involved in an incident in the sprint race, which earned him a ten-second time penalty. In the main race, he spun but still managed to take his first point of the season by coming back to tenth place.