Oliver Bearman’s second Formula 2 season fell short of the expectations held for the driver. After an incredibly impressive F2 rookie season, all eyes were on him and many expected him to be fighting for the title. However, with new cars and PREMA struggling, the 2024 season did not go the young Brit’s way.
A worrying start
Bearman went into his second F2 season as one of the ‘ones to watch’. His rookie season was full of impressive overtakes and positive talk of his potential. With four wins, six podiums and a sixth-place finish in the standings Bearman has the results to back up the buzz around him for 2024.
However, the new cars and regulations in the 2024 F2 season seemed to stump PREMA and Oliver Bearman from the first race.
Bearman had Mercedes junior and 2023 FRECA champions, Kimi Antonelli alongside him at PREMA and arriving at Bahrain hopes were high for such a talented duo. The Brit was met immediately with what would end up being a reoccurring fact when he left Bahrain with no points after qualifying 18th.
There was still hope for PREMA when Bearman managed to take pole in Jeddah, but he was unable to see any results from the weekend when he made the step up to Formula One to replace an ill Carlos Sainz for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.
The Brit scored points in his F1 debut and impressed Ferrari and Haas beginning discussions of a possible F1 seat. However, his struggles in F2 raised questions on whether he was ready or good enough for the step up.
First points amid more troubles
In the feature race at Melbourne, Bearman managed to take his first points a shining light after a technical issue had him starting 16th. He continued this onto Imola where he qualified second and finished fifth in the sprint race.
A big problem for Bearman in 2024 was the consistency in the PREMA. He would often have weekends where it was clear he had the pace to be in the points but would find himself caught up in accidents, or suffering technical issues.
Monaco represented a shining light in a difficult season so far for the young Brit. Although the weekend got off to a rough start, qualifying 15th in the feature race led to huge gains. PREMA chose a bold strategy that saw Bearman climb to fourth performing a daring overtake on his teammate round the tight corners of Monaco and achieving his highest position so far.
With a near podium under his belt, it felt as though Bearman was showing his true potential again and the PREMA seemed more stable. Unfortunately, this was short-lived.
Bad luck seemed to strike again, with track limits penalties and balance issues denying him points in Barcelona. His weekend in Austria was one of complete contrast, winning the sprint race and retiring from the feature.
DNF’s and an F1 contract
Silverstone was a mixed weekend for the Brit beyond results. At his home Grand Prix, he was named the 2025 Haas F1 driver, alongside Esteban Ocon. Haas spoke openly about how Bearman’s time testing for them as well as his F1 debut in Jeddah played more of a role in his contract than his F2 performances.
The weekend that started so well for Bearman ended with a DNF in the sprint race and a fall from second to seventh in the feature race. When Bearman’s teammate left Silverstone with an utterly dominant win in the rain, conversations began on whether Antonelli also deserved a contract seeing as he could outperform Bearman.
A stronger end
Monza was another moment of respite with a win in the sprint race for Bearman. He then spent another weekend absent from F2 filling in for Magnussen at Haas in Baku.
Bearman came back to Qatar and continued his form from Monza, fighting with Isack Hadjar to take a third win. Abu Dhabi saw him have the first truly consistent weekend of the season ending fourth and fifth. But the season as a whole left him disappointed.
For a driver who was making the move up to F1 and everyone thought would be a clear title favourite, to finish in 12th place with 75 points was nothing short of frustrating.
He remained positive despite the difficulties admitting, “I’m definitely going to have season like this in my career, this is a great learning experience.”
Bearman left 2024 with a Formula One seat due to his rookie season, his F1 debut and the moments during the 2024 F2 season where he showed his true potential and talent.
