F1 News & Gossip

Leclerc reveals 'INCREDIBLE' Bearman Ferrari F1 debut reaction

Charles Leclerc majorly impressed with young team-mate on his debut

Shay Rogers

Saturday 9 March 2024 11:57 Updated: 17:26

Charles Leclerc has shared his verdict on 18-year-old Ollie Bearman’s dramatic last gasp Formula 1 debut with Ferrari.

The young Brit becomes the third youngest driver in the sport’s history, as well as the first from his country to contest a grand prix for the Scuderia in over 25 years.

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Despite having very limited time to settle, he managed to qualify in 11th place for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix with just 22 laps under his belt in the SF24.

Bearman is the first team-mate that Leclerc has been older than across seven seasons, which is a testament to how impressive the Monegasque driver has fared against more experienced counterparts.

Charles Leclerc drives his SF24 at the Corniche Circuit

Ollie Bearman is the third youngest driver in F1 history

Leclerc impressed by Ferrari newbie

He will line up next to Max Verstappen in second place at Jeddah, but he has been left impressed by his new team-mate's work.

“First of all, I hope Carlos will recover quickly,” he said. “Then on Ollie's side, he has done an incredible job. 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 and the first race in Ferrari having only done one session I guess is even more special.

“I hope tomorrow we can both have a great race and score strong points for the team.”

It would need an all-time classic for Bearman to achieve a podium at the Corniche Circuit, but points are definitely on the cards for the impressive Ferrari driver who secured pole position for the Formula 2 feature race on Thursday.

Sadly, he won’t get to participate in that feature race, but I doubt that means much to him considering that he is about to become the youngest driver to ever race for the legendary Ferrari outfit.

Max Verstappen Ferrari Formula 1 Charles Leclerc Ollie Bearman