Bearman accepts Ferrari delay as 2027 door shuts

Oliver Bearman is not expected to move from Haas to Ferrari in 2027, with Charles Leclerc’s new contract and Lewis Hamilton’s expected continuation leaving no opening at the Scuderia for the 21-year-old.

That has forced a reset in the timeline around one of Ferrari’s most closely watched juniors, but Bearman said he is taking it in stride rather than treating it as a setback. He said he was “not disappointed” and “not sad” about the situation, adding that staying with Haas would fit his development path. Bearman said working with Haas is something he enjoys “incredibly,” and that he would not see it as a bad outcome to remain there in 2027 because the team is on “a fantastic upward trend” and he is enjoying the journey.

The closed Ferrari picture has become clearer after Leclerc extended his deal early last week, while Hamilton’s retirement has been described as “more than unlikely” after a strong start to the season. For Bearman, that removes any realistic short-term route into the works team even as he continues to be viewed as a future Ferrari option.

His response comes against the backdrop of a season that started brightly before losing momentum. Bearman was briefly fifth in the drivers’ championship after the second race in China, but across the next four weekends he added only one more point and slipped to 11th in the standings.

Even so, Bearman stopped short of turning his acceptance of the Ferrari delay into a firm commitment to Haas. Asked whether his comments meant he would definitely remain with the team next season, he replied: “I didn’t say that.” He then added: “I don’t know.”

Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu also made clear that Bearman’s longer-term future may not be Haas’s decision alone. When asked about the possibility of Bearman staying at Haas beyond 2027, Komatsu said that question should be directed to Ferrari team principal Frederic Vasseur.

That uncertainty matters beyond Bearman himself because Ferrari’s pipeline is still moving. Rafael Câmara is reportedly being lined up for a Haas seat in 2027, which adds pressure on Esteban Ocon after the Frenchman scored only three points across the first six race weekends. With Ferrari’s own seats closed, Haas is shaping up as the key battleground in deciding which of Maranello’s young drivers gets the next step toward Formula 1’s top tier.