Bearman to race for Haas in Sao Paulo with Magnussen out for full weekend

Formula 1 team Haas have announced that driver Kevin Magnussen will miss the remainder of the Sao Paulo Grand Prix weekend with illness, meaning Brit Oliver Bearman will race on Sunday.

The news of Magnussen feeling unwell came before Friday's action got under way and the decision was taken for Bearman to step in for free practice, Sprint Qualifying and Saturday's Sprint.

But soon after Sprint Qualifying, in which Bearman placed 10th, it was confirmed that Magnussen would not return to take any part of the weekend's running order.

Bearman was delighted with his showing, especially having had such little notice that he was going to be called into action.

"The car was feeling good all day honestly. From the first lap I did in P1, I had a great feeling. So, happy to be in SQ3 and finally make it to the third stage of a qualifying session," he told the official Formula 1 website.

"Ayao [Komatsu] woke me up this morning at like 6:30 with the call, but when I saw his name I wasn't so mad.

"If it was my mum or something, not realising the time, I would have been a bit more angry."

Following Ollie stepping into the VF-24 for today’s sessions due to Kevin’s sickness, we can confirm that the British driver will now complete the full #BrazilGP weekend with the team. We wish Kevin a full and speedy recovery.#HaasF1 #F1 pic.twitter.com/fqcXeJApQJ

— MoneyGram Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team) November 1, 2024

This is not the first time 19-year-old Bearman has stood with little preparation time, having previously raced for Ferrari in Saudi Arabia after Carlos Sainz was forced to withdraw through injury.

He has also come in for Magnussen before as well, replacing him in Azerbaijan when the driver was hit with a one-race ban.

The opportunity comes ahead of his full-time Formula 1 debut next year, in which he will take a seat for Haas.