After a strong rookie season in Formula 3, Ollie Bearman has been promoted to PREMA Powerteam’s 2023 Formula 2 lineup.
Seventeen-year-old Brit Ollie (Oliver) Bearman has been confirmed as the second driver to be announced for the 2023 F2 season. He joins Dennis Hauger who recently moved to MP Motorsport. Hauger originally raced for the Italian giants PREMA Powertrain in 2022 but left. With a seat now open PREMA opted to fill it with Bearman following a successful debut season for the team in F3.
Bearman’s standout season
After claiming the Italian Formula 4 championship in 2021, Bearman joined the Ferrari Drivers Academy last October. He made his Formula 3 debut later that month at the 2021 Formula 3 post-season testing racing for PREMA. By the end of the year, Bearman was announced as one of three drivers to be racing for PREMA in the 2022 Formula 3 Championship. He partnered with Arthur Leclerc and Jak Crawford – both of whom were in their second year of Formula 3.
Despite a string of time penalties and driver errors during the first half of the season, Bearman improved drastically in the second half, winning the Sprint Race at the Belgian Grand Prix. Bearman would enter the final round at Monza as one of seven drivers in contention for the championship. He qualified P6 but had managed to work his way up to second before a red flag prompted the race to end prematurely. Bearman went on to claim third in the championship – two points behind vice-champion Zane Maloney, and just seven points behind champion Victor Martins. Bearman finished the season with one win and eight podiums.
Really excited to finally announce i’ll be graduating to @Formula2 with @PREMA_Team !!!
It will be a big challenge but i can’t wait to get going. And of course a huge thanks to everyone for the support!
Next stop- Abu Dhabi!! pic.twitter.com/GP1jVHqsUR— Ollie Bearman (@OllieBearman) November 14, 2022
Following Bearman’s graduation from Formula 2, he stated:
“I’m really excited to continue another year with the PREMA family, this time in F2. I’m really happy with how my first season went in F3. It was a really nice introduction and I felt like the team coached me throughout the year really well. I will continue to work hard over the winter with the Ferrari Driver Academy, in order to be fully prepared for 2023. It will be a tough challenge, but everyone works so hard and I’m really looking forward to the challenge. I’m already really excited for the test in Abu Dhabi and for the first round of 2023 in Bahrain.”
Rene Rosin, the Team Principal at PREMA, added:
“We were amazed by how quickly and successfully Ollie transitioned from F4 to Formula 3 racing. He is a really talented driver, and while he will be making his first steps in the FIA Formula 2 Championship, we are confident he will improve race by race with the support of our team and the Ferrari Driver Academy as well. It won’t be easy, because the step from F3 to F2 is considerable, but we are confident in his potential for the season ahead.”
2023 Formula 2 Driver Lineup
Bearman also confirmed that he would be participating in the Formula 2 post-season testing that is scheduled for November 23-25 following the season finale in Abu Dhabi. He is the first driver confirmed to be participating in the test.
- MP Motorsport: Dennis Hauger & TBD
- PREMA Powerteam: Oliver Bearman & TBD
As drivers and teams make further announcements we will provide updates including the grid overview. With Bearman already having proved a championship contender in Formula 3, can he repeat his success in Formula 2? Given his young age and quick promotion, he could have multiple seasons to claim the title.
