‘This track will always be special to me’ – Bearman reflects on returning to Jeddah one year on from rollercoaster debut

Ollie Bearman explained that the Jeddah Corniche Circuit "will always be special to me" as the Haas driver reflected on how his life has changed since making his Formula 1 debut at last year's Saudi Arabian Grand Prix.

The Briton was called in as a last-minute replacement at Ferrari last season for the event after regular driver Carlos Sainz required an emergency appendix operation.

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At the age of 18, Bearman became the youngest driver to start a Grand Prix for Ferrari and, after just failing to progress through to Q3 having only driven in Free Practice 3, the teenager secured a points finish on his debut with seventh.

Reflecting on his unexpected debut ahead of this weekend's Grand Prix, Bearman believes the venue marks a special moment in his career.

"A crazy weekend, I just hope physically I’m a bit stronger now because it was a tough race," said Bearman, who had also qualified on pole for the Formula 2 support race the same weekend.

"To come back one year on is a special feeling, [I've] always had decent performances here. This track will always be special to me.

"In F2 [I] had a good car here, F1 not as good but it was an amazing debut. [A] high grip track which is fun for us – a high speed, high commitment track. Fun one to drive."

After his impressive debut Bearman, who was Ferrari's reserve driver last season, also made two stand-in performances for Haas before joining the American team full-time in 2025.

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When asked how becoming a full-time F1 driver had changed his life, Bearman said: "A lot has changed. You have more fans and people knowing you, [it] comes with good and bad things.

"[It's] part of the life in F1, what I’ve been dreaming of since I was young, so I'm happy to be here."

After the opening four Grands Prix of the season Bearman has registered six points courtesy of finishing eighth in China followed by two 10th-place finishes in Japan and Bahrain, the latter being earned despite starting from last on the grid.

"Happy with it," said Bearman when asked how he felt this season had gone so far. "Bahrain was a mixed bag, Quali was poor but I got lucky with the Safety Car. Other races we deserved to be up there. Australia was difficult but we turned it around quickly and brought an upgrade to the car which helped."

When asked what's possible this weekend, Bearman added: "Who knows. I didn’t expect much in Suzuka but scored points. Bahrain I wasn’t sure what we could achieve. I know we can have a good weekend here but no predictions."

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