Bearman “sad” that engine trouble hindered times in Super Formula cameo

Haas Formula 1 signing Oliver Bearman says he’s “sad” he didn’t get the chance to push for a better result in Super Formula’s post-season Suzuka test due to engine trouble.

Bearman was the star attraction of the third and final day of the three-day test on Friday, reserved for rookies, as he drove for Toyota squad KCMG.

The British driver set the third-fastest time in the morning session behind Nakajima Racing’s Igor Fraga and fellow KCMG driver Seita Nonaka, and was poised for further progress until his car was struck by a turbo failure in the afternoon session.

That prevented him from making use of two of the three sets of fresh Yokohama tyres he had been assigned, as he had only used a single set at the end of the morning session.

Reflecting on his performance as he ended up 16th overall across the three days, 0.557s slower than Toyota junior Nonaka, Bearman said he was satisfied with his first attempt on new tyres but regretted the lost chance to go for an even better time.

“It was my first-ever new tyre run, so honestly, I was quite happy,” reflected Bearman. “With these tyres you only get one lap, so you just have to go for it.

“I was looking forward to running on more new tyres this afternoon, but with the problem we had, we couldn’t.”

Asked how much faster he could have been without the turbo issue, Bearman replied: “A huge amount faster for sure – I don’t know how much.

“But I’m a bit sad I couldn’t run on new tyres again because I was building up my confidence and it would have been a nice thing to do.”

Despite that setback, Bearman added he felt that the experience he gained from the test will serve him well looking ahead to next April’s Japanese Grand Prix at the same track.

“I was really happy to drive on this track,” he said.

“There are some differences in real life that you cannot pick up on the simulator: the bumps, the wind, the circuit roughness makes the tyres overheat very fast, so it’s important to control that.

“I learnt a lot in the long run we did this afternoon and the short runs we did this morning.

“I have the least experience at Suzuka compared to the other drivers on the F1 grid, so this was a way to bring myself at least a step closer to them.

“It’s a very tough and technical track, so every lap counts.”

Bearman said he relished his first taste of Super Formula’s Dallara SF23, comparing it favourably to the new-for-2024 Formula 2 machinery in which he won three sprint races this year.

Oliver Bearman, PREMA Racing

Photo by: James Sutton / Motorsport Images

“The driving style is much closer to F1, where you can really push, attack and really go for it,” he said.

“The car lets you dance with it; it’s very light and agile. It reminds me a lot of F1.

“Today I learned some stuff which I can carry over into F1, so it’s been very useful and I thoroughly enjoyed it today.”