Oliver Bearman beats Nico Hülkenberg in the Formula 1 Brazilian sprint qualifying, while Kevin Magnussen is out completely due to illness
After the sprint qualifying, the Haas team announced that Kevin Magnussen would not be competing in the São Paulo Grand Prix and would be out with an illness. Oliver Bearman will therefore be in the cockpit for the rest of the weekend. The 18-year-old Brit caused a stir in the sprint qualifying when he once again beat his team-mate Nico Hülkenberg.
The young Brit has already stood in for Magnussen once this season, and he was also faster than the experienced Hülkenberg in qualifying in Baku. The German had to struggle with flu-related issues in qualifying. “It was simply the lack of grip,” he explained after his elimination in SQ2, while Bearman made it into the top 10.
“I’m actually happy with my lap, but the feeling from Mexico continued. I lacked rhythm in the infield, especially in the second sector,” Hülkenberg continued, who also explained to Sky that it was not due to the timing of his last lap: ‘I don’t think I went out too late. Most of them did one lap. The medium tire was not suitable for two laps on our car.’
Bearman jokes about call from Haas team principal
In contrast, Bearman is thrilled with the performance of his car: “I had a good feeling from the first lap in FT1. It was great to be in SQ3,” he explains. The 19-year-old finished the first practice session on Friday morning in third place, before finishing tenth in the sprint qualifying for tomorrow’s sprint.
But Bearman made a small mistake in his only SQ3 lap. His lap, which would have put him in eighth place, was canceled due to track limits: “The rest of the lap was really good, so I’m a bit disappointed about the mistake,” said
“Ayo [Komatsu] woke me up at 6:30 this morning on the phone. I wasn’t angry when I saw his name,” he jokes. “I want to do my best for Kevin, as he is not feeling well. It’s a pleasure to sit in a Formula One car.”
Ahead of tomorrow’s 24-lap sprint race, Hülkenberg expresses his concerns about the tires: “It’s going to be a tough sprint for everyone. The short lap here in Sao Paulo is tough on the tires,” he explains. In addition, only the first eight finishers will score points, so both Haas cars need to make progress in the sprint.
