Actually, Oliver Bearman had expected to be knocked out in Q1, but instead he was even able to compete in Q3 – On Sunday, the focus is on the future
Oliver Bearman admits that he didn’t even expect to make it out of Q1 in qualifying for the Formula 1 race in Japan – and finally put his Haas in tenth place on the grid. The Brit continued his strong performance from China and will start the race in the points.
Haas teammate Esteban Ocon, on the other hand, did not make it past Q1 and will start from 18th place.
“I didn’t even expect to make it into Q2, so I was pretty happy to be in Q3 in the end. I don’t think either of us expected that after everything that’s happened this weekend. It was pretty tough, with the sessions this morning and yesterday afternoon being very interrupted,” says Bearman.
“I hadn’t actually done a lap on the soft tires since the first practice session. So I’m proud of the team and also of myself for fighting our way into this. I was able to find a rhythm even though I never did a full lap. In both FP2 and FP3, I was never able to finish my soft-tire lap,” said the Briton.
“But in general, I had a good rhythm and a good feeling in the car all weekend. That’s what I told the team, but they didn’t have the data to prove it yet. It was only after Q1 and Q2 that I really pushed the car to the limit and gave 100 percent all round.”
Looking ahead in the race
For the race, he hopes to be battling with the drivers in front of him rather than behind. “Scoring points is always good. I think our race pace is better compared to our qualifying pace,” said the Haas driver.
Making it to Q3 for the first time, and at a track like Suzuka, was a moment Bearman won’t forget in a hurry. Add to that the fact that many Japanese fans had brought homemade signs to support the 19-year-old, and it was an unforgettable day.
Q3 and a whole lot of fun! HaasF1 F1 JapaneseGP pic. twitter.com/GwFkt449uO
— MoneyGram Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team) April 5, 2025
“It’s incredible. This was probably the most fun I’ve ever had in my life,” he continued. “It’s so cool. To drive this car on fuel in a qualifying session on a track like this is just incredible. The grip, especially in the new first sector, is insane. My neck doesn’t like it, but the rest of my body does. It was just awesome and so much fun.”
“So far this weekend, we haven’t been able to get the most out of the soft tire. So it’s a good sign that we made it into Q3 with our weakest tire of all. I’ve felt pretty comfortable this weekend on the mediums and hards. We’ll see, it’s supposed to rain tomorrow. But either way, it will be an interesting race.”
Komatsu: New underbody helps
Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu echoes Bearman’s assessment and is particularly complimentary of the work being done behind the scenes – both at the track and in the factory. Bearman and Ocon were running a new underbody that was quickly developed after the disappointing season opener in Australia.
“If someone had told me this morning that we would make it to Q3, I wouldn’t have believed it,” says Komatsu. ‘Ollie did a fantastic job, but so did the team – from yesterday evening to this morning, then between FP3 and qualifying – I think we really worked very hard to get performance out of the car.’
“Of course it means a lot. We are the smallest team in the field, so everyone works twice as hard. And to leave here with a good result would be huge,” said the Japanese driver at his home race. ”Bringing the underfloor here was a risk. But in FP2, the data was very clear: it worked, which was very encouraging.”
“Then we continued to work on the car, prepared it for qualifying – and everything went well,” said the team principal. ‘But every time we send the car out on track, we learn something new and continue to improve.’
