Sainz appeared quicker before he withdrew than his Ferrari teammate Charles Leclerc. During the race, Leclerc lost some advantage due to Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton’s strategic moves of not stopping during the safety car period to clean up Lance Stroll’s incident. This meant that Leclerc was potentially more delayed by them compared to Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez.
However, this wouldn’t have made a difference in the end. The Ferrari was close to victory, but it wasn’t enough. Red Mist, the team’s strategist, is puzzled about how they managed to secure the fastest lap point on the final lap. Hopefully, Red Bull doesn’t really care about bonus points.
The positive aspect is that while catching up to Verstappen may be challenging, Ferrari seems to have a good chance of staying ahead of Perez. There’s a small gap to close on the outside. It’s about three to four-tenths of a second behind Verstappen. So all hope is not lost. Maybe the team can take advantage of the upcoming races until June to make significant progress, as they have done in the past.
Our other car had an impressive debut that saved the race from being boring. Oliver Bearman’s last-minute entry, with only one practice session and a quick qualifying, was truly remarkable. His performance in his first Grand Prix was mature and well-paced, even under pressure until the end. Coming out of nowhere to achieve that was truly exceptional. This achievement has put the 18-year-old in the sights of many Formula 1 teams, surpassing the record for the youngest Ferrari driver.
However, it’s important to note that Bearman was better prepared than most young drivers for his unexpected debut. As a top student in the Ferrari Academy, Oliver has spent countless hours in the Ferrari SF-24 simulator. Not to mention, he has also driven older Ferrari F1 cars, giving him a deeper understanding of what it takes to drive a Formula 1 car than most people would believe.
Additionally, Bearman had prior experience in Jeddah through his Formula 2 practice and qualifying sessions. He had even qualified on the Formula 2 pole position before his sudden call-up. All of this is a testament to the excellence of our Ferrari Academy. However, the Academy’s influence is not the only factor at play; Bearman’s background also plays a significant role.
Red Mist, reflecting on Bearman’s success, wonders how many talented young drivers out there have missed the opportunity to enter Formula 1 because they don’t have wealthy parents backing their rise. David Bearman, Oliver’s father, is certainly not lacking in financial resources.
To help illustrate Red Mist’s straightforward point, let’s consider this mathematical reasoning: According to numerous sources on wealth, it is estimated that there are approximately three thousand individuals who possess a net worth of one billion dollars or more in the world today. This figure represents a mere fraction, specifically 0.00003%, of the current global population, which exceeds eight billion people.
Given this statistic, how can we confidently assert that the Formula 1 racing circuit is comprised of the absolute best drivers in the world, when a significant portion of these drivers hail from such an exclusive and rarefied background, accounting for only one in every thirty thousand individuals?
From a statistical standpoint, this also implies that there are approximately 2.6 million young individuals out there who possess greater driving abilities than Ollie Bearman and the other drivers who owe their racing opportunities to their billionaire or ultra-wealthy fathers.
In the opinion of Red Mist, it is imperative that Ferrari, Formula 1, and other racing academies address this issue as a priority, if we hope to prevent the continuation of the monotonous races that have plagued the last two Formula 1 seasons.
Nevertheless, congratulations to Ollie Bearman for becoming the 776th driver in the history of Formula 1. Undeniably, you are an exceptionally fortunate young man!