Oliver Bearman admitted he was angry with himself after a 10-place grid penalty meant a superb qualifying performance at his first British Grand Prix went to waste.
The British driver was handed the grid-drop, along with a hefty four penalty points, after losing control of his car and crashing on entry to the pit lane in final practice.
The FIA ruled that Bearman had accelerated back to race speed under red-flag conditions, following Gabriel Bortoleto’s crash, and was travelling at 160mph when he spun into the barriers.
The Haas driver bounced back with a fantastic qualifying performance to post the eighth-fastest time but rued his error which means he lines up 18th.
A bizarre late crash in FP3 for Ollie Bearman as he lost control on the way into the pit lane 😳💥 pic.twitter.com/fcZvu0q7iH
— Sky Sports F1 (@SkySportsF1) July 5, 2025
“Of course, I’m really disappointed in myself because I’ve let my team down today,” Bearman said.
“I didn’t account for the cold brakes and tyres. A silly error, one that shouldn’t happen at this level.
“I’m angry at myself and very sad, but I’m glad at least that we could show the good thing today was that we have a quick car in qualifying trim, which hasn’t been the case more recently.”
Bearman now has a total of eight penalty points and accruing 12 would mean he would face a race ban.
A super Silverstone Quali from Ollie 🙌💪
— MoneyGram Haas F1 Team (@HaasF1Team) July 5, 2025
It might not be where he starts tomorrow, but it's a huge effort from our Brit 🇬🇧#HaasF1 #F1 #BritishGP pic.twitter.com/oilANBL4n6
Asked if he was shocked to receive four points, Bearman said: “Yes, but let’s move on.”
Bearman’s eighth was the highest qualifying position of his career and he is optimistic of a strong race on Sunday.
“We actually had a very, very strong qualifying and the car was feeling great, the best it’s ever felt for me,” Bearman said.
“We bought an upgrade this weekend and clearly it’s showing potential because our qualifying pace has not been fantastic recently and now to be in Q3 on merit is a good feeling.
“I’m really proud of the team for bringing a successful upgrade.
“If we have a car that’s P8 in qualifying, it means we have a very quick race car because normally our qualifying car is not quite as fast as our race car.
“So hopefully that stays the same and we can have a good one tomorrow.”
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