Ollie Bearman’s accident with Carlos Sainz during the Italian Grand Prix in Monza earned him a 10-second time penalty and two penalty points.
The British driver attempted to overtake the Spaniard on the inside at turn four, but the maneuver was ultimately unsuccessful. He now sits at 10 penalty points, and earning two more would see him banned from a race weekend, just like Kevin Magnussen, the driver he replaced at Haas, was last year at one point.
At the moment, it is unclear who will step in if Bearman gets two more penalty points and is forced to miss out on a race weekend. Ryo Hirakawa is the officially listed reserve driver for Haas this season, but he may not end up being chosen, having never participated in a Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend before.
Here are three possibilities.
3 possible replacements for Ollie Bearman
Zhou Guanyu
The Chinese driver joined Ferrari this season after being dropped by Sauber after 2024. While Zhou Guanyu had some good performances during his three seasons at Sauber, he was simply a victim of driving an extremely slow car that struggled mightily for much of his stint.
Zhou is a Ferrari reserve driver, and the team can still lend their reserve drivers to Haas if the circumstances are appropriate. We saw Bearman replace Magnussen due to a race ban in Baku last season, so Zhou could definitely be a contender if the need arises.
Antonio Giovinazzi
The Italian driver spent three full seasons with Sauber before being dropped by the team after the 2021 season. Antonio Giovinazzi has not competed in a Grand Prix weekend since, but he has been with Ferrari’s endurance racing team for the last few years.
The 31-year-old might not be as strong of a contender to replace Bearman due to his extended period out of Formula 1. Nevertheless, he is still capable of filling in for a single weekend if more suitable options are unavailable.
Dino Beganovic
Ferrari’s best junior driver has been making waves in his first full Formula 2 season. Currently sitting 10th in the championship, Dino Beganovic has done very well after an inconsistent start to the season.
The Swedish driver has been on a fantastic run of form, finishing in the points in his five most recent starts. Ferrari may allow Beganovic to make his F1 debut if Haas request him, but also while assuming a replacement can be brought in for Hitech if F2 happens to be a support series the same weekend.
It could be a great opportunity to assess Beganovic’s level the same way Ferrari did with Bearman at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in 2024.
If Bearman were to find himself in another incident at some point in the near future, chances are he may reach the 12-penalty point mark. Haas have quite a few options to choose from, as Ferrari seemingly have no issues with lending them one of their own drivers for a race weekend.