With the end of 2026 coming closer and closer, it is already time to look forward to 2027, when F2 champion-elect Rafa Câmara will join the F1 grid for Haas. Last year’s F3 champion currently leads the F2 championship by seven points over Nikola Tsolov, with two rounds left to go. So it is no surprise his future colleagues have nothing but good things to say about him.
Leclerc: Câmara “one of the stand-out talents”
Inaugural F2 champion and Ferrari Academy graduate Charles Leclerc was happy to see another succesful Ferrari Academy driver make it to the top tier.
“I don’t know Rafa personally really well,” Leclerc admitted. “I obviously know him because we’ve seen each other around the team, but it’s not that I have spent a lot of time with him.
“But he seems to be a very nice… I was going to say kid, but it’s not that we have a very different age a little bit now, but I still feel like I’m on the same line as him.
“But it’s cool to see his evolution, I obviously follow Formula 2 and Formula 3 very closely because they race on the same weekends as we do, and Rafa is definitely one of the stand-out talents, and we have him in the academy which is great.
“And next year I think will be a really cool season to see Ollie and Rafa battling it out in their team, so yeah, that’s going to be cool.”
Bearman: “Haas is a great place to start your F1 career”
Fellow Ferrari Driver Academy member Ollie Bearman is excited to have Câmara join as his team mate next year. The fact that they were born four days apart in 2005 helps, and the young Briton is already planning a joint birthday party.
“Yeah, actually it’s funny because we joined Ferrari on the same day,” Bearman remembers. “We both signed at the same time and I think we’re like three or four days apart in birthdays, so we have a joint birthday party next year.”
Bearman also feels Haas is one of the better places to debut in F1, although he admits he cannot really compare.
“But no, it’s really cool I think for him, he’s been having a really good time in the junior formulas and I think Haas is a great place to start your F1 career. It’s a great team, welcoming and probably quite different compared to other teams.
“I don’t know how some of the other teams are, where rookies tend to go, but I’ve really enjoyed the atmosphere here and how passionate everybody is.“
The one-time Ferrari driver does not feel any additional pressure, as two Academy drivers going head-to-head in the same team is a golden opportunity for the Maranello squad to figure out their best choice for the future.
“No of course, we’re the same age,” Bearman says. “Obviously Rafa has less experience than me in Formula 1, but I guess that for Ferrari it’s also a good thing to see who they want to put in their car in the medium term. And of course my goal is to put myself in the best position for that to be me.”
Ocon: “Rafa deserves a shot in F1”
With Câmara joining the 2027 F1 grid, another driver has to make place for the F2 championship leader. At Haas that is Esteban Ocon. The Frenchman remains cryptic about the reasons he had to leave the American team, but emphasises Câmara deserves the chance.
“I can’t say very much,” Ocon says regarding the reason for his departure. “What I will say is that Rafa deserves a shot in F1. I think he’s shown in the categories that he’s very good. But I don’t deserve to be out of F1 at the same time. That’s it.”
Asked whether there are perhaps too little places for talented drivers in F1, Ocon was clear.
“I’m not here to say who deserves and who doesn’t,” he said. “I’m just looking at the results. As I said, Rafa deserves a shot in Formula 1 for sure.
“But I don’t deserve to be out in the way that I’ve had at the moment. Of course, as I said, I’m working on a solution for next year. That’s the main target, to do well this weekend and to do well in the next week.”
Bortoleto: “I’m happy to share the grid with him”
With Câmara on the grid, there will be two drivers representing Brazil on the F1 grid, a luxury the country hasn’t seen in a long time. The other one, Gabriel Bortoleto, is happy for his team mate and long-time rival.
“What I can tell is that, first of all, I’m happy that he’s joining,” Bortoleto congratulates Câmara. “Rafa and I, we know each other for quite a while now. We have been racing together since we are probably nine, ten years old.
“He deserves it. He’s not a guy that came out of nowhere. He won F3, he’s competing for the F2 title now.
“I’m happy to share the grid with him specifically because when you race with someone since so early stages in your career, it’s always nice to see that both of you manage to succeed and reach the top of the game in the sport and something that we both dreamed about. We have spoken about it in the past when we were younger about getting there and how cool it would be.”
Antonelli: Câmara “an incredibly fast driver”
Kimi Antonelli is another former/future colleague of Câmara, as both drivers crossed paths in Italian F4, FRECA and karting already. The F1 champion-elect is happy to see his good friend on the grid next year.
“Yes, I’m very happy for him. I think he fully deserves it. He’s an incredibly fast driver, and we’re good friends. We’ve been racing together in karting and until FRECA. So definitely, it’s been great to race with him, and I’m really happy to have him on the grid next year.
“Of course, he fully deserves it, obviously. I sent him a message right after the announcement because we kind of support each other, and also seeing him doing so well in Formula 2 this year, obviously fighting for the championship. So, yeah, I’m happy for him and looking forward to having him on the grid next year.”
Hamilton: “It’s going to be cool to see more Brazilian flags on the grid”
Arguably the third Brazilian driver on the grid (Lewis Hamilton has Brazilian citizenship), Hamilton was primarily happy for the Brazilian people, admitting he has not closely followed Câmara’s rise through the feeder series.
“I honestly don’t know a huge amount,” the seven-time champion admits. “I’ve not been in touch with what’s happening.
“Brazil produces amazing drivers, another one coming through. It’s a place that I love a huge amount, and I’m still so blown away and honoured to be able to be a citizen of Brazil.
“It’s one of the races I just look forward to. It couldn’t come sooner, that Grand Prix. I wish we could do more there. And, yeah, I think it’s going to be cool to see more Brazilian flags on the grid.”
