Haas driver Ollie Bearman had an unfortunate end to qualifying at the F1 Imola GP. Alpine’s newest driver Franco Colapinto crashed towards the end of Q1, bringing out the red flag. Bearman managed to finish his final flying lap and jump from the elimination zone to P10. Unfortunately for the Brit, his lap time was deleted for failing to complete the lap before the red flag was called.
With Haas currently sitting P6 in the World Constructors’ Championship, every point matters. Bearman’s lap deletion places him with teammate Esteban Ocon on the starting grid tomorrow.
“Totally unfair” lap deletion costs Bearman in qualifying
Bearman claimed he did not see the red flags on his dash while completing his final flying lap in qualifying.
“Yeah, I mean, we get the red light on our dash. That, for me, didn’t happen until quite a way after I crossed the line. Watching the outboard video, it was clear that there was no red flag displayed when I crossed the line, so I believe it’s totally unfair to have it deleted.
“I feel like once [the FIA] make a decision, even if it’s wrong, even if it’s clearly wrong, they’re not going to turn back on it, and that seems a bit harsh.”
Q2 qualifying session delayed
The start of Q2 was delayed to clear debris from Colapinto’s crash and resolve Haas’ concerns about Bearman’s lap deletion. Bearman criticized how the FIA handled the situation, stating that he knew his lap would not be reinstated.
“I don’t know what took them ten minutes to understand. It’s a clear-cut case, in my opinion, and from what I saw, it was extremely clear, but unfortunately not for them.
“I wasn’t frustrated, honestly, I was quite sure about what would happen because I know how these people work. It’s a shame because I was quite sure that the second my lap was deleted, there was no way I was coming back.”
FIA justifies Bearman’s lap deletion
Bearman expressed frustration with the lack of transparency in the FIA’s decision-making. He claimed the team did not receive an explanation for his lap deletion.
“I would like now to fully understand what happened with the team, with the FIA, because it’s one thing being kicked out, but it’s another thing being kicked out with no explanation, which is the case at the moment.”
The FIA doubled-down on their stance to delete Bearman’s lap, releasing the following statement:
“In relation to the Oliver Bearman situation in Q1, the red flag was set at 16:32.17.6 seconds. Bearman crossed the line at 16:32.20.9 seconds with the abort signal / red flag showing on the start gantry.
“Qualifying 2 was delayed to enable the Stewards to consult the relevant timing experts and examine the underlining data to satisfy themselves that the timing system data was valid and it was therefore right to proceed.
“The overriding objective was to determine whether or not Bearman had completed the lap before or after the red flag and whether the lap should be disallowed, to ensure the right drivers progressed to Qualifying 2.”
Haas brings new package to Imola
Haas brought a new upgrade package to Imola but failed to show it off, with both drivers exiting qualifying in Q1. Bearman described disappointment that the team’s hard work could not be rewarded this weekend. He had been comfortably faster than Ocon throughout the weekend.
“We work and we invest so much. We have a new package this weekend, and this has been months and months in the pipeline. It’s the only chance we have to show it.
“I put a lap that’s representative and really got the most out of the car, and that’s what we have to show for it. It’s a big shame.”
Bearman spoke optimistically about the car’s new upgrades. He described a few difficulties with managing the wind change during qualifying, but was overall happy with its performance.
“I think the car has a few particularities now with this upgrade package, but when it’s in the correct window, it seems to be quite performant. So I’m happy with it, and so far I’ve had really good confidence in the car.”
“I’m pretty happy with how the car feels. The wind change for qualifying was actually quite big and quite difficult for us to manage, and I struggled a little bit to adapt to that. But I still managed to do a lap that I was decently happy with in that final run.
Looking towards the race
Bearman will start the Imola GP from P19, with his teammate lined up in P18. The Haas drivers have managed several performances from the back of the field to a points finish. During the Bahrain GP, Bearman put in a spectacular drive from P20 to P10. He managed to score points from the back of the grid during the Miami sprint race, as well.
When asked about the chance of scoring points in Imola, Bearman responded in jest.
“Where are we starting, in 19th? Maybe nine people crashing, we have a chance.”
