Ollie Bearman qualified 10th for the F1 Mexico City Grand Prix, marking his third consecutive Q3 appearance, but the Haas rookie expressed frustration at having to sacrifice crucial Friday running due to contractual obligations.
Missing FP1 takes its toll
Speaking after the F1 Mexico City GP Qualifying session, Bearman acknowledged that missing the opening practice session had made life more difficult at the challenging Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez. “Yeah, you know, it’s a tough track and I probably underestimated the fact how important it is to even do FP1. So again, you know, it’s tough. It’s my rookie season, but I’m still having to miss FP1. So it’s a bit tough, you know, because in my position I should be able to do FP1 in a weekend like this. But the fact is that I have to give it up,” the Haas driver said.
Despite the setback, Bearman managed to navigate his way through to the final qualifying session, though he admitted there were plenty of uncertainties heading into the crucial hour. “But to be in Q3, you know, yesterday I was struggling a bit to get on top of the car in just one session. And today I had a bit of an issue on my soft tyre that meant I didn’t really get a feeling on it.
“So, you know, heading into quali there were a lot of question marks. Actually, on the other hand, the race was something that I was looking forward to a bit more, because we had a really good race pace yesterday. So I’m happy to be in Q3, you know, all things considered.”
Bittersweet Q3 performance
Whilst pleased to reach Q3 for the third consecutive race, Bearman admitted to mixed feelings about his ultimate pace. “Yeah, you know, we’re still missing a bit, because that lap that I did there in Q3 honestly was… I felt like all that you could do. So that’s, you know, a bit of a bittersweet feeling. But, you know, we’re in Q3 for the third time in a row, and the upgrade is definitely more performance to the car, which is what we aim for. So that’s important.
The British driver also clarified confusion about his improvement between runs, insisting he had made significant gains. “I gained like a second. Yeah, I gained a hell of a lot. I mean, the first run of Q3 I was slower than my fastest in Q2 by like 4 tenths. You’re probably out by about a second on it, that’s probably where you’re at.“
Strategic compromises and FP1 regrets
When pressed about the decision to give up FP1 sessions this season, Bearman didn’t hold back his frustration with the situation, looking back at the F1 Mexico City GP Qualifying. “Well, yeah, you know, you have to give them up. So anyway, it’s going to hurt you regardless of where you do it. If I was to repeat the season, I’d probably do it in tracks that I know a lot more, like Abu Dhabi and stuff like that.
The rookie driver was particularly vocal about the difficult position he finds himself in during his maiden full-time campaign. “But the facts are that I’m still a rookie. This is my first full season, and I’m still having to give up in Q1. So I shouldn’t even be in this situation where I’m having to give up in Q1. But I guess those three races I got last year, I would probably… Where I am now, I probably would have only done two races to get an FD1 this weekend, and maybe we could have been a little bit faster today.”
Race optimism despite Qualifying compromise
Looking ahead to F1 Mexico City GP, Bearman expressed confidence in Haas’s race pace, revealing that the team’s setup philosophy prioritises Sunday performance over Saturday. “Yeah, I think even if we start in P10, I think we have a good race car. Honestly, with the quali pace, I was a bit less sure than the race. And the standard direction we took is always focussing a bit more on the race than it is on quali. So we’re having to live with a slightly more difficult car in quali to have good race pace. And that has worked recently in recent races, and I think we’re working on tomorrow.”
With Carlos Sainz‘s grid penalty promoting Bearman up one place to ninth on the grid, the young Briton has an excellent opportunity to score strong points in the race. His recent form and Haas’s slightly improved race pace suggest he could be in contention for a solid result at one of F1’s most unpredictable circuits.
