Bearman Motivated by Antonelli–Russell Battle

Ollie Bearman says watching his former F2 team mate Kimi Antonelli go toe-to-toe with George Russell has given him fresh belief and fuelled his motivation to reach the front of the Formula 1 grid.

Bearman and Antonelli were team mates at Prema in the 2024 F2 season. After Bearman's eye-catching stand-in display for Ferrari in Saudi Arabia, he earned a full-time seat at Haas, while Antonelli moved straight into a front-running role with Mercedes.

Antonelli has enjoyed an extraordinary start at the top level — racking up podiums and big points in his rookie campaign and opening the 2026 season with a string of victories. His intra-team battles with Russell, most notably at the Canadian Grand Prix where the pair traded wheel-to-wheel fights in both the Sprint and the race, have drawn plenty of attention.

Talking on the Drive To Wynn podcast, Bearman praised the level at which Antonelli and Russell are operating. He highlighted how they pushed one another to the limit while maintaining mutual respect, and said it was both exciting and reassuring to watch a former team mate holding his own at the front.

Bearman added that seeing young drivers such as Antonelli — and Isack Hadjar at Red Bull — challenge established stars like Max Verstappen and Russell gives him confidence that he can do the same in time. He reflected on racing those drivers in F2 and F3 and said their current form is proof that a path to the front exists for him as well.

The Haas driver has started his second full F1 season solidly: after five rounds he sits ninth in the Drivers' Championship with 18 points, and his best result so far is fifth in China. Bearman said that while he is not yet in a top-four car, watching younger rivals seize opportunities in stronger machinery is both motivating and a reminder of what he wants to achieve.

"It's inspiring to see the young guys winning and fighting the best," he said, noting that it gives him belief and drives him to push for a spot among the frontrunners soon. Bearman is clearly using Antonelli's and Hadjar's early success as a benchmark and a motivating example for his own progression.