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Look, when a team principal tells you they see huge potential in a rookie, you hear the usual paddock PR chatter. But Ayao Komatsu isn't just throwing lines around. The Haas boss sat down in a central London hotel to talk about locking down Rafael Camara for 2027, and the numbers and tests back it right up. With Ollie Bearman expected to stay for a third season, the American squad is lining up an astonishingly young driver pairing of 21-year-olds for 2027.
That youth policy is striking. To put it into perspective, double World Champion and Aston Martin racer Fernando Alonso is older than both of them combined. But Komatsu's conviction comes from hard evidence, starting with the Brazilian's title-winning F3 campaign last year and his current charge to the F2 championship lead after his strong run in Baku.
The real turning point, though, happened in August during a two-day test in Portimao, Portugal. Camara was running in old-spec Haas machinery alongside fellow young racers Leo Fornaroli (F2 winner last year and McLaren reserve) and Haas' own reserve duo of Jack Doohan and Toyota-backed Ryo Hirawaka in what was essentially a straight shootout. Komatsu was mesmerised by how the 21-year-old handled changing grip levels. In cool conditions, he set a fast lap time, but when the track worsened and made the car harder to drive, he didn't panic at all. After a four-hour gap, when conditions shifted again, his rate of improvement on fresh runs was described as simply incredible.
Just as important to the team boss was the mental side. "I always say that we need to focus on what's in our control. Rafa did exactly the same," Komatsu noted, praising how the Ferrari junior blocked out the pressure and simply asked how he could be the best version of himself. Armed with that test data, Komatsu met with team owner Gene Haas to weigh their options for replacing Esteban Ocon. While the decision came down to a close contest among deeply professional candidates who all managed the pressure brilliantly, Camara emerged as the frontrunner.
It is certainly a bold gamble to field two drivers who only debuted recently, but Haas has previous form here. Ollie Bearman arrived following a stunning super sub performance for Ferrari in Saudi Arabia in 2024 and rewarded the team with stellar drives, peaking with a sensational P4 in Mexico and continuing to outperform one-time race-winning team mate Ocon this year. Komatsu has watched Bearman grow through six FP1 sessions and a full-time campaign, noting his brilliant racecraft—such as his amazing overtakes in Singapore—and his ability to pick the team up during tough weekends when the car languished down in P15.
For now, Camara's immediate priority is wrapping up the F2 championship across the final two rounds in Qatar and Abu Dhabi. Before then, however, the young Brazilian will begin his integration into the Haas setup, with sources pointing toward an FP1 appearance—likely at his home event in Brazil—alongside running in the end-of-season young driver test in Abu Dhabi. As for his likely garage partner, Komatsu made it clear that keeping Bearural is the objective: "It's a matter of time, but it's not fully under my control," he admitted.
