Ollie Bearman finds inspiration in Kimi Antonelli's rise

It is not often you see your former F2 teammate suddenly trading paint for wins at the front of a Formula 1 grid, but that is exactly the reality Ollie Bearman is witnessing. While Bearman is currently navigating the midfield with Haas, Kimi Antonelli has hit the ground running with Mercedes, already notching four wins from the first five rounds of 2026.

The spectacle of the Canadian Grand Prix, where Antonelli and George Russell went wheel-to-wheel in both the Sprint and the main race, left a lasting impression on the Briton. Bearman, who currently sits ninth in the Drivers’ Championship with 18 points, admitted that watching these two operate at such an elite level offers him a significant boost in belief. It is a potent reminder that the drivers he once battled in the junior categories are now proving they belong among the world's best.

Seeing young talents like Antonelli and Red Bull’s Isack Hadjar—who is currently measured against four-time World Champion Max Verstappen—is fueling Bearman’s own ambitions. As he put it himself, "I was fighting with them in F2 and F3, and now they’re fighting with the top guys, so it’s another proof to me that one day I can do it as well." It is a beautiful kind of motivation for a driver eager to make that final leap.