‘He’s got to be driving the team’ – Komatsu outlines expectations for Bearman during remainder of season

Haas boss Ayao Komatsu has set out his expectations for what he wants to see from Ollie Bearman during the remainder of the season, with delivering consistently and “driving the team” amongst the targets for the rookie.

After impressing during three ‘super sub’ appearances in 2024 – one for Ferrari and two for Haas respectively – Bearman signed to race for the latter outfit in 2025, marking his first full-time campaign in the top echelon.

There have been highs and lows for the Briton across the year so far, with a recent positive moment coming at the Dutch Grand Prix where he achieved a season-best P6 – a particularly welcome result after a consecutive run of four P11 finishes between Canada and Belgium.

When asked during the Italian Grand Prix weekend for his assessment of what Bearman has delivered in the first half of his maiden campaign, Komatsu spoke positively about the qualities that the 20-year-old has displayed.

“I think the speed, there’s absolutely no question,” the Team Principal said. “You see it, there’s no doubt the talent is there.

“Then for us, it’s really a matter of harnessing that talent and then delivering it consistently, every session, every race weekend, which is what we haven’t done. Again, we’re working with Ollie very, very closely, providing short-term objectives, getting feedback, work ethic, etc.

“But he’s a great kid – he’s got such a great personality, a positive personality that motivates everyone, and then he’s very, very open-minded as well.

“He takes constructive feedback – even the criticism – very, very well, so we have a very good working relationship and it’s our target this year, [in the] races remaining, just to really showcase his talent consistently. That consistency is the key.”

Pushed on how they will go about doing this, Komatsu responded: “What I just mentioned about the short-term objectives, that’s very important. And then just simplify your life – not life as in private life, just everything to focus on what matters.

“You cannot waste a session, you cannot waste a lap, and we have to be driving everyone – we have to be demanding more from each other. So even though he’s a rookie [and] he’s 20 years old, he’s a Formula 1 driver, so he’s got to be driving the team as well.

“I’m pushing the drivers but I’m also pushing the engineers and everyone as well, but he can do more on that side, and he knows and he’s capable of doing it. Then by getting more out of each other, not just only himself, then in return he will get a better car, he will get better information on tyre preparation, and he will score more points.”