Six drivers Haas could pick for one-off race instead of Oliver Bearman

Who would be the leading contender behind Oliver Bearman?

Please bear in mind this list isn’t taking into account the super licence eligibility status of those mentioned, nor is it intended to be very serious, considering Bearman is 99 percent certain to be the second Haas driver in Baku.

Given his amazing stand-in appearance for Ferrari earlier this year, his signing as a 2025 race driver for Haas, and the ease with which he can be available, all the signs point toward Bearman – although the situation hasn’t yet been formally signed off on.

But, if the British driver somehow, for some unforeseen reason, isn’t able to take part, Haas would very likely turn towards Pietro Fittipaldi.

The Brazilian driver has raced for Haas as a substitute in the past, replacing the injured Romain Grosjean at the Sakhir Grand Prix in 2020, and has appeared in umpteen tests on behalf of the American squad.

He’s a highly-rated test driver, a safe and solid pair of hands, and would quietly get on with the job at hand while supporting Nico Hulkenberg – although would he be as willing and capable of performing the defensive heroics that Magnussen has shown on a few occasions this year?

Six other drivers available for Haas

Liam Lawson

After being strongly considered for the Williams seat as James Vowles sought a replacement for Logan Sargeant, the Kiwi is understood to have been the lead candidate – that was until Red Bull’s terms for loaning him included the ability to call him back at any point over the rest of the season.

But, given that Haas only needs a driver for a single weekend, this would reduce the risk exposure dramatically for Red Bull – particularly with their driver line-up solid for at least the next few weeks, barring anything unforeseen.

With Lawson hanging out on the sidelines, he has little to lose from a one-off appearance. A bad showing means nothing, as he doesn’t know the car or the team, while a good showing would put him in the shop window for a drive – whether that be with a Red Bull team or somewhere else.

Given that Red Bull’s option expiry on his services is understood to coincide with the weekend in Baku, it might not be a bad shout for any of the sides involved – particularly if Red Bull wants to see how he fares in a race scenario before making their call.

Theo Pourchaire

The Sauber F1 reserve has nothing full-time going on at the moment, having dabbled in Super Formula and then in IndyCar as an on-again, off-again McLaren substitute.

As reigning Formula 2 Champion, not being able to take part in a Grand Prix must be hurting at this point – particularly with his opportunities appearing to be getting further and further away as others come through the ranks.

The potential to blast himself back into the F1 consciousness is a viable one, if he managed to have a decent weekend – might the Frenchman go cap in hand to Haas to plead his case?

More on driver swaps and F1 2025

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Mick Schumacher

Yes, yes, his tenure with Haas didn’t end all that nicely when former team boss Guenther Steiner dropped Mick Schumacher in favour of Nico Hulkenberg.

But the key word there is “former” – Haas is in a different place to when Schumacher was involved, and new (can we still say new? I think we can for a while yet…) team boss Ayao Komatsu was much more complimentary about Schumacher at the end of 2022 than his former boss.

However, Schumacher would have to extricate himself from his World Endurance Championship seat with Alpine as the Mount Fuji round takes place on the same day as Baku and, while Mercedes – for whom he is their reserve/sim driver – would likely not stand in his way, would the German be in any way interested in a certain one-off appearance in F1 with so few seats left on the grid for 2025, while simultaneously annoying his current racing employer Alpine?

Not a particularly likely one, this…

Romain Grosjean

As the most recent driver prior to Magnussen to have been banned from an F1 race following his start-line crash at the 2012 Belgian Grand Prix, Grosjean is better placed than most to know what teams go through when they need a quick-fire replacement.

The IndyCar driver, who races for Juncos Hollinger, has a long and storied history with Haas and, along with Kevin Magnussen, was let go after 2020 as the American squad needed pay drivers to boost its finances.

Unlike Magnussen’s fresh opportunity, Grosjean never got that do-over and has since carved out a career in IndyCar – a full-send career move as he’s moved his family over to the United States.

While Grosjean still weighs in on F1 via his own YouTube channel punditry, and crops up at occasional F1 races when he’s got free time, he has never been solidly linked with a comeback, although Mercedes has still got that run in one of its cars for a private test at Paul Ricard still waiting for him.

But, even if he got the call, he’d have to leave Juncos in the lurch as he’s scheduled to race in the season finale at the Nashville Superspeedway on the very same day as Baku.

Sorry Roman, we’re not seeing this one either…

Nikita Mazepin

He knows the team, he’s ready, he’s eager, his dad’s got loads of money, and all he really has to do is sign the FIA’s declaration of neutrality to be allowed to sort out his paperwork.

But Haas is a far more competitive entity than it was when the Russian driver was signed for the 2021 season and, even if things get desperate, it’s not likely to get Mazepin levels of desperate.

Mika Hakkinen

We’ve always said it’s only a matter of time until the main man himself, the two-time F1 World Champion of 1998 and 1999 Mika Hakkinen, would call off his sabbatical. After all, it’s been over two decades now and his level of commitment to the bit is actually starting to concern us a little.

The 56-year-old has kept himself sharp in recent years via the very occasional appearance at the Race of Champions and his daredevil slingshots around the Monaco hairpin on his way to the supermarket, but it’s time to see whether the Finn can brush off the cobwebs and hit the ground running for a full Grand Prix weekend again.

Come on, Mika!