Oliver Bearman Reveals Hilarious Excuse For Failed Driving Test Ahead of 2025 F1 Season

Saajan Jogia | Feb 19, 2025

Nico Hulkenberg & Oliver Bearman, MoneyGram Haas F1 Team, Sunday at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix / Moneygram Haas F1 Team

Haas rookie driver Oliver Bearman gave a hilarious excuse for failing his driving test for the first time at the F1 75 launch event at the O2 Arena in London. Bearman revealed how his initial failure led him to pass in the second attempt. The Briton made his F1 debut last year, performing reserve driver duties for former Ferrari driver Carlos Sainz in Saudi Arabia.

Bearman impressed the F1 community with his stellar performance last year, which eventually helped him secure a full-time seat with the American outfit. The 19-year-old driver will race alongside Esteban Ocon at Haas, who moved after ending a four-year partnership with Alpine.

Talking to the media, including Sports Illustrated, Bearman shared the story of his failed driving test, explaining what went wrong.

“I passed second time - I shouldn’t have said that - I didn’t stop at a stop sign. But I didn’t blow it, I slowed down and I was crawling but you are meant to stop. We don’t have those on race tracks so that was my first sighting of a stop sign.

“But typical me, or typical racing driver I guess, I thought I could pass my test without any lessons. So, that is probably where I went wrong. I made sure I had a few lessons before the second one.

"I've been driving since 2022 now. So very experienced driver here," he joked.

When he was asked what he drives, Bearman said:

"My first car was a [BMW] 1 Series. Now I have an Alfa Romeo company car. It's wonderful."

Asked if it was the Giulia, he clarified:

"No, it's the Tonale."

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Bearman performed reserve driver duties for Haas in Azerbaijan and Sao Paulo last year, contributing to the team's seventh-place finish in the Constructors Championship. Revealing his goal for the season ahead, he told BBC Look East:

“Haas had a great season last year. They were on a great trajectory, finishing T7 [in the team standings] at the end. That was really unexpected, but a fantastic result for the team.

“I hope we can continue that trajectory, but it's tough to say, you know, we haven't driven the car yet, and we don't know where we stand compared to the other teams in terms of progress compared to last year.

"So I think my goals are really just looking at myself, looking within, I want to be proud of my performances, see a continuous growth and development though the year and that's really what I'm focusing on."