Oliver Bearman admits British GP red flag crash “shouldn’t happen at this level”

Haas Formula 1 rookie Oliver Bearman has admitted he “shouldn’t be” crashing under red flag conditions “at this level” in motorsport, after spinning in practice for the British Grand Prix.

Bearman was returning to the garage following a red flag caused by Sauber driver Gabriel Bortoleto when he spun at the pitlane entrance and hit the barriers head-on.

Although he was able to limp back to the pits with limited damage, the stewards handed him a 10-place grid drop and added four penalty points to his superlicence for failing to adhere to red flag procedures.

Bearman said he understands how the incident occurred, but acknowledged there’s no excuse for making such a mistake now that he is racing in F1.

“I didn't account for the cord brakes and tires, so yeah, silly error – one that shouldn't happen at this level,” the 20-year-old said.

In their verdict, the stewards noted that Bearman accelerated approaching Turn 15 and entered the pit entry road at 260km/h. Data also showed he was travelling faster than he did during a previous in-lap under green-flag conditions.

When queried on this subject, the Briton only said: “Just a misjudgment from my side.”

Despite the setback, Bearman rebounded in qualifying by reaching Q3 and setting the eighth-fastest time, less than six-tenths off pole-sitter Max Verstappen.

Although the 10-place penalty will drop him near the back of the grid, he comfortably outqualified his more experienced teammate Esteban Ocon, who ended up 15th and slowest in Q2.

Asked if he felt a sense of relief after bouncing back in qualifying, Bearman said: “It's not a relief. I'm still angry at myself and very sad.

“But I'm glad at least that we could show [our speed].”

Bearman believes his qualifying performance is proof that the upgrade package Haas introduced at Silverstone is working, though he was frustrated that he won’t start higher up the order.

“Mixed [feelings], for sure,” the Haas driver said. “On one hand, we brought an upgrade this weekend and clearly it's showing potential.

“Our qualifying pace has not been fantastic recently, and now to be in Q3 on merit is a good feeling. I only did one new set of tyres in Q2 as well, which normally only the top teams do.

“We actually had a very, very strong qualifying and the car was feeling great, the best it's ever felt for me. Then of course I'm really disappointed in myself because I've let my team down today.”

Bearman now has eight penalty points on his superlicence. A driver is automatically handed a one-race ban if they accumulate 12 points within a 12-month period.