Written by Vyas Ponnuri
Oliver Bearman will take over Kevin Magnussen's race seat for the upcoming Azerbaijan Grand Prix weekend. The Danish driver will serve a one-race ban for accumulating 12 penalty points on his super licence within a 12-month period, arising out of various incidents on track in 2024.
According to Article 4.2 of the Formula One sporting regulations, any driver who accumulates 12 penalty points in the course of a 12-month period shall be suspended for the next race.
As such, the stewards report read:
"In accordance with Article 4.2 of the FIA Formula One Sporting Regulations, as the Driver of Car 20 has accrued 12 penalty points (see Document 57), the Super Licence of the driver of Car 20 must be suspended for the next Competition."
Magnussen's driving standards have been questioned by many this year. The Danish driver accumulated three penalty points at Jeddah for making contact with Alex Albon, apart from leaving the track and gaining a lasting advantage, as he defended sternly for teammate Nico Hulkenberg ahead.
He was then slapped two further penalty points for spinning Yuki Tsunoda around three rounds later, at the Chinese Grand Prix in Shanghai, taking his tally to five.
The Miami weekend saw him double his penalty point count, as he received a whopping 35 seconds in penalties during the sprint race. He received three ten-second penalties for leaving the track and gaining an advantage, as he defended sternly from Lewis Hamilton to help teammate Hulkenberg secure points ahead. He would also receive a five-second penalty for track limits.
Having accumulated three points on his licence from his actions in the sprint, Magnussen accrued two further points after a collision mid-race that saw Logan Sargeant out at turn two.
The next few rounds saw Magnussen relatively circumspect, as he ensured he didn't grow his tally to twelve penalty point threshold that would've seen him banned for a race.
However, at the recently-concluded Italian Grand Prix in Monza, Magnussen received a ten-second penalty for making slight contact with Alpine's Pierre Gasly, one that forced the Frenchman to go off the track and cut the chicane.
The stewards duly slapped Magnussen with a ten-second penalty, and two further penalty points on his licence, taking his tally to 12 points, enough to trigger an immediate one-race ban for the upcoming Azerbaijan Grand Prix at Baku.
Haas had reserves Pietro Fittipaldi and Bearman in waiting to take the seat. Both drivers have Formula One experience under their belt, with Fittipaldi having stood in for Romain Grosjean after the Frenchman experienced a horrific crash at Bahrain in 2020, one that would ultimately be his final Formula One race.
Bearman, on the other hand, replaced the appendicitis-ridden Carlos Sainz at Jeddah earlier this year, scoring a stellar seventh place on debut for the team in red, ahead of the likes of Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton on the road.
The Briton has also taken part in various FP1 sessions for Haas, and was announced as a Haas driver for 2025, ahead of the British Grand Prix weekend.
Additionally, Bearman races for Prema Racing in the championship, and won the sprint race earlier in the weekend at Monza, holding off Victor Martins in a strong run to the flag. He currently sits 14th in the standings, with 50 points to his name.
This opportunity provides Bearman an excellent chance to bed into the sport ahead of his rookie campaign, and learn the ropes of a traditional Formula One weekend.
As for Magnussen, he will return to racing action when the Formula One grid heads to Singapore later in September, with his penalty point count reset to zero once again.
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