Bearman received a late call-up to replace Carlos Sainz at Ferrari for the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix after the Spaniard was forced out of the event after Free Practice 2 with appendicitis.
The 18-year-old became the youngest driver to ever race for the Scuderia and turned in an impressive performance to finish eighth on the ultra-fast Jeddah Corniche street circuit.
The Brit is part of the Ferrari Driver Academy and currently competing in his second second of Formula 2 – where he was a three-time race winner last year.
He only drove an F1 car for the first time last October before taking part in Free Practice 1 outings with Haas at the back end of the season.
He now shares the reserve driver role at Ferrari with Antonio Giovinazzi and Robert Shwartzman.
Lawson, meanwhile, made a name for himself with a five-race cameo last season after Daniel Ricciardo broke his hand in a crash while practising for the Dutch Grand Prix.
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The New Zealander showed well throughout his time with AlphaTauri, delivering points in Singapore, which was the team’s best result of the season to that point.
However, he was overlooked for a permanent drive with the team opting to continue with Ricciardo and Yuki Tsunoda for 2024.
He remains a firm favourite to climb into a race drive next season with suggestions he could be promoted mid-year should one of RB driver’s not live up to expectations.
That Lawson and Bearman were drafted in with short notice and performed well has given hope to Doohan, who is sitting out the current season in the hope of a race drive next season.
After two years in Formula 2, which netted six wins and five pole positions, he’s without a racing programme as he focuses his efforts on his reserve driver role with Alpine.
The Anglo-French operation has had a torrid start to 2024 but Ocon has singled out the Australian as having a critical role in turning the team’s fortunes around.
That support from Ocon has extended to the suggestion the 21-year-old deserves a racing opportunity in F1.
“We’ve seen some good stuff from the F2 guys recently, and obviously, Jack has driven with them and won races,” Ocon reasoned when Speedcafe asked if Doohan deserved a shot at F1.
“No doubt that Jack deserves to drive more in Formula 1, deserves to have a shot at least in F1 in one race.
“He’s obviously helping a lot with the simulator work that he’s doing with the team and he’s a great asset to us and a great character and team player as well.
“He’s done some really good work when he stepped in in FP1s in Mexico and Abu Dhabi in the last two years, and it’s a shame not to see him racing definitely.
“I wish him the best for the future.”
Doohan sits in a precarious position.
Having made the decision not to return to Formula 2 for a third season and rejected other offers to race this year, he’s put all his eggs in the F1 basket.
Both Ocon and Pierre Gasly are out of contract at the end of the season, opening the possibility that he could find a way onto the grid, but there are no guarantees.
Doohan is not the only driver in contention for a race drive in what is expected to be an especially fluid market. There is even competition from within.
Fellow Alpine Academy driver Victor Martins is in his second season of Formula 2. He won the Formula Renault Eurocup in 2020 and the Formula 3 Championship in 2022.
He’s also French, a distinct advantage in a French-owned organisation that has a track record of patriotism.
However, the 22-year-old has thus far failed to fire in 2024 and sits only 18th in the F2 standings after the opening three events – off the back of a single win during his rookie season last year.
Ironically, Ocon has been linked with a move away from Alpine given his ties with Mercedes.
The race winner has been flagged as a potential replacement for Lewis Hamilton, a move that could open the door for Doohan, or Martins, next season.
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