Oliver Bearman could be competing in Formula 1 again this weekend after Carlos Sainz acknowledged he was not in perfect condition ahead of the Australian Grand Prix.
18-year-old Bearman made his F1 debut at the recent race in Saudi Arabia, stepping in at the last minute for Sainz after the Ferrari star had surgery for appendicitis.
Despite his young age and lack of experience, the young driver impressed greatly, finishing seventh ahead of Lando Norris and Sir Lewis Hamilton, and was even voted Driver of the Day by fans.
Before the race in Melbourne, Ferrari announced they expected Sainz to be back driving, with Bearman returning to a reserve role.
The British driver will still be at the Albert Park street circuit as he is also competing in Formula 2 this year.
However, he might receive another call from Ferrari, as Sainz admitted that he was not fully fit, stating on Thursday: 'Since I've been in Australia, I've made excellent progress, feeling better day by day and I'm ready to get in the car.
‘I also spoke to Alex [Albon, Williams driver] who went through a similar situation two years ago and, although I'm not 100 per cent, I expect to be able to drive.
‘I put together a very strong recovery plan since I landed back home to be ready for this race. I will jump in the car tomorrow and see how I feel. I’m feeling positive about it.
‘But obviously, I'm not stupid. If I don't feel good tomorrow, I will be the first one to raise my hand and say that I need another two weeks to the next race. They are monitoring my progress.
‘I’m the first one who doesn’t want to be in pain or to suffer, or to make it any worse. I'm not stupid, and I will be very clear with how I'm feeling and everything.’
Sainz is eager to return to racing as he is currently driving for his career, with the 29-year-old leaving Ferrari at the end of the season to make way for Hamilton.
He finished third in the season opener in Bahrain and will be aiming for the podium in Australia as Ferrari seems to be the second-fastest team on the grid behind Red Bull.
Many drivers have praised Bearman for delivering a good performance at such short notice and at such a young age, with the Brit being the third-youngest driver in F1 history behind only Max Verstappen and Lance Stroll.
‘Ollie? Really, really good job,’ Sainz added.
‘I agree with Charles [Leclerc] that it's also thanks to the way these drivers are prepared nowadays with the amount of simulator time and the amount of testing that we do with the old cars.
‘Under pressure with only FP3, he excelled and did great.'
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