Montoya: Bearman's performance could force Ferrari to make hard choice

21:03, 13 Nov

Updated: 22:21, 13 Nov

byShayni Solanki

Juan Pablo Montoya weighed in on the current Ferrari situation, claiming that Oliver Bearman's recent performance could force the Italian team into a difficult decision.

The young Haas driver is viewed by many as the heir apparent to the seven-time world champion’s Ferrari seat.

Bearman has been in spectacular form lately, scoring the highest result for Haas this season with a P4 finish at the Mexico City Grand Prix and a P6 finish in Brazil.

Lewis Hamilton. Photo: Race Pictures

They could push Hamilton to become an ambassador at Ferrari and pick Bearman to take his seat.

- Juan Pablo Montoya

Montoya said: "The rookies are doing a really good job, it’s going to be like musical chairs with them as teams will want to add them to their teams.

“Ollie Bearman has done a very good job recently, it will be interesting to see what Ferrari decide to do with him.

"You have this young kid performing whilst Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton are not performing.

"They could push Hamilton to become an ambassador at Ferrari and pick Bearman to take his seat.”

“Hamilton could then guide Ollie to become even better. F1 can get political.”

Following the Ferrari Chairman John Elkann's comments that the Ferrari drivers should "talk less", Montoya weighed in on the situation and claimed that Ferrari will do better in the "long run" if they listen to the seven-time world champion.

This comes after both Hamilton and Charles Leclerc suffered a double DNF at the Sao Paulo Grand Prix, leaving Ferrari with their third point-less race of the season.

The drivers were visibly and vocally upset at their double DNF, with Hamilton telling the media that his situation has been a "living nightmare."

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Elkann's statement was deemed controversial by fans and drivers, including the F1 World Champion Jenson Button.

The Ferrari Chairman told Italian press: "On one hand we see our mechanics doing excellent work, for example during pit stops, and our engineers — there’s no doubt the car has improved. Looking at the rest, it isn’t up to standard.

"We have drivers who need to focus on driving and talk less. We still have important races ahead, and securing second place in the Constructors’ Championship isn’t impossible. This is the most important message coming from Bahrain: it shows that when Ferrari is a team, we win.”

Since then, both Hamilton and Leclerc have rallied together, posting statements on social media that emphasise their loyalty to Ferrari.