Scuderia Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz has been diagnosed with appendicitis and will require surgery, meaning reserve driver Oliver Bearman will replace the Spanish driver at this weekend’s Saudi Arabia Grand Prix.

Sainz took part in both of Thursday’s practice sessions, despite illness, but further tests determined that he could no longer compete for the remainder of the race weekend in Jeddah. British driver Bearman is currently racing in the F2 Championship for Prema Racing and will now switch his attention to his Formula 1 debut.

The 18-year-old from Chelmsford, Essex becomes the 97th Ferrari F1 driver and the youngest Ferrari driver in history. He is the third youngest driver to make their debut in Formula 1 and to put his age into context, Fernando Alonso finished 2nd in the Spanish Grand Prix on the day of Bearman’s birth. There have been 11 British drivers to represent Ferrari in the sport before him - Peter Whitehead, Mike Hawthorn, Peter Collins, Tony Brooks, Cliff Allison, John Surtees, Mike Parkes, Jonathan Williams, Derek Bell, Nigel Mansell and Eddie Irvine.

Bearman has previously picked up the 2021 Italian F4 Championship and 2021 ADAC Formula 4 title and is a member of the Ferrari Academy. He’ll use the number 38 for his debut race weekend in Formula 1, with final practice and qualifying to take place on Friday before Saturday’s race.

In its statement to the media, Ferrari wished Sainz a speedy recovery. How long the Spanish driver will miss out has yet to be determined.

words: Mike Booth
pictures: Ferrari