Ollie Bearman Finishes Just Outside Points in Miami After Slow Pit Stop Undermines Strategy

Ollie Bearman returned to racing in Miami just over a month after walking away from the biggest crash of the 2026 Formula 1 season, and his performance at the Miami International Autodrome demonstrated both the resilience that has made him one of the more admired young talents in the paddock and the fine margins that continue to separate Haas from the points-scoring positions in the midfield.



A P11 finish, one place outside the top ten, masked a weekend where the competitive raw pace was present but execution in the pit lane ultimately cost the team the outcome they needed.



The context of the Miami weekend could not be separated from what happened at Suzuka in March, where Bearman had been travelling at approximately 308 km/h when he encountered Franco Colapinto slowing dramatically through the Spoon Curve section in a harvesting phase.



The speed differential between the two cars was approximately 50 km/h, and Bearman was forced to swerve onto the grass, losing grip and slamming into the barriers at a recorded impact of 50G. He suffered only a bruised knee and was confirmed fit for Miami by Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu, who said he would be “fully ready.” Walking through the Miami paddock a month later as if the crash had not happened reflected a mental composure well beyond his 21 years.



Starting from twelfth on Sunday’s grid, Bearman navigated an immediate first-lap challenge as Verstappen’s spin created chaos ahead of him, requiring evasive action through Turns 2 and 3 that disrupted his early rhythm. He recovered to P10 before the Safety Car period but found himself unable to convert that position into points through the second half of the race. The team identified an undercut against Alex Albon’s Williams as the primary route to a points finish, but a slightly slow pit stop execution eliminated the advantage they had spent 25 laps manufacturing. “A slightly slow pit stop meant Williams could cover it and not get undercut,” Bearman explained, noting he had been pushing flat out behind Albon for the entire stint believing the strategy would deliver.



As tyre life faded in the closing stages without the clean air his race plan required, Bearman’s pace dropped and he crossed the line ten seconds behind Albon in the position that matters least to the points tally. He was characteristically philosophical in the media pen but clearly understood the result was within reach and was not claimed. Coming after a retirement in Japan that was not of his making, Miami’s eleventh place leaves the Briton scoreless for two consecutive weekends despite showing the car has the capability to score when everything clicks.



Bearman has been an important voice in the 2026 regulation debate since the Suzuka crash made the dangers of the new power units viscerally clear to the entire paddock. He used the extended April break to appear on the Up To Speed podcast and articulate exactly what change he would prioritise: “I would like to get rid of lift and coast. I think that would be great if we can harvest this at minus 350 kW, which is what we can’t do right now on full throttle. Lift and coast in quali is one of the most counterintuitive aspects and features of these new regulations. You can imagine a qualifying lap and you’re halfway down the straight, and you lift off. I mean, it’s super strange.” The FIA implemented partial tweaks in Miami with mixed results acknowledged by the entire field. Whether the more fundamental changes Bearman and others are calling for will arrive before circuits like Baku and Las Vegas demand them remains the sport’s most pressing open question.
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