Jolyon Palmer praises Oliver Berman

It has probably never been more difficult for newcomers to make the transition to Formula 1 than now, when very few tests are being conducted. Last weekend, 18-year-old Oliver Berman faced a major challenge when Ferrari decided at the last minute that he would replace Carlos Sainz.

Jolyon Palmer, former Formula 1 driver and now expert on the official website of the championship, analyzed the debut performance of Berman, who handled the matter very successfully.

When Carlos Sainz needed emergency surgery during the race weekend in Saudi Arabia, Ferrari decided to put Oliver Berman behind the wheel, and I was very happy that the team did not look for a more experienced driver.

To go from Formula 2 to Formula 1, you have to take a very big step. Suffice it to mention just one fact: in the second qualifying session, Berman completed a lap with a result 14 seconds faster than his F2 pole time the day before.

When a driver gets behind the wheel of a Formula 1 car for the first time, the first thing he notices is the power and torque that the engine produces. Berman’s F2 car develops 620 hp. A Ferrari has approximately 1,000 hp and thanks to the torque of hybrid drivetrains, this power can be used over almost the entire speed range.

This means that when you accelerate, the car accelerates incredibly quickly. But controlling such a car is also more difficult, but you can easily overheat the rear tires.

The next thing we have to adapt to is downforce. Formula 2 cars are not bad in this respect, but for example in fast corners they only generate a certain percentage of the pressure typical of Formula 1 cars. Ferrari held the track much better in such corners than an F2 car, allowing Oliver to show good speeds on the very fast Jeddah Corniche Circuit.

In addition, the load on this track is very high, and although the rider is very tightly secured with seat belts, the muscles of the shoulder girdle, back and neck are exposed to repeated overloads and excellent physical training is required to deal with them.

However, it’s not just about high speeds – Berman quickly adapted to it, just like last year when he drove a Haas F1 car during Friday practice – also in Formula 1 the car’s steering and all operating procedures are much more complex .

The only similarity is that in F2 the driver uses DRS on the same parts of the circuit. But in F1 he has a much wider arsenal of different buttons and switches at his disposal to adjust the car’s subtle settings as the lap progresses. This is completely self-evident for top Formula 1 drivers.

We’re talking about brake balance, engine braking and differential settings – these are all extremely important tools that ensure that every corner is taken as ideally as possible.

In Formula 1 we must constantly strive to achieve higher and higher results. In F2, if you manage to do an excellent qualifying lap, which could be enough for pole position, then you can assume that part of the task has already been accomplished. But in F1 you can never rest on your laurels, you have to make the most of the time you have available to work on the track, including improving the condition of the track.

If we have to blame Berman, it was in qualifying that he did not work perfectly: in the first session everything went well for him and he finished in the top ten, but in the second session he performed slightly worse. The battle was very intense, the results were close and Lewis Hamilton completed his lap slightly faster, preventing Oliver from making it to the final session.

But these are all minor minuses. Overall, Berman did an excellent job for a rookie, even though he didn’t know this car well enough and was under enormous pressure. It helped that he had some track time on Thursday in an F2 car, but on Friday, when he drove the SF-24 for the first time, he was at a disadvantage to the rest of the drivers.

Ferrari decided that he would start on soft tyres, although this choice was clearly not optimal, but it increased the chances of maintaining his position in the opening laps of the race, and Oliver succeeded.

Although clearly tired, Berman made some good overtakes in the closing laps. Believe me, behind the wheel you really feel that a 90 minute Formula 1 race is much more than a 60 minute F2 race, but Berman managed to set lap times quite comparable to those of Charles Leclerc and still ahead of those who overtook him Lando Norris and Lewis Hamilton.

When you get that chance to make your Formula 1 debut, you have to find the right balance between taking a reasonable risk and actually achieving what you can achieve. You have the chance to become a hero and show the world your talent, but if you make even one mistake, and even on a song like Jeddah, the effect can be exactly the opposite.

“Did I do well enough?” – Oliver Berman addressed the press with this question after the finish of the race. Absolutely yes! Earning points on the day of an unscheduled debut, without making a single mistake over two days of the weekend, and even in such difficult circumstances, is an exceptional achievement.

Ferrari gambled on a young talented driver – and they were right. And there is no doubt that 19-year-old Berman will start the championship next year as part of one of the teams.