So much happened at the Mexico City Grand Prix that it was hard to forget the battle between Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, the dramatic near-miss and controversial retirement, and the tension in the closing stages when Verstappen took on Charles Leclerc.
But I would argue that Oliver Bearman and Haas did just that by finishing fourth in a race where no one retired from the front.
Two years ago, Bearman made his FP1 debut for Haas in Mexico City and immediately impressed Haas’ then-trackside engineering director Ayao Komatsu. Within three months, Komatsu was team principal, and a year later Bearman was one of his race drivers.
Komatsu’s performance in FP1 was really outstanding, especially Bearman’s quick rise in speed. The situation was similar to last year in Brazil, when a young Ferrari driver was called up on short notice to drive the car of an unwell Kevin Magnussen. The first laps at Interlagos caught Komatsu’s attention and it didn’t take long for Bearman to make another strong impression on Sunday.
“I was very, very impressed with (Bearman),” Komatsu said. “On the first lap, he managed to get through the chaos of Turn 1, Turn 2 and Turn 3, which happens a lot here, so he did it very well. And then Max (Verstappen) was behind us, so it was great to be able to absorb the pressure from Max and actually pull away from Max.
“Then in the second stint we were under pressure again from Mercedes – Mercedes, right?! – and after that it was absolutely fine and we didn’t make any mistakes. I believe we made the right decision in the second stop.”
“After the second stop, George (Russell) put a lot of pressure on us, and then (Oscar) Piastri came in towards the end. They’re the top drivers, they’re the top team, they drive a car that’s slightly faster than us. But in today’s race, we held our own.”
“It’s all about everything, from the drivers to the engineers to the mechanics to the pit stops. I think the 2.2 second pit stop was the fastest of the year. It’s really a team effort. I can’t tell you how happy everyone is.”
There is no need for a podium for the champagne celebration between Komatsu (left) and Bearman. Andy Horn/Getty Images
Bearman made his Ferrari debut in Saudi Arabia last year and emerged as a future star, but he has had to deal with the ups and downs of a full F1 season in 2025. Since his start with Ferrari, he hasn’t had many opportunities to race against top-four teams in less competitive cars, but he took full advantage of that in Mexico City.
“I had a good start, got in between the two Mercers and really set some good pace,” Bearman said. “I was able to stay in DRS, George lost DRS and then Hamilton and Max came together a little bit and I benefited from that too.
“To be honest, I was scared to run alongside Max, but it was really cool to go wheel-to-wheel with these guys that I’ve been watching ever since I started watching F1, and it was probably the most pressure I’ve ever had in a race because they’ve been in the mirror for so long.”
Bearman joked that he was aiming for Haas’ first podium when he ran P3 in his first stint, but his two-stop strategy kept most of the cars at bay, with only Verstappen clearing him with one stop. Instead, he had to settle for fourth place in what was Haas’ best result in F1 history. This statistic is comparable to Romain Grosjean who was in Mexico. The Frenchman finished fourth at Haas in Austria seven years ago and told Komatsu he expected Bearman to break his 2018 record.
It was a classy touch, and just one of the many messages Komatsu received after the race as his rivals came round to congratulate him on his result.
Bearman’s show justified the decision to upgrade late to the Haas F1 VF-25 and provided an emotional payoff for those behind the scenes. Rudy Kaleseborg/Getty Images
The immediate impact of Bearman’s fourth place and Esteban Ocon’s ninth place was to move Haas into eighth place in the constructors’ championship (10 points behind sixth-placed Racing Bulls). The broader impact was vindication of the decision to bring upgrades to Austin last weekend and reward for team members who have contributed so much throughout the year.
“If you don’t get emotional on a day like this, teeth Does it make you emotional? ” Komatsu admitted. “But it’s just because everything we’ve been through, how much effort you’ve put in day and night, and how you went through those low moments like Melbourne and how everyone reacted, it all comes back to you.
“When I talk about it now, I get emotional again. But I’m really happy. And it was a great drive for Esteban (Ocon) as well. He made it in one stop and got another point for the team.”
“Sometimes you lose and sometimes you win, but when you lose you respect what others have done, like Nico (Hulkenberg)’s podium at Silverstone. Actually, as a team, we’re very happy for him, even if it’s against us. To be honest, I think this is a great, great championship and a testament to F1 as a whole.”
“I’m really happy for everyone on the team, both men and women. They’re working very hard. But the truth of life is that there are more disappointments than happy moments. I’m very proud of everyone today. I’m really happy that we were able to achieve this result to encourage everyone on the team.”
On a day when Lando Norris’ dominance changes the championship lead, it could be either the race winner or Piastri, the driver Bearman was pulling away from until the flag, who comes to Abu Dhabi and ultimately feels the impact of the result the most. But at least on Sunday night, it was Haas who was celebrating most enthusiastically.
