Oliver Bearman named ideal Lewis Hamilton Ferrari replacement by Guenther Steiner

Lewis Hamilton had a forgettable first season with Ferrari after making the move from Mercedes. Former F1 Team Principal Guenther Steiner recently came out and suggested Oliver Bearman as the ideal replacement for the seven-time F1 champion going into 2027.

Hamilton joined Ferrari with the hopes of winning his eighth F1 title. Unfortunately for the Briton, the 2025 season was riddled with struggles, with the SF25 proving to be a tricky car to drive. Despite the rear suspension upgrades brought to get rid of the ride height issues, Lewis Hamilton’s struggles only got worse.

The seven-time champion had a disastrous end to the season with three consecutive Q1 exits, becoming the first Ferrari driver to do so, and ended the season without scoring a podium. His teammate Charles Leclerc scored seven podiums over the season and ended up fifth in the championship.

Guenther Steiner came out on the Red Flags podcast and reflected on Oliver Bearman’s season, suggesting the Briton was the driver who improved the most over the duration of his rookie season. The former F1 boss suggested Bearman as an ideal replacement for Lewis Hamilton.

“I think for him (Oliver Bearman), the door should be open to Ferrari for 27. You know, because if Luis hasn't got the success he needs to have, I don't think that he continues and then there is the obvious candidate there for Ferrari. A guy which was well prepared in Formula 1, which is performing and also, you know, he's good with all the rest of it around him, you know,” said Guenther Steiner (16:00 onwards)

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Oliver Bearman finished his rookie season 13th in the standings with 41 points, and finished ahead of his experienced teammate Esteban Ocon, who was 15th in the standings with 38 points.

Lewis Hamilton’s Ferrari contract length longer than expected: Reports

Lewis Hamilton joined Ferrari in 2025 but made the announcement in the early months of 2024. There was speculation around the contract length as Ferrari only revealed that it was a multi-year deal. The speculation was that it was a two-year contract.

However, German publication BILD recently came out and reported that the contract length is longer than the speculations. The reports claimed that Lewis Hamilton has a three-year contract, which will see him drive until the end of the 2027 season.

"The contract is also said to include a unilateral option for the Briton, allowing him to continue racing for Ferrari in 2028,” read the report

The report also claimed that the Briton had the unilateral option to extend the contract by another year. This essentially makes it a 3+1 year contract for the seven-time champion. Forbes recently came out and revealed that Hamilton’s base salary is $70M, which is the highest of any F1 driver.

Edited by Pranay Bhagi