Oliver Bearman has joined the list of drivers who have criticized the current Formula 1 power units after the Belgian GP. The British Haas driver finished the race in 14th place and stated that the differences in how each manufacturer uses battery energy have made overtakes difficult.
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Bearman explained that the performance at Spa was within expectations, but highlighted the problems faced against cars equipped with Mercedes engines: “I mean, it was the same as we expected, neither better nor worse.”
According to the driver, the energy distribution among teams creates difficulties in getting close and making attacks during the race. “It’s difficult, you know, especially against the Mercedes power units, we were using the energy in very different ways, and it’s very difficult to build an approach and overtake. Even in Alex [Albon]’s case, I was reasonably faster, but I just couldn’t overtake easily because they have a lot more power at different points than we do.”
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Bearman also criticized the time spent using only the internal combustion engine, which he says reduces the available power compared to Formula 2. “It’s complicated. And, of course, you spend a lot of time in superclipping, a lot of time just on the internal combustion engine, which means you have less power than in F2, which is not very fun, but it’s the reality we have to deal with.”
The driver also stated that circuits that demand a lot of energy, such as Spa, Silverstone, and Monza, should continue to be a problem in the coming years: “None of us are happy with what we are driving. That is very clear. That has never changed. Of course, we get used to it and deal with it and we know it won’t change, so we won’t complain every weekend. But this track, Silverstone, Monza, all of them will be awful for the next few years, unfortunately,” he concluded.
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