Kimi Antonelli and Oliver Bearman will be getting their chance in the pinnacle of motorsport in the 2025 season.
The duo, who are teammates at PREMA in Formula 2, will be racing with Mercedes and Haas respectively as they become two of what could be many new faces on the grid next season.
Antonelli is continuing his meteoric rise up the ranks. At just 18-year-old, the Italian has already won multiple titles in his junior career and will take Lewis Hamilton’s place at the Silver Arrows next year.
Bearman has already made his F1 debut, having raced with both Ferrari and Haas this season at Jeddah and Baku respectively. Scoring points in both races, the Brit has become the first driver in history to score points in his first two races with two different teams.
The PREMA driver’s rise to F1 has caught everyone’s attention and has given some of their rivals hope that they too can reach F1.
Jak Crawford says being ahead of Kimi Antonelli and Oliver Bearman in F2 gives him ‘confidence’ about reaching F1
Jak Crawford is currently in his second season in F2 driving with DAMS. The American will remain with the team in the 2025 season.
Crawford joined the category after finishing seventh with PREMA in Formula 3 in 2022. For the 2023 campaign, the 19-year-old signed with Hitech and finished his debut F2 season in 13th with one win and five podiums.
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Moving to DAMS for 2024, Crawford has an identical record with two rounds to go, collecting his second win in F2 in the Feature Race at Catalunya. The American has been far more consistent in his sophomore year, with his regular points finishes currently leaving him fifth in the standings.
Heading into the next round in Qatar, the 19-year-old is ahead of both Antonelli and Bearman in the standings. The former has had an impressive debut F2 campaign as he sits just below Crawford in sixth, while the latter has suffered a torrid season as he sits 15th.
Speaking with Motorsport.com, Crawford says he has been given ‘confidence’ by the fact that he is ahead of two future F1 drivers and that this gives him hope that he too can make it to the main stage of motorsport.
“Being ahead of them in the championship gives me confidence and reassurance that I could do that too if I get the chance,” he said.
“I’m looking forward to getting that chance one day to show what I can do.”
What does the championship fight look like in Formula 2?
With 116 points, Crawford is 53.5 points behind championship leader Gabriel Bortoleto. With two rounds to go, the American does have a mathematical chance of winning the title.
However, the reality is that the title will most likely go to either Bortoleto or his rival Isack Hadjar, who are set to have a tense fight for the championship in Qatar and Abu Dhabi.
READ MORE: ‘Quick’ two-time F2 race winner now told he’s ‘unlikely’ to ever reach Formula 1
The Brazilian leads the Frenchman by four and a half points and comes into the round at Qatar on good form, finishing in the points in six of the last seven races, grabbing a win and two podiums in that time.
Meanwhile, Hadjar has only scored points once in the last seven races, having failed to score at the two previous rounds at Monza and Baku.