Ferrari has lost one of its drivers for the race weekend in Saudi Arabia. On Friday morning, Ferrari announced that [autotag]Carlos Sainz[/autotag] has been diagnosed with appendicitis and will require surgery. Sainz underwent successful surgery and remains in the hospital. In his place, reserve driver [autotag]Oliver Bearman[/autotag] will drive the No. 38 car.
Bearman currently competes full-time in Formula 2 for Prema Racing. The 18-year-old driver finished sixth in his first Formula 2 season but will be affected in 2024 as he won’t compete this weekend. Bearman is the first British driver to compete with Ferrari in Formula 1 since Eddie Irvine left the race team in 2000.
Carlos Sainz has been diagnosed with appendicitis and will require surgery.
As from FP3 and for the rest of this weekend, he will be replaced by reserve driver Oliver Bearman. Oliver will therefore take no further part in this round of the F2 Championship.
The Ferrari family… pic.twitter.com/zePBeZlJED
— Scuderia Ferrari (@ScuderiaFerrari) March 8, 2024
Sainz will have time to recover before the following Formula 1 race as the sport heads to Australia in two weeks. Ferrari hopes Sainz will be fully healthy by then and re-join his teammate Charles Leclerc. In the meantime, it’s an opportunity for Bearman to prove his worth at only 18 years old and Ferrari has realistic expectations for the young driver in Saudi Arabia.
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