Ollie Bearman blasts ‘unacceptable’ Franco Colapinto after his 50G crash at Japanese Grand Prix

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Ollie Bearman has not held back against Franco Colapinto, expressing his anger at the Alpine driver for his mega crash at the Japanese Grand Prix.

The Haas star suffered a 50G impact at Suzuka when he came up behind Colapinto heading into turn 13. The Argentine had been recharging his battery while Bearman was deploying his, creating a huge closing speed.

Colapinto moved to the left, forcing Bearman to take evasive action on the grass. He was sent into a spin and slammed into the barriers, and the Brit is not impressed with his rival even weeks later.

Colapinto claimed he did not see Bearman and that he was already on the grass by the time that he did. The Haas driver was seen limping as he got out of his destroyed VF-26.

Team principal Ayao Komatsu confirmed that Bearman was taken to the medical centre and, fortunately, sustained no fractures. However, he is still feeling the effects of the crash.

“I was really not happy”: Ollie Bearman slams Franco Colapinto for Suzuka crash

Bearman appeared on the Up To Speed podcast on Thursday. Naomi Schiff noted that he was still on crutches after the crash in Japan.

Asked about his feelings after the incident, he aimed his frustrations at Colapinto for moving across him with such a high closing speed.

“Franco moved across in front of me to defend his position. Last year would have been absolutely on the limit but probably OK with just a 5 or 10 kph speed delta. But with 50 kph, he did not leave me enough space and I had to avoid a much bigger crash,” said Bearman.

Ollie Bearman is not impressed with Franco Colapinto!

Does he need to take responsibility for the crash at Suzuka?

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“Basically, when he moved left, it was small, but at that speed difference, any move is huge. So I was lucky to not hit him. It would have been much, much worse if I did.

“But I think it was something we spoke about on Friday, which is even a bit more of a frustrating thing. We said between all the drivers, come on, we need to give each other a bit more respect.

“Yeah. move to defend your position with a bit more time because the speed deltas are much higher than we’ve ever had in our sport and then two days later that happens which for me was unacceptable.

“So, we need to figure things out between drivers, have a bit more respect between drivers because I was really not happy with the action that he did.”

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about Oliver Bearman from F1 stats to net worth

Ollie Bearman’s crash forces revamp of 2026 F1 regulations

The crash at Suzuka was the first wake-up call for F1 and the new regulations. The battery and how it has to be managed during races are creating a dangerous situation for the drivers.

George Russell had warned the FIA of such an incident years before the regulations came into effect. Many fans and key figures were not happy with the new generation of cars after Bearman’s terrifying crash.

Martin Brundle said driver safety is the ‘fourth’ priority after Bearman’s accident. It has prompted teams to demand changes to the rules ahead of the next race in Miami.

Stefano Domenicali has changed his mind on the regulations as he is set to make some tweaks before F1 returns to action in May. Initially, it was believed that he felt no changes were needed until the Hungarian Grand Prix.