Rafael Câmara’s rise from karting to a 2027 Haas F1 seat

Formula 1 is the next rung for Rafael Câmara after titles in two consecutive junior categories: he won FRECA in 2024 and FIA Formula 3 as a rookie in 2025. In 2026, his first Formula 2 season, he leads the standings. Haas has confirmed the 21-year-old Brazilian for a 2027 debut, replacing Esteban Ocon, who leaves at the end of 2026; Oliver Bearman is expected to be his teammate.

Before his single-seater debut with Prema in 2022, Câmara won three karting titles in 2021: the WSK Champions Cup, WSK Super Master Series and Champions of the Future. That form earned him a place at Ferrari’s World Scouting Finals and a route into the Ferrari Driver Academy. In his 2022 rookie season, he finished runner-up in Formula 4 UAE and third overall in both Italian F4 and ADAC Formula 4.

His first title in formula cars came in the 2024 FRECA season. Câmara finished third in the Middle East Championship in both 2023 and 2024, while taking the FRECA title with a round to spare and seven wins in 2024. He stepped up to Trident in FIA Formula 3 in 2025 and won the championship as a rookie, with four feature-race victories. He became Trident’s third consecutive F3 champion, after Gabriel Bortoleto and Leonardo Fornaroli.

In 2026, his first Formula 2 season with Invicta, he has won at Barcelona, Spa-Francorchamps and Baku and leads the standings. If he wins the 2026 F2 title, he would become the only driver to have won FRECA, F3 and F2 in consecutive seasons, Motorsport.com reported.