Who is Rafael Câmara? Everything you need to know about F1’s newest driver

Rafael Câmara has been officially confirmed to join the Haas F1 Team starting from the 2027 Formula 1 season. He joins the American-owned Haas F1 team on a multi-year deal (contracted through at least 2028). All set to replace Esteban Ocon, he is paired alongside Oliver Bearman, cementing an all-Ferrari junior pipeline line-up at Haas next season.

Born on May 5, 2005, in Recife, Pernambuco, Rafael Câmara carries deep motorsport roots — his maternal grandmother, Niége Rossiter, was a female racing pioneer in 1960s Brazil. Starting karting at six years old, he eventually moved to Europe and achieved top honors in 2021, winning both the WSK Champions Cup and the WSK Super Master Series while finishing vice-champion in the CIK-FIA European Championship. He joined the Scuderia Ferrari Driver Academy in 2022 alongside Oliver Bearman after dominating the FDA World Scouting Finals.

Câmara made a striking single-seater debut in 2022, placing second in F4 UAE and third in both the Italian and ADAC Formula 4 championships. He then established a remarkable championship-winning trajectory. In 2024, he clinched the Formula Regional European Championship (FRECA) title. 2025 was when he graduated to FIA Formula 3 with Trident and won the championship in his rookie season, matching Arvid Lindblad for the highest win percentage in modern F3 history. This year, he stepped up to FIA Formula 2 with Invicta Racing, immediately contending for the title and taking the drivers' championship lead.

The TGR Haas F1 Team officially signed Câmara and Team Principal Ayao Komatsu and Gene Haas selected the 21-year-old following an impressive shootout performance in older F1 machinery at Portimão, where he outperformed candidate rivals Jack Doohan, Leonardo Fornaroli, and Ryo Hirakawa. His entry makes him Brazil’s 34th Grand Prix driver, joining countryman Gabriel Bortoleto to represent the nation on the premier grid.

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