Haas have officially locked in Rafael Camara for the 2027 F1 season, and the paddock's already whispering about what it means for Ferrari's influence over the American team. The 21-year-old Brazilian prospect, who's leading the F2 championship by seven points with two rounds remaining, has signed a multi-year deal with the Scuderia's backing. Thing is, this move's got everyone talking because Haas are about to field not one but two Ferrari-backed drivers.

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Oliver Bearman's already at Haas on loan from Ferrari, and the team's working on keeping him for a third season. Now throw Camara into that mix and you've got what the paddock's calling a de facto sister team situation. Haas buy their engines, gearboxes, and various technical bits from Ferrari. They've even got a design office inside Maranello. So yeah, it's starting to feel like Ferrari's running two teams instead of one.

Camara beat out some serious competition to nab Ocon's seat. Jack Doohan, Ryo Hirakawa, and Leonardo Fornaroli from McLaren were all in the hunt. The fact that Haas had a deal in principle with McLaren to loan Fornaroli makes this sting even more. Team principal Ayao Komatsu says they picked Camara purely on pace from his Portimao test, but let's be honest, Ferrari's backing and the Brazilian's sponsorship connections probably didn't hurt his chances.

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Here's where it gets spicy for Zak Brown. The McLaren CEO's been absolutely vocal about cracking down on multi-team ownership in F1. He's written letters to the FIA, he's highlighted instances like Liam Lawson yielding to Max Verstappen at Miami, and he's been a constant thorn in Red Bull's side over Racing Bulls. Now Haas and Ferrari are cozying up even more, and Brown's got another headache. He wanted to stop Mercedes from taking a stake in Alpine, and that fell through. But this Ferrari-Haas connection getting tighter? That's the opposite direction of what he's been fighting for.

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So while Camara's earned his shot with genuinely impressive performances in F2, the bigger story's about how Haas are becoming Ferrari's shadow team. Whether that's a problem depends on who you ask, but one thing's for sure, Brown won't be happy about it.

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