Norris and Hamilton had stayed out during an early safety car, deployed after Aston Martin’s Lance Stroll crashed on lap six.

They stopped with 13 and 14 laps to go, Hamilton a lap before Norris, and fitted soft tyres, in the hope they could use their extra grip to close in on those ahead.

But after initially taking chunks out of Bearman’s advantage, their tyres began to fade, and Norris and Hamilton were left fighting among themselves for eighth place rather than challenging the teenager.

Bearman started 11th after being drafted in before final practice and was 12th after the safety car.

He passed Zhou Gunayu’s Sauber and then Nico Hulkenberg’s Haas and then benefited from the strategies of Hamilton and Norris on an accomplished debut that confirmed him as a potential star of the future.

Bearman was named driver of the day in the fans’ vote and team-mate Leclerc paid tribute to him after the race.

“He completely deserves it,” Leclerc said. “He has done an incredible job. In P3 he was straight on the pace, in qualifying he did an incredible job and missed Q3 only by a little.

“To finish seventh in your first race in F1 in a new car is incredibly impressive. Everyone has noticed how talented he is, and it is just a matter of time before he is in F1.”