Lewis Hamilton completed 70 laps on his first full morning in Ferrari’s 2025 car as teenage rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli, the Briton’s Mercedes replacement, set the morning pace after the first four hours of pre-season running in Bahrain.
Having briefly driven the new SF-25 in a shakedown alongside Charles Leclerc at Fiorano last week, Hamilton was first up for Ferrari on the opening morning of the three-day test to get his first true taste of his new team’s latest car.
On a busy morning of running across the field in unseasonably chilly Bahrain conditions, Hamilton completed comfortably over a full Bahrain race distance of 57 laps across stints of various lengths.
Hamilton’s morning included several wide, small off-track moments kicking up gravel at Turn Four, but the session otherwise appeared to run without major incident. Leclerc takes over the car in the afternoon, which starts at 12pm UK time live on Sky Sports F1 and free on the Sky Sports app.
While lap times throughout testing are always notoriously misleading due to the fact teams run different tyres, fuel, engine settings and aerodynamic programmes, that is particularly the case on the opening day of running as teams prioritise checks and early set-up adjustments rather than chasing performance.
Watch Lewis Hamilton make his official testing debut as a Ferrari driver.
Still, Mercedes will be pleased that its new 18-year-old rookie Antonelli racked up 78 laps and set a quickest time of 1:31.428. The Italian’s only error of note came late in the session with a lock-up.
Liam Lawson was second-quickest in the new Red Bull after 58 laps but Max Verstappen’s latest team-mate blotted his copybook with the year’s first spin after losing control of the RB21 through Turn Three.
Liam Lawson loops his Red Bull around at Turn 3 but crucially keeps it out of the barriers.
Alex Albon was third-quickest for Williams ahead of Yuki Tsunoda in the new-look Racing Bulls car, with Hamilton fifth and Alpine’s Jack Doohan sixth.
Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso was the only driver not to clear a half-century of laps, the Spaniard finishing up on 46 after some mid-session time in the garage.
Oscar Piastri was eighth-quickest in the McLaren after racking up 65 laps.
Ted Kravitz examines the burning questions as the cars make their way onto the Bahrain International Circuit ahead of three days of testing.
Bahrain Test Timesheet – Day One morning
1) Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Mercedes, 1:31.428, 78 laps
2) Liam Lawson, Red Bull, 1:31.560, 58 laps
3) Alex Albon, Williams 1:31.573, 63 laps
4) Yuki Tsunoda, Racing Bulls, 1:31.610, 78 laps
5) Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari, 1:31.834, 70 laps
6) Jack Doohan, Alpine 1:31.841, 68 laps
7) Fernando Alonso, Aston Martin, 1:31.874, 46 laps
8) Oscar Piastri, McLaren, 1:32.084, 66 laps
9) Nico Hulkenberg, Sauber, 1:32.169, 55 laps
10) Oliver Bearman, Haas, 1:35.522, 72 laps
Everyone set fastest times on medium tyres
Sky Sports F1’s live pre-season testing schedule
Wednesday February 26 – Day One
- 11.55am-4.05pm: Afternoon Session
- 8pm: Testing Wrap
- 8.30pm: Ted’s Testing Notebook
Thursday February 27 – Day Two
- 6.50am-11.05am: Morning Session
- 11.55am-4.05pm: Afternoon Session
- 8pm: Testing Wrap
- 8.30pm: Ted’s Testing Notebook
Friday February 28 – Day Three
- 6.50am-11.05am: Morning Session
- 11.55am-4.05pm: Afternoon Session
- 8pm: Testing Wrap
- 8.30pm: Ted’s Testing Notebook
- 9pm: Ted’s Development Corner
When is the first F1 race?
For the first time since 2019, the season-opener will be held in Melbourne at the Australian Grand Prix on March 14-16. The first race has switched from Bahrain to Australia due to Ramadan taking place throughout March.
There are 24 events on the 2025 F1 calendar, the same number as last year, with the season ending at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix on December 5-7.
Watch all 24 race weekends from the 2025 Formula 1 season live on Sky Sports F1, starting with the Australian GP on March 14-16. Stream Sky Sports with NOW – No contract, cancel anytime
