After last week’s spectacular launch to the 2025 Formula 1 season in London, the serious business is set to begin on Wednesday with pre-season testing.
The 10 new cars will run properly for the first time from Wednesday to Friday, with each day featuring two sessions of four hours.
The event represents the only unrestricted track time teams will have with their 2025 cars before the opening round of the season, which takes place in Australia from March 14-16.
Highlights from all 10 teams as they launch their liveries at the F1 75 LIVE
Sky Sports F1 will show every minute of testing live, with a free live stream available to watch on the Sky Sports app, along with live text updates.
Before the action gets under way, we’ve put together the key storylines to watch out for at the Bahrain International Circuit.
A title battle for the ages begins?
While who has the fastest car won’t necessarily become immediately apparent, a lot of attention will be on the four teams who are considered to have a chance of competing for titles.
McLaren will go into testing as favourites to retain the Constructors’ Championship after surging to a first teams’ title since 1998. It would be a major surprise if they were anywhere other than in the battle for victories from the off.
Despite being something of a second home for McLaren given the brand is owned by the Bahrain sovereign wealth fund, the venue has not been kind to them in recent years, which would make a strong showing even more notable.
Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri say they have a ‘lot of confidence’ in themselves to fight for a F1 championship title this season
If we are expecting something of a continuation from the latter stages of last season, Ferrari would have to be seen as something near to co-favourites with McLaren, having made steady progress throughout the second half of 2024.
Of course, Lewis Hamilton – more on him in a moment – is going to be the centre of attention, but hysteria aside, Ferrari have a great chance to end their own 16-year wait for silverware.
Perhaps the most intriguing garage to watch among the contenders will be that of reigning world champion Max Verstappen and Red Bull, after their topsy-turvy 2024 campaign.
It was hard to tell just how much of a handle they had on a stunning mid-season slump that left Verstappen regularly berating the RB20’s handling, and we should get a decent idea of whether some of those issues have been solved.
Mercedes definitely took a positive step by claiming four race wins in 2024 but a slow start to the season and major inconsistency meant they were never in the title picture.
If there are signs that they can compete with the other front-runners from the off, the Silver Arrows cannot be dismissed.
Can Hamilton adjust to red?
Lewis Hamilton is used to being in the spotlight, but even for him, the early stages of his first season with Ferrari are going to attract more hype and attention than ever.
The link-up between the sport’s most famous driver and team continues with three days that will perhaps be more important for him than any other prospective title contender.
Verstappen, McLaren’s Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri, and Hamilton’s team-mate Charles Leclerc are the other drivers the bookies appear to be giving a realistic chance, but the 40-year-old’s rivals are not having to adjust to a new car.
Sky F1’s Ted Kravitz speaks to Lewis Hamilton as the seven-time F1 champion reflects on his start as a driver for the iconic Ferrari team and his excitement for the season ahead
Hamilton spoke last week about the huge challenge of adapting after 12 years with Mercedes, even sharing his admiration for the speed with which former Ferrari drivers Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Vettel settled into life with the Italian squad.
The hope for the Brit is that he will enjoy driving the SF-25 far more than he has any of Mercedes’ cars since this generation of regulations were introduced in 2022, but even if that’s the case, there remain many technical and procedural elements for him to get his head around.
All eyes will be on Hamilton to see if he can immediately find his feet to set up a potential tilt at a record eighth drivers’ title.
How will the rookies fare?
While there is some debate as to whether they are all genuine rookies, it is fact that there are six drivers starting an F1 season on the grid for the first time.
Liam Lawson has driven in 11 grands prix, Britain’s Oliver Bearman three, and Jack Doohan made his race debut at the 2024 season finale in Abu Dhabi. Andrea Kimi Antonelli, Gabriel Bortoleto and Isack Hadjar are rookies in the purest form.
Not only will these new faces bring some freshness to the Formula 1 grid, but two of them are positioned to make a major impact.
Kimi Antonelli admitted he was ‘pretty nervous’ taking his driving test, having passed it before he makes his Formula 1 debut with Mercedes
Lawson at Red Bull and Antonelli at Mercedes are likely to have a car capable of winning races at some stage of the season and will therefore command plenty of attention.
Antonelli, who has been fast-tracked into a Silver Arrows seat at the age of just 18, has very high expectations to live up to and will be eager to avoid a repeat of his free practice debut, when he crashed at Monza last year.
These three days will be of huge importance, particularly to the less experienced members of the group, as they attempt to acclimatise to Formula 1.
Who will be the best of the rest?
A major factor throughout the 2025 season is going to be that it’s the last under this generation of regulations, with huge changes to both engine and chassis coming next year.
That means that every team on the grid is going to be dedicating more resource towards development of next year’s car than they would in a year where the regulations were stable.
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This could have an impact on the midfield, with any team that gets off to a slow start potentially motivated to pack in development on their 2025 challenger in favour of prioritising next year.
While it’s possible a team or two could get it wrong, the feeling among the drivers is that this will be the tightest season F1 has seen in a long time, creating a potentially thrilling battle for the lower points places each weekend.
While the chance of cracking the top four in 2026 is a huge carrot, a fifth-placed finish in 2025 would also offer a massive boost for several squads.
Sky Sports F1’s live pre-season testing schedule
Wednesday February 26 – Day One
- 6.50am-11.05am: Morning Session
- 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
