Mercedes’ Kimi Antonelli led the way during the opening session of 2025 pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit, ahead of Red Bull’s Liam Lawson.
All 10 teams are in the Sakhir desert for three days of running leading into the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, gathering valuable data on their latest challengers.
With each team running one car per session and the day split into morning and afternoon stints, only half of the 20 drivers took part in Wednesday’s first running.
One of several rookies debuting on the ’25 grid, Antonelli was the first to head out on track at 10:00 local time, fitted with large aero rake measurement devices on his Mercedes. The Italian didn’t take long to find his rhythm and posted a best lap of 1:31.428 on the yellow-marked medium compound. He ended the session with a sizeable 78 laps under his belt, giving Mercedes crucial early data on their new challenger.
Liam Lawson, who is returning to a full-time seat with Red Bull, was over a tenth off Antonelli’s pace. The Kiwi had a slight wobble early in the session but quickly recovered to post a solid lap time on the same compound. Meanwhile, Williams’ Alex Albon slotted into third place, continuing the team’s push for the midfield battle.
Yuki Tsunoda took a recent run on the hard tires with AlphaTauri and impressed by finishing just behind Albon. Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton, now in Ferrari red for the first time in an official testing session, closed a solid morning in P5. His 69-lap run indicates Ferrari appears more focused on long-run data collection rather than outright pace for the moment.
Notably, reigning world champion Max Verstappen completed 72 laps but did not set a representative time. Several big names, including Charles Leclerc, Lando Norris, and Carlos Sainz, sat out the session as their teammates took over.
| Position | Driver | Best Lap | Gap | Tyre | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Antonelli | 1:31.428 | – | 🟡 | 78 |
| 2 | Lawson | 1:31.560 | +0.132 | 🟡 | 58 |
| 3 | Albon | 1:31.573 | +0.145 | 🟡 | 63 |
| 4 | Tsunoda | 1:31.610 | +0.182 | ⚪ | 76 |
| 5 | Hamilton | 1:31.834 | +0.406 | 🟡 | 69 |
| 6 | Doohan | 1:31.841 | +0.413 | 🟡 | 68 |
| 7 | Alonso | 1:31.874 | +0.446 | 🟡 | 46 |
| 8 | Piastri | 1:32.084 | +0.656 | 🟡 | 64 |
| 9 | Hulkenberg | 1:32.169 | +0.741 | 🟡 | 55 |
| 10 | Bearman | 1:35.522 | +4.094 | 🟡 | 72 |
| 11 | Verstappen | – | – | ⚪ | 72 |
| 12 | Norris | – | – | – | 0 |
| 13 | Bortoleto | – | – | – | 0 |
| 14 | Hadjar | – | – | – | 0 |
| 15 | Gasly | – | – | – | 0 |
| 16 | Leclerc | – | – | – | 0 |
| 17 | Stroll | – | – | – | 0 |
| 18 | Ocon | – | – | – | 0 |
| 19 | Sainz | – | – | – | 0 |
| 20 | Russell | – | – | – | 0 |
