F1 Australian Grand Prix 2025 preview: season-opener will reveal team strengths
The first of the 2025 F1 Grand Prix schedule's 24 races is in Melbourne, Australia, this weekend. The Formula 1 Louis Vuitton Australian Grand Prix 2025 will run for three days from March 14 to 16, Australia time.
There's a 15-hour time difference between Melbourne and New York, so the first race event, Practice 1, begins on March 13. Juggling time zones may be a hassle, especially if you want to watch the lead-up events, but the excitement is building for this season with at least four of the ten teams in serious contention for the Championship. See below for the event schedule and how to watch the Grand Prix events live.
During 2025's pre-season testing in Bahrain in late February, McLaren appeared to have the fastest car, and Lando Norris is the favorite to win the Australian Grand Prix. This expectation may surprise F1 fans who expect Red Bull's Max Verstappen to continue to win on his way to his fifth Driver's Championship.
Verstappen dominated the 2023 season, winning 21 of 22 races. Verstappen won his third consecutive Driver's Championship, and Red Bull scored its second Constructors' Championship in a row. But that was in 2023.
The first half of the 2024 schedule looked like a repeat of 2023, but then Red Bull's cars lost their competitive edge. In the end, Verstappen scored his fourth F1 crown, beating his closest competitor, McLaren's Lando Norris, with enough points to clinch the title at the Las Vegas Grand Prix with two races still on the calendar. However, McLaren won the Constructors' Championship in 2024, with Ferrari in second place and Red Bull in third.
McLaren and Red Bull aren't the only teams to watch. Ferrari and Mercedes also did very well during testing. Lewis Hamilton, a seven-time World Champion looking for his eighth title, will race for the first time for Ferrari after leaving Mercedes after 12 seasons.
Also, keep in mind that eight of this year's teams have new drivers, and six of the 2025 F1 drivers are rookies. New Mercedes driver Kimi Antonelli is expected to be very fast in his F1 debut.
Weather often plays a dramatic role in F1 races, where cars can exceed 200 mph. It was unexpectedly cold in Bahrain during testing, but it's predicted to be hot with rain in Melbourne, factors that could significantly affect the race outcome.
If you plan to watch the Australian Grand Prix live, the time zone difference may be challenging. Melbourne is 15 hours ahead of New York City. The schedule for the weekend's events in the table below is listed using New York time. Please don't make the mistake of waiting for Sunday to check the starting time, because it's Saturday midnight.
Event
Day
Time
Practice 1
Thursday, March 13
9:30 to 10:30 P.M.
Practice 2
Friday, March 14
1:00 to 2:00 A.M.
Practice 3
Friday, March 14
9:30 to 10:30 P.M.
Qualifying
Saturday, March 15
1:00 to 2:00 A.M.
Grand Prix Race
Sunday, March 16
12:00 A.M. (Saturday midnight)
The race will be broadcast live on ESPN. With a subscription to F1TV, you can stream all of the F1 events live, including expert commentary before and after the race, as well as archived content for past Grand Prix races.
The post F1 Australian Grand Prix 2025 preview: season-opener will reveal team strengths appeared first on The Manual.
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