The 24-race, 2025 Formula One season begins with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne this weekend. McLaren and Red Bull’s Max Verstappen start their respective defences of the constructors’ and drivers’ championships, with two free-practice sessions today ahead of qualifying tomorrow. Today: FP1 (9:30pm ET), FP2 (1am ET).

The action starts today (Friday, March 14, 2025) with FP1 at 12:30pm local time (AEDT), followed by FP2 at 4pm AEDT. Then, on Saturday, FP3 gets underway at 12:30pm AEDT, leading up to the crucial qualifying session at 4pm AEDT.

Excitement is building for this season with at least four of the ten teams in serious contention for the Championship. The post F1 Australian Grand Prix 2025 preview: season-opener will reveal team strengths appeared first on The Manual.

Haas driver Oliver Bearman triggered a second red flag in two days at the Australian Grand Prix as he spun off the Albert Park circuit just three minutes into the final free-practice session on Saturday.

After three impressive races during the 2024 in a reserve rule for both Ferrari and Haas, Oliver Bearman earned a full-time seat at Haas for the 2025 Formula 1 season. But that rookie campaign for Bearman has gotten off to a very difficult start.

Ollie Bearman escaped unharmed after a heavy crash in practice at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix. The 19-year-old, making his full-time F1 debut with Haas after three races as a reserve last year,

Bearman was the first man out of the pits in FP3 on Saturday, but dipped a tyre all the way onto the grass on his first flying lap and spun out into the gravel, where his car beca