Bahrain set to host pre-season testing

Despite having lost the role of the season-opening race, Formula One and the FIA have confirmed that the Bahrain International Circuit will host the sole pre-season testing next year.

The FIA and Formula 1 announced the calendar for the 2025 season back in April, with next year’s season set to mark the 75th anniversary of the FIA Formula One World Championship.

The calendar will feature 24 races and will commence in Australia on 16 March and conclude in Abu Dhabi on 7 December. Ramadan will be throughout March in 2025, and therefore the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian Grands Prix will be held in April.

The changes made to the calendar in 2024 to create a better geographical flow of races have been carried over to 2025, with Japan in April following Australia and China, followed predominantly by the European races over the summer and the Americas during the Autumn, before Qatar and Abu Dhabi finish the season back-to-back.

The sport has now confirmed that the Bahrain International Circuit will host three-day pre-season testing on 26, 27 and 28 February 2025 before the action gets underway in Australia.

The circuit has hosted pre-season testing on six separate occasions since 2009, with its consistent weather conditions, mixture of high and low speed corners, and two long straights enabling the ten Formula 1 teams to put their cars through their paces and gather maximum data ahead of the season.

The Bahrain International Circuit was the first Middle Eastern venue to welcome Formula 1 when it hosted its inaugural Grand Prix in 2004, and in the 20 years since, the 5.41-kilometre circuit has delivered nine winners from five different teams, with Lewis Hamilton, Fernando Alonso, Max Verstappen and Charles Leclerc all claiming victory from the current grid.