Antonelli fastest in morning in day 1 of F1 pre-season testing

Mercedes’ Andrea Kimi Antonelli topped the morning test as Formula 1 returned for the first day of pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit. 

Feature image credit: Mercedes F1

Wednesday marked the opening day of F1’s pre-season test and the day has gone through its first half after four hours of testing this morning. 

It was a fairly well-behaved session as the drivers and teams managed to avoid a red flag incident out on track. The closest moment came in the final hour as Red Bull’s Liam Lawson lost control on the corner exit of turn two. 

The Kiwi, who replaced Sergio Perez for this season, tapped the turn two apex which unsettled his car. In his fight to control his car, he spun out at turn three and managed to stop – locking and flat-spotting his tyres – before he slid into the gravel trap. 

Most drivers had completed and exceeded the Grand Prix distance at the Bahrain circuit (57 laps). The only driver to fail this feat was Aston Martin’s Fernando Alonso who only put in 46 laps.

In terms of most mileage, Antonelli put in the most mileage under his belt with 77 laps completed, one more than Racing Bull’s Yuki Tsunoda who put in the second highest (76 laps).

Lawson fastest in first half of morning F1 2025 testing – Day 1

Here were the morning runners:

• McLaren – Oscar Piastri
• Ferrari – Lewis Hamilton
• Red Bull – Liam Lawson 
• Mercedes – Andrea Kimi Antonelli
• Aston Martin – Fernando Alonso
• Alpine – Jack Doohan
• Haas – Oliver Bearman
• Racing Bulls – Yuki Tsunoda 
• Williams – Alexander Albon
• Sauber – Nico Hulkenberg 

Antonelli stood as the fastest driver after the morning test and completed the session ahead of Lawson and Albon. Tsunoda and Hamilton completed the first four hours in fourth and fifth. 

Doohan, Alonso and Piastri occupied sixth, seventh and eighth. This left Hulkenberg and Bearman to round out the morning drivers in ninth and 10th, respectively.

Read more Formula 1 here:

• Lawson fastest in first half of morning F1 2025 testing – Day 1
• Who is driving on day 1 of 2025 F1 pre-season test?
• Alpine break cover with shakedown filming day at Bahrain
• Carlos Sainz announced as new GPDA director
• F1 75: All car liveries revealed
• F1 regulations approved in latest commission meeting

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter to keep up with the latest news from the world of Motorsport! You can also support us on Patreon or our website!

Kamron Kent

Hi, I’m Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion.

I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I’ve loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.

Kamron Kent

Hi, I'm Kamron. I created ApexMotorsports.co.uk in the dying embers of the 2021 Formula 1 world championship. It allowed me freedom to write whatever I wanted to write about which was all things motorsports, my passion. I have put a lot of effort in over the years to keep this website in its best shape and I've loved seeing the brand grow consistently, month-on-month, year-on-year. My ambition is to keep watching this brand grow into a primary outlet of news for all things motorsports whilst fueling my desire to pursue a career in sports journalism, specialising in motorsports.