F1 2025: All you need to know about new season

McLaren won the 2024 constructors' championship after a 26-year wait

Battles, controversy and drama – Formula 1 is set to return for a new season.

Lewis Hamilton at Ferrari, rookies in the mix and 24 races across the globe - 2025 is gearing up to be an exciting, action-packed year.

Last season, Max Verstappen held off Lando Norris to win his fourth drivers' title, while McLaren took the constructors championship glory after a 26-year wait.

The new campaign kicks off in Melbourne, Australia, from 14-16 March, but before then, here is a guide to get you ready for lights out.

F1 teams and driver line-ups - who is new to the grid?

Lewis Hamilton joins Ferrari for 2025 and six new rookies enter the grid

There has been a shake-up with the 2025 grid and only two teams, McLaren and Aston Martin, have stuck with their line-up from last year.

Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton's switch to Ferrari is the biggest change going into the new season.

Six rookies are set to make their full-time debut. Oliver Bearman caught the eye when he stood in for Carlos Sainz at Ferrari and Kevin Magnussen at Haas last season. The 19-year-old Briton joins Haas on a multi-year contract.

New Zealand's Liam Lawson, who made 11 F1 appearances in 2023 and 2024, has the daunting task of being team-mate to world champion Verstappen at Red Bull.

Gabriel Bortoleto, the 2024 Formula 2 champion, will drive for Sauber, while runner-up Isack Hadjar joins Red Bull sister team Racing Bulls, which has been renamed from RB.

Mercedes protege Andrea Kimi Antonelli, 18, comes into the team to replace Hamilton.

Australian Jack Doohan is in the Alpine seat after being a reserve driver for two years. He made his debut in the final race of last season in Abu Dhabi.

A full list of the 10 teams and 20 drivers is listed below.

F1 driver contracts - will there be any changes?

Six drivers are on contracts running until the end of the season.

Four rookies have been offered a year's contract: Antonelli, Doohan, Hadjar and Lawson.

Mercedes' George Russell and Racing Bulls' Yuki Tsunoda also have contracts that expire at the end of 2025.

Two more seats will be available in 2026 as an 11th team, Cadillac, enters the grid.

F1 2025 calendar - another long season

Australia returns as the season opener

A long F1 season features 24 races across 21 countries.

There are no new locations in 2025. The races are the same as last season, though some have moved in the schedule.

Australia returns as the season opener. Melbourne held the spot almost every year from its debut in 1996, though this will be the first time since 2019.

Bahrain and Saudi Arabia move to rounds four and five in April because of the holy month of Ramadan in March. They were the opening races between 2022 and 2024.

Las Vegas remains a Saturday race with all sessions brought forward by two hours. The grand prix will take place at 20:00 local time (04:00 GMT on the Sunday).

Barcelona will host the Spanish Grand Prix for the final time before it moves to Madrid in 2026.

Where are the sprint races this year?

There are six sprint races in 2025

There are six sprint races in the 2025 calendar - China, Miami, Belgium, the United States Grand Prix in Austin, Brazil and Qatar.

Brazil has held a sprint every year since they were introduced in 2021, while Spa returns for the first time since 2023.

The format remains the same as 2024 - qualifying for the sprint will be on a Friday following a practice session and the 100km sprint race will take place on a Saturday before the grand prix qualifying.

Points are awarded for drivers finishing from first to eighth.

Any changes to the rules this season?

The fastest lap point has been removed. A bonus point was previously awarded to a driver in the top 10 that set the fastest lap in the main grand prix.

There will also be more first practice running for rookie drivers, four in total.

Previously, rookies had two opportunities to drive an F1 car in practice sessions.

Teams will choose which race weekend a rookie can participate in.

How to follow the 2025 F1 season on the BBC

You will be able to follow live text commentary for every race this season on the BBC Sport website and app.

BBC Radio 5 Live and BBC 5 Sports Extra will also bring you live commentary of every session.

Full F1 2025 calendar

14-16 March: Australia

21-23 March: China

4-6 April: Japan

11-13 April: Bahrain

18-20 April: Saudi Arabia

2-4 May: Miami

16-18 May: Emilia Romagna

23-25 May: Monaco

30 May-1 June: Spain

13-15 June: Canada

27-29 June: Austria

4-6 July: United Kingdom

25-27 July: Belgium

1-3 August: Hungary

29-31 August: Netherlands

5-7 September: Italy

19-21 September: Azerbaijan

3-5 October: Singapore

17-19 October: United States (Austin)

24-26 October: Mexico

7-9 November: Sao Paulo

20-22 November: Las Vegas

28-30 November: Qatar

5-7 December: Abu Dhabi

What is the full 2025 F1 line-up?

Alpine - Pierre Gasly and Jack Doohan

Aston Martin - Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll

Ferrari - Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton

Haas - Oliver Bearman and Esteban Ocon

McLaren - Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris

Mercedes - George Russell and Andrea Kimi Antonelli

Red Bull - Max Verstappen and Liam Lawson

Racing Bulls (formally RB) - Yuki Tsunoda and Isack Hadjar

Sauber - Nico Hulkenberg and Gabriel Bortoleto

Williams - Alex Albon and Carlos Sainz