F1 2025: FIA reveal test for six drivers at Bahrain Grand Prix

Photo: © IMAGO

Bahrain Grand Prix

FIA reveal F1 test for six drivers at Bahrain GP

Six drivers will undergo an important test at the Bahrain Grand Prix

Sheona Mountford F1 Journalist

Motorsport journalist working in F1 since 2024.

Friday 11 April 2025 18:58

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The FIA have confirmed that the six rookie drivers who competed in FP1 at the Bahrain Grand Prix on Friday were also subject to additional tests.

Dino Beganovic, Ayumu Iwasa, Frederik Vesti, Felipe Drugovich, Ryo Hirakawa and Luke Browning all competed in the first free practice session at Sakhir for Ferrari, Red Bull, Mercedes, Aston Martin, Haas and Williams respectively.

Prior to the session however, all six drivers were subject to a cockpit exit test, a crucial way to ensure drivers can safely and quickly move away from a potentially hazardous situation.

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All drivers must pass this test if they wish to compete in F1, where the drivers have seven seconds to exit the car and a further five seconds to replace the steering wheel, meaning the test takes 12 seconds in total to complete.

F1 rookies must pass test before competing in Bahrain

The six young stars filled in for Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen, George Russell, Fernando Alonso, Ollie Bearman and Carlos Sainz as part of F1’s new rookie rule.

F1 changed the rule for the 2025 season, and each team is required to field a rookie driver in both of their cars twice in a season, for a minimum of four sessions across the year, to ensure their young drivers enjoy adequate experience in F1 machinery.

The FIA's official definition of a rookie is a driver who has taken part in two or less F1 races during their racing career, which means reserve drivers, such as Franco Colapinto at Alpine, can not run in any practice sessions in 2025 with the team.

Instead, as is expected of all young reserve drivers at their respective teams, Colapinto will continue to test in older F1 machinery whilst also undergoing development and simulator work back at the factory in Enstone.