SHANGHAI PREVIEW: Talking points ahead of the 2025 season opener

Dusting off their race suits and polishing up the cars, winter break is finally over as the 2025 F1 ACADEMY season is about to get underway.

After more than a three-month wait, race week has rolled back around. For the first time ever, the series kicks things off in China as the Shanghai International Circuit plays host to Round 1 of what’s set to be an epic year ahead.

Before the field dive into the third F1 ACADEMY season, here’s all the key storylines to check out this weekend.

NEW FACES EAGER TO GET UP TO SPEED

A bumper crop of seven brand new additions prepare to make their F1 ACADEMY debut in Shanghai. In total, the 2025 grid features 10 rookies as four of 2024’s Wild Cards also join the ranks for their first full-time campaigns.

American driver Courtney Crone gets her chance with Haas, hopping into the third ART Grand Prix seat off the back of her Miami Wild Card debut last year. After an impressive performance in Zandvoort where she became the first Wild Card driver to score points, Alpine’s Nina Gademan joins the fold of reigning Teams’ Champions PREMA Racing.

Meanwhile, McLaren driver Ella Lloyd joins Rodin Motorsport alongside Kick Sauber’s Emma Felbermayr and 2023 returnee Chloe Chong, as all three race with the team that helped Abbi Pulling to the Drivers’ title last year.

Alisha Palmowski is one of two newcomers at Campos Racing, with the Red Bull Racing driver partnering up with RB’s Rafaela Ferreira in an all-Red Bull Academy Programme line-up alongside Red Bull Ford’s Chloe Chambers, who returns for her second year with the Spanish team.

READ MORE: TEAM GUIDE: Rodin Motorsport’s 2025 line-up striving for success

Tommy Hilfiger have Danish racer Alba Larsen in their colours this season over at MP Motorsport, with Australia’s Joanne Ciconte in action in an F1 ACADEMY livery for Round 1. Of the six returnees from last season, only Maya Weug has switched teams, with the Ferrari driver moving over from PREMA to complete MP’s trio for her sophomore year.

It’s not only the drivers that are new, but also the teams, as F1 ACADEMY welcomes Hitech TGR as the sixth squad on the grid. They’re fielding two rookies of their own in the form of American Express driver Nicole Havrda and TAG Heuer’s Aiva Anagnostiadis. Home fans’ hopes rest on the third of Hitech’s trio as Shi Wei competes as the first Wild Card of the season. Four Wild Card drivers scored points last year, but can the Chinese driver be the one to kick off this season’s tally?

REVERSE GRIDS MAKE THEIR RETURN

Drivers will have to prove they’re not only quick qualifiers but masterful overtakers, as reverse grid races have been brought back to the F1 ACADEMY weekend. Last seen in 2023, this year’s format will see the top eight drivers from Qualifying reversed on the grid for Race 1.

Whilst the driver who qualified in eighth can set her sights on victory, the weekend’s leading contenders will have to battle it out to get back to the front. Those drivers who qualified in ninth to 18th will line up where they qualified and will need to make inroads forward as only the top eight drivers will be awarded points on a sliding scale (10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1).

WILL TESTING TIMES TRANSLATE INTO RACE WEEKEND SUCCESS?

Although Shanghai might be a new race weekend venue, the 2025 field have already gotten a chance to get acquainted with the circuit during pre-season testing at the start of the month.

READ MORE: Everything you need to know about the 2025 F1 ACADEMY season

Varying run plans and setups mean that the running order isn’t set in stone, but it can give an initial picture of how drivers and teams are settling in around the circuit’s distinctive layout.

On outright pace, Doriane Pin was the one to beat, setting the fastest time of the test at 2:03.046 in Day 1’s second session. However, the Mercedes driver wouldn’t top the most sessions, as that honour went to Weug, who went quickest on three occasions out of five.

Nine different drivers recorded at least one top-five time, with Felbermayr standing out from the rookies with three top-five efforts. Naturally, newcomers Hitech made the most out of the three days of track time, notching up 575 laps — 40 more than second-place PREMA — with Havrda completing the most mileage on 203 laps.

READ MORE: Pin sets the pace across Shanghai pre-season testing

With the three days of testing under their belt, the field all have a first impression of what to expect. Yet the conditions they faced were not representative of what they’ll race in, with cold spells making way for sunshine and temperatures reaching over 20C.

Additionally, as the circuit rubbers in courtesy of F1’s running, it’ll be hard to predict how the track will evolve. This could give the second-year drivers a significant advantage at this early stage, but nothing is for certain until the cars hit the track on Friday.