Written by Annalise Haung, Edited by Vyas Ponnuri
Kimi Antonelli was recently announced to be joining the Formula 1 grid in 2025, alongside Australian favourite Jack Doohan and fellow rising prodigy Ollie Bearman. The young drivers have all demonstrated exceptional promise throughout their respective careers, making the prospect of the 2025 season as exciting as ever.
The first of the confirmed rookies, Bearman’s future at Haas was announced on 4th July, 2024. As the current reserve for both Ferrari and Haas, 19-year-old Bearman has already had the opportunity to race in F1, making him unique from his fellow future rookies.
He finished seventh at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, taking over Carlos Sainz’s Ferrari seat while the Spaniard recovered from an unexpected appendicitis surgery.
After a strong karting career, the British driver made his single-seater debut in the 2020 ADAC Formula 4 Championship with US racing, simultaneously competing in several rounds of Italian F4.
The following year, he dually competed in both the Italian and German F4 championships. Claiming six victories and ultimately winning the ADAC F4 title, Bearman became the first driver to win two successive F4 titles in a single year. Shortly after, he was confirmed to be joining the Ferrari Driver Academy.
From there, Bearman’s career skyrocketed, propelling him to strong performances in both the BRDC Formula 3 Championship and the FIA Formula 3 Championship. His most recent full season was with Prema Racing in the 2023 FIA Formula 2 Championship, where he accumulated an impressive four wins and five podiums.
Currently, Bearman continues with Prema Racing in F2, alongside Antonelli. Despite a difficult season so far, sitting 14th in standings as of the Italian Grand Prix, the future looks bright for the young driver, as he looks towards a multi-year deal with Haas alongside Esteban Ocon.
The first ever Alpine Academy driver to be promoted to the F1 team, 21-year-old Doohan’s announcement follows an impressive karting and lower formulae career. Interestingly enough, the Australian driver’s first kart was given to him by former neighbour and seven-time F1 Champion Michael Schumacher.
Starting his single-seater racing career at age 15, Doohan competed in British, Italian, and German F4 with varying results, opening the horizon for future opportunities. His 2019 campaigns in the following year included the Euroformula Open and the F3 Asian Championship.
Unlike Bearman, Doohan’s first venture into FIA F3 was unsuccessful; he failed to score any points in a tough 2020 season, following a series of mishaps and incidents.
Switching to Trident for his following F3 season, Doohan was able to make a comeback with several memorable performances and victories. Trident ultimately won the team’s championship that year.
His 2022 season in F2 saw a blend of his two F3 campaigns, with a series of incidents and technical misfortunes hindering an otherwise wildly successful performance.
In his final year in F2, Doohan finished third in the final standings, receiving the inaugural Formula 2 Best Performance Award and a bid for a 2025 F1 seat after spending several years in the feeder series.
Despite being initially signed to the Red Bull Junior Team in 2017, Doohan left in 2021 and joined Alpine Academy the following year, where he has remained committed since.
The Alpine F1 reserve driver since 2023, he has been active in tests and practice sessions with the car. Alongside Pierre Gasly, Doohan’s rookie season with Alpine is certain to be memorable.
Antonellli’s raw talent combined with the legacy of seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton to uphold will surely make for a riveting F1 debut. The Italian driver recently participated in FP1 at the Italian Grand Prix on 29 August, where he crashed into the barriers during a flying lap.
Just one day later, it was announced the 18-year-old would be driving for Mercedes in 2025. The youngest of the rookies, Antonelli has perhaps the most pressure, with the expectations and historic success of the Mercedes team far surpassing that of Haas and Alpine.
Antonelli made his single-seater debut in round five of the 2021 Italian F4 Championship, securing a solid rookie season that prepared him for an eventful 2022 campaign.
Antonelli competed in the Italian F4, the F4 UAE Championship, the ADAC F4 Championship, and the Motorsport Games F4 Cup all in a single season. In the latter competition, Antonelli won both qualifying and the primary race with a broken left wrist.
Antonelli won the Formula Regional European Championship in 2023, expressing that he wanted further experience before progressing to F3. Ironically, the following year, Antonelli bypassed F3 altogether and went immediately to F2.
The Italian driver currently competes in his debut season of F2 alongside Prema Racing teammate and fellow rookie Bearman. The pair have long since competed in FIA feeder series as well as earlier, regional F4 championships, appearing to be close teammates. Between this friendly rookie rivalry and the high expectations at Mercedes, Antonelli’s F1 career is sure to have a thrilling start.
What will already be a highly competitive year, if the 2024 season is any indication, will only be enhanced by three young, talented rookies, hungry to prove themselves in their long-awaited F1 debut.
The most recent F1 rookie trio in 2019 was composed of Lando Norris, Alex Albon, and George Russell: now, six years later, the motorsport world is excited to see the next generation of rising stars prove themselves on the big stage.
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