Hamilton will first don the famous red Down Under

LEWIS HAMILTON will open his Ferrari career in Melbourne next year — as the Australian Grand Prix was reinstated as the opening race of the season.

The 2025 calendar was announced today, with Ramadan having put paid to a start in the Middle East as has become custom. The 24-race season will see Hamilton (below) start life as a Ferrari driver in Melbourne on March 16 and conclude in Abu Dhabi on December 7.

The schedule pairs Australia and China (March 23) as a back-to-back grouping. Japan follows a fortnight later, with Bahrain and Saudi Arabia — this year’s opening rounds — on April 13 and April 20.

The British Grand Prix — starting the first of its new 10-year contract extension at Silverstone — is on July 6, on the middle week of Wimbledon but not clashing with golf’s Open Championship at Portrush, which will start the week after. Next year will be the first time since 2019 that the F1 season has kicked off at Albert Park after 2020’s scheduled opener was cancelled at the last minute amid the outbreak of Covid.

Triple world champion Max Verstappen has been vocal in his criticism of the everexpanding length of the F1 schedule. But for next season there will be no new additions. The sport’s CEO Stefano Domenicali said: ‘2025 will be a special year as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of the F1 World Championship, and it’s that experience that allows us to deliver such a strong calendar. ‘Once again, we’ll visit 24 incredible venues, delivering top-class racing, hospitality and entertainment. I’d also like to pay tribute to our F1 teams and drivers, the heroes of our sport, and our fans around the world.’ After four rounds of the current season, Verstappen holds a 13-point championship lead in his bid to secure four consecutive world titles. The next race takes place in Shanghai a week on Sunday.