F1 2025 Australian Grand Prix weather forecast - teams braced for chaotic conditions in Melbourne

After 98 days without competitive on-track action, Formula 1 has returned to kickstart the 2025 season for the Australian Grand Prix weekend, with the main race taking place at Albert Park Circuit this Sunday.

Following a whirlwind 'silly season' of driver transfers last year, six new drivers are joining the grid in their first full-time contract and, vitally, Lewis Hamilton will compete in his first grand prix with Ferrari.

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Last season produced a title fight to the wire in the constructors' championship with McLaren stealing their first team victory since 1998, Ferrari coming in a close second and Red Bull falling to P3.

Christian Horner's F1 outfit have dominated both standings in recent years thanks to the force of their star driver Max Verstappen, who claimed his fourth consecutive drivers' title in 2024.

Now however, only two teams have retained the same driver lineup as last season, McLaren and Aston Martin, and with the papaya team looking to assert dominance off the back of their constructors' win in Abu Dhabi, the season opener is hotting up to be an exciting one,

As the Australian Grand Prix returns to its role of the season opener for the first time since 2019, here's how the weather currently looks for this weekend's grand prix.

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Australian Grand Prix weather forecast

Friday, March 14: FP1 & FP2

The stars of F1 returned to the track on Friday for the first time since pre-season testing concluded in Bahrain last month. The first practice session took place at 12:30pm local time (AEDT) and remained dry, with highs of 23 degrees Celsius.

FP2 kicked off at 4pm local time (AEDT) and ran under similar conditions, with no rain, light winds and a slightly hotter climate of 27 degrees Celsius.

Saturday, March 15: FP3 & Qualifying

Saturday's sessions at Albert Parksaw teams return to competitive run plans following the final practice session at 12:30pm local time (AEDT). FP3 took place with temperatures settling around 32 degrees Celsius and remained uninterrupted by rain.

Qualifying began at 4pm local time (AEDT) and is likely to have been the warmest session of the weekend, with temperatures reaching 35 degrees Celsius. Light winds persisted despite the continued absence of rain.

Sunday, March 16: Race

Sunday's grand prix will see all 20 drivers line up for the first lights out of 2025 at 3pm local time (AEDT), but a huge drop in temperature to around 16 degrees Celsius and an unpredictable weather forecast threatens to throw F1 teams into chaos after a dry track on Friday and Saturday.

Heavy showers are forecast for Sunday with over an 80 per cent chance of rain for the duration of this year's first grand prix and wind gusts of around 34mph after warnings of a major thunderstorm continue to loom over the race.

Be sure to keep an eye on this article throughout the Australian Grand Prix race weekend as we keep the above information updated.

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