Ferrari head into Belgian Grand Prix qualifying targeting a realistic place on the second or third row after completing FP3 fifth and sixth at Spa-Francorchamps. Lewis Hamilton was fifth, 0.392 seconds behind pace-setter Kimi Antonelli, while Charles Leclerc finished sixth, 0.760 seconds away from the fastest lap.
However, Ferrari’s preparations were dealt a late blow when Lewis Hamilton hit the barriers during the final minutes of the session, heavily damaging the rear of his SF-26. The Maranello team now face a race against time to complete the necessary repairs before qualifying, while assessing whether either driver can challenge McLaren and Red Bull for the leading positions behind Mercedes.
Ferrari use Belgian GP FP3 to assess qualifying potential
The final practice session was especially important for Ferrari after the team ended Friday’s FP2 around seven tenths behind Kimi Antonelli’s benchmark. Fred Vasseur’s comments after Friday suggested Ferrari may not have shown everything, but the technical picture from Spa’s Friday running indicated that the SF-26 was losing time through the middle sector.
That made FP3 crucial for understanding whether Ferrari’s engineers had found a solution overnight. On paper, Spa-Francorchamps is not expected to be an ideal circuit for Ferrari because of the team’s power-unit deficit to its main rivals, although the limitations of pre-weekend simulations have already been exposed at Silverstone.
Lewis Hamilton sets early benchmark as Charles Leclerc investigates energy issue
Lewis Hamilton was the first Ferrari driver to take to the track, using the soft tyre. After his opening flying lap, the British driver moved into first place ahead of Liam Lawson, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Charles Leclerc joined the session five minutes later on the same compound, but his first representative lap was more measured.
Lewis Hamilton then improved by around six tenths to set a 1:46.789. Charles Leclerc initially moved into fifth, almost seven tenths behind his team-mate. Ferrari chose to investigate an apparent issue related to energy deployment, as Charles Leclerc lost roughly four tenths to Lewis Hamilton in the first sector alone.
On his third attempt, Charles Leclerc reduced the gap to the British driver to around three tenths. The first qualifying simulation ended with Kimi Antonelli first, eight tenths ahead of Lewis Hamilton and nine tenths clear of Max Verstappen, while Charles Leclerc was fourth and one second away from the Mercedes driver.
Ferrari change Charles Leclerc’s SF-26 set-up
Lewis Hamilton returned to the circuit on the same soft tyres and began a low-fuel race-pace simulation. His lap times were more than a second quicker than those seen during Friday practice, making the run particularly encouraging given that he was using the soft compound.
At the same time, Charles Leclerc opted for a significant set-up change on his SF-26. The Monegasque driver then returned to the track to test the revised configuration on the same compound used during his first run, but he was unable to improve by around one tenth compared with his previous best.
Charles Leclerc returned to the pits before fitting fresh tyres, with Lewis Hamilton doing the same. Lewis Hamilton’s first push lap on new tyres put him fifth, four tenths behind Kimi Antonelli. Charles Leclerc improved on his fourth flying lap after encountering traffic and making a few errors earlier in the run, but he could only take sixth, nearly eight tenths from the top.
Ferrari’s work at Spa has also been shaped by the FIA’s revised energy-management rules for the Belgian GP, which have made deployment and recovery more important throughout the lap.
Ferrari’s realistic Belgian GP qualifying target
Lewis Hamilton’s late contact with the barriers damaged the rear of his SF-26 and could complicate his qualifying preparations if Ferrari’s repairs are not completed in time. The incident is particularly frustrating after the seven-time world champion had looked more competitive than his team-mate in final practice.
Mercedes, led by Kimi Antonelli, appear to be the favourites for pole position. Ferrari’s realistic target is to remain in contention with McLaren and Red Bull, both of whom also looked strong in qualifying simulation. The gap to the front, estimated at around three to four tenths, is broadly in line with expectations given Ferrari’s performance deficit on Spa’s power-sensitive layout.
A fourth- or fifth-place result appears to be Ferrari’s most realistic objective, potentially helped by any mistakes or problems for its rivals. Anything more would currently look difficult, although the competitive order could still shift when qualifying begins at 16:00.
Charles Leclerc had already outlined Ferrari’s expectations for the Spa weekend, and the final practice session has reinforced how closely matched the battle behind Mercedes could be.
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