Charles Leclerc plays down Barcelona lap times: “We are focused on the programme”. Charles Leclerc reflects on Ferrari’s penultimate day of running in Barcelona.

Charles Leclerc spoke at the end of this penultimate day of work for the Maranello-based team.

The satisfaction of Charles Leclerc

It was a rather productive day for Ferrari in Barcelona. The absence of the bad weather that had instead affected Tuesday – the first day the SF-26 took to the track – allowed Lewis Hamilton first and then Charles Leclerc to rack up valuable mileage. Overall, on this Catalan Thursday the red car completed as many as 174 laps, even surpassing Mercedes in this particular statistic.

This represents a positive sign ahead of the conclusion of these shakedown sessions and, above all, in view of the mid-February tests in Bahrain, which are likely to provide a first realistic picture of the competitive order.

“It was positive to have a full day in more representative conditions,” Charles Leclerc commented at the end of the day. “With these regulations everything is new, so there is a lot to learn and to discover, and the way of driving the car is quite different compared to what we were used to in recent years. It is a real challenge, but also an opportunity to approach things in a different way.

“I feel more and more comfortable in the car, even if managing the new systems, especially with the greater contribution from the electrical side of the power unit, is demanding. At this stage we are not looking at performance, but at completing our checklist and understanding the car as thoroughly as possible. There is still a lot to do, but we are in line with our programme, and that is encouraging for our work ahead of the next test in Bahrain.”

This productive outing in Barcelona highlights a steady start for Ferrari as they navigate the complexities of the 2026 technical overhaul. By prioritizing system checks and driver comfort over headline-grabbing lap times, the team is building a foundation for the upcoming challenges in Bahrain. Charles Leclerc’s growing confidence in the SF-26 suggests that while the learning curve is steep, the Scuderia is precisely where it needs to be at this stage of the pre-season.