Charles Leclerc has urged Ferrari to remain realistic about its prospects for United States Grand Prix qualifying despite topping both Friday practice sessions at the Circuit of the Americas. The Monegasque driver was encouraged by the balance of his updated SF-26, but stressed that Ferrari’s latest aerodynamic developments represent only a small improvement rather than a dramatic leap forward. He also identified Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen as particularly strong contenders for pole position in Austin.
Ferrari completes 106 laps as Charles Leclerc leads both Austin practice sessions
Ferrari’s opening day of track action at the Circuit of the Americas ended with a decidedly positive assessment. Despite the familiar bumps around the Austin circuit and particularly challenging gusts of wind, the team completed an intensive programme without problems, recording a combined total of 106 laps.
During the opening practice session for the United States Grand Prix, Ferrari carried out an aerodynamic comparison by fitting its anticipated upgrades only to Charles Leclerc’s SF-26. Both cars were then equipped with the latest specification for FP2, allowing the Italian team to continue evaluating the new components under more comparable conditions.
The track offered satisfactory levels of grip, enabling Ferrari’s engineers to gather important information from both qualifying simulations and longer runs. The different aerodynamic configurations formed a key part of Ferrari’s evaluation of the updated SF-26 during Austin practice.
In FP1, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton began their programmes on medium tyres before switching to the soft compound. Charles Leclerc set the fastest lap of the session with a 1:36.052, while Lewis Hamilton finished sixth with a 1:36.687. The two Ferrari drivers completed 26 and 23 laps respectively.
For FP2, the team initially ran on hard tyres before returning to the soft compound for qualifying simulations. The session concluded with the usual race-pace work, providing additional data on the car’s behaviour over longer distances.
Charles Leclerc confirmed his excellent feeling with the SF-26 by lowering the benchmark to 1:35.291, once again finishing as the fastest driver on track. Lewis Hamilton secured fourth position with a 1:35.906, leaving the two teammates separated by 0.615 seconds.
With another 30 laps completed by Charles Leclerc and 26 by Lewis Hamilton, Ferrari successfully concluded its data-gathering programme. The information collected provided important indications ahead of qualifying later that evening. The drivers’ practice performance and longer stints can also be examined through the F1 Practice & Long-Run Analysis.
Charles Leclerc plays down Ferrari’s SF-26 upgrade gains
Despite leading both practice sessions, Charles Leclerc was determined to remain cautious about Ferrari’s chances. The Monegasque emphasised the importance of having found a suitable setup immediately, while also playing down the scale of the technical developments introduced in Texas, as he had already done on Thursday.
“The feeling was good, really very good, but as I said yesterday, the upgrades don’t guarantee as big a gain as I’ve heard and read some people suggesting. They’re small improvements, which we’ve nevertheless been able to see on the car. You don’t feel a radical difference; it’s a small step forward. Above all, I think we’ve started the weekend on the right foot, finding a good balance straight away, and that’s the most positive aspect of this Friday.”
For Charles Leclerc, the encouraging balance of the car was therefore a more significant takeaway than the outright lap times or the anticipated gains from the new aerodynamic package.
Ferrari’s performance suggested that the latest specification was working in the intended direction, but the driver was careful not to suggest that the developments had fundamentally transformed the SF-26. Instead, he highlighted the benefits of beginning the weekend with a car that already felt comfortable and well balanced.
Strong winds make track limits particularly difficult in Austin
Charles Leclerc also explained the considerable difficulties drivers faced in respecting track limits at the Circuit of the Americas. Strong gusts of wind swept across the Texas venue, making certain corners particularly difficult to negotiate without running beyond the white lines.
“The wind was so strong that, precisely in the corners where respecting track limits was most difficult, it was pushing us towards the outside. That made everything very complicated, because even a small lock-up was enough to lose the racing line, and at that point it became impossible to stay within the track limits. More than anything else, it was the way the wind was blowing that made the situation particularly challenging and difficult to manage.”
The changing wind conditions added another variable to Ferrari’s work during practice. Even with the improved balance reported by Charles Leclerc, the gusts complicated the task of maintaining a precise racing line through some of the circuit’s most demanding sections.
Charles Leclerc identifies Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen as qualifying threats
Looking ahead to qualifying later that evening, Charles Leclerc warned that Ferrari should not allow its strong Friday results to create unrealistic expectations. Although the Scuderia had led both practice sessions, he expected its rivals to find additional performance when the competitive runs began.
The Ferrari driver specifically highlighted Kimi Antonelli and Max Verstappen as two of the strongest contenders for pole position, while admitting that McLaren’s true potential remained difficult to assess.
“We shouldn’t have overly high expectations for qualifying this evening, because the others definitely still have some potential to unlock. Kimi and Max seem to be really, really strong. As for McLaren, I don’t know. I don’t think they’ve put everything together yet, but Kimi and Max will definitely be up there fighting at the front.”
Ferrari therefore heads into qualifying with encouraging evidence from its opening day in Austin, having completed its planned programme, gathered valuable aerodynamic data and demonstrated competitive performance with Charles Leclerc.
However, the driver remains convinced that Friday’s results are not enough to establish the true competitive order. With Kimi Antonelli, Max Verstappen and potentially McLaren still capable of improving, Ferrari will need to build on its promising start to challenge for pole position at the United States Grand Prix.
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