Ferrari needed to take risks. An aggressive and bold approach was required to truly aim higher, as the Scuderia is increasingly tired of finishing behind its direct rivals and wanted to push for a stronger and more competitive result than usual. However, the 2026 Formula 1 battery-based era continues to be particularly unforgiving for the Italian team, especially considering that the Ferrari power unit still struggles in terms of energy harvesting and deployment compared to Mercedes-powered competitors, even in full race conditions and over longer stints. At the chequered flag, Charles Leclerc finished in sixth place, while Lewis Hamilton had to settle for seventh position, just behind his Ferrari teammate.
Leclerc takes the race lead
The start of the Miami Grand Prix was extremely chaotic and packed with action. Charles Leclerc made a brilliant and explosive getaway from the grid and immediately managed to pass Kimi Antonelli into the first sequence of corners. At the same time, Max Verstappen braked too late into the corner, ran wide, and the Monegasque driver had to take decisive evasive action to avoid contact, which he successfully managed with great car control. This sequence allowed Charles Leclerc to take the lead of the race, followed by Kimi Antonelli and the two McLaren drivers, Lando Norris and Oscar Piastri. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton did not get off the line particularly well and was overtaken by Franco Colapinto. There was immediate contact between the two drivers, with sparks flying as they battled for position.
Lewis Hamilton came off worse from the incident, sustaining visible damage to his Ferrari car. Over the team radio, there were references to issues with the sidepods and the floor, resulting in a loss of around 15 points of aerodynamic downforce, which inevitably compromised performance. Race engineer Riccardo Adami urged Lewis Hamilton to remain calm and continue pushing despite the difficulties. Car number 44 did not pit, as there was very little the mechanics could realistically do at that stage of the race. On lap 4, Kimi Antonelli overtook Charles Leclerc, with the Mercedes W17 already demonstrating its clearly superior energy management capabilities.
However, Charles Leclerc responded immediately and did not accept losing the position. On the following lap, he used overtake mode effectively to retake the position at Turn 11 with a decisive move. Half a lap later, the first major incident of the race occurred when Isack Hadjar crashed heavily into the barriers at Turn 15. Shortly afterwards, Pierre Gasly was also involved in a dramatic incident at Turn 17 following contact with a Racing Bulls car. Race control had no choice but to deploy the Safety Car to neutralize the race.
Under double yellow flag conditions, neither Ferrari driven by Charles Leclerc nor the one driven by Lewis Hamilton opted to pit. The Ferrari pit wall judged it too early to make a stop and attempt to reach the finish without another visit to the pits, a strategic decision that ultimately proved correct in that phase of the race. During this period, there was significant work carried out by the drivers to keep the tyres within the optimal temperature window. Meanwhile, marshals were busy clearing debris from the track, including damaged parts from multiple cars, with the neutralisation lasting approximately six and a half laps.
SF-26 limitations come to the surface
At the restart, Charles Leclerc made a strong and well-timed launch and successfully retained the lead, while Lewis Hamilton attempted to take advantage of the intense battle between Oscar Piastri and George Russell to overtake the British driver, although the move did not ultimately succeed. Charles Leclerc tried to push and build a gap, but behind him Lando Norris, who had already passed Kimi Antonelli, was becoming increasingly threatening and closing in rapidly. The overtake mode once again proved decisive, allowing the reigning world champion Lando Norris to pass the Ferrari on the following lap.
Kimi Antonelli also overtook Charles Leclerc shortly afterwards, although the Ferrari driver briefly reclaimed the position before losing it again one lap later as the Mercedes showed stronger efficiency. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton remained close to George Russell despite the damage sustained earlier, appearing capable of matching the pace of his former Mercedes teammate under challenging conditions. Ferrari then switched focus to strategy, with race engineer Bryan Bozzi communicating Plan A and advising Charles Leclerc on how to carefully manage both tyres and energy deployment.
Unfortunately for Ferrari, the Mercedes-powered car driven by Oscar Piastri had a clear and visible performance advantage in this phase. Oscar Piastri closed in rapidly on Charles Leclerc and managed to overtake him, although Leclerc briefly regained third place with determination. It soon became evident that the energy efficiency and deployment of the McLaren MCL40 were significantly superior to those of the Ferrari SF-26, especially over consecutive laps. Charles Leclerc also reported a persistent tendency towards understeer, which further complicated his ability to defend positions effectively.
Team radio communications began mentioning the possibility of rain in the coming laps, adding another layer of uncertainty. By lap 20, tyre management became a key and central focus, with the aim of extending the stint into the optimal pit window. On the following lap, George Russell pitted in an attempt to undercut both Oscar Piastri and Charles Leclerc. Ferrari reacted immediately by calling in Charles Leclerc, but a slightly slow pit stop, compounded by hesitation on the front-right tyre, cost him valuable track position and momentum.
Leclerc fights for the podium
When Charles Leclerc rejoined the track, George Russell managed to edge ahead by a small margin, confirming the effectiveness of the Mercedes strategy. The Ferrari driver found himself stuck in traffic and voiced his frustration over the team radio. Meanwhile, Max Verstappen was mounting a strong recovery drive after his earlier spin and overtook Lewis Hamilton, who was struggling with worn tyres and the earlier car damage. Lewis Hamilton was eventually called into the pits to switch tyres.
His stop was even slower, partly due to additional checks carried out by the mechanics to assess the extent of the damage. He rejoined in ninth place on hard tyres, behind Carlos Sainz. Charles Leclerc, meanwhile, was running sixth, still behind George Russell and Franco Colapinto, who had yet to make a pit stop. The Ferrari appeared quicker than Russell’s Mercedes at this stage, and a tense and intense battle unfolded, with Charles Leclerc pushing hard lap after lap to make the overtake.
Eventually, Charles Leclerc succeeded in overtaking George Russell, although it remained uncertain whether he truly had the pace to keep the Mercedes behind over a longer stint. Franco Colapinto finally made his pit stop, allowing Charles Leclerc to run in clean air, although he still trailed Max Verstappen by over four seconds. Max Verstappen, who had pitted as early as lap 7, was unlikely to reach the finish without another stop. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton continued to push consistently, aiming to close a five-second gap to the Oscar Piastri and George Russell pair ahead.
George Russell’s pace began to drop significantly, losing three seconds to Charles Leclerc in just four laps. This allowed Oscar Piastri to overtake him, triggering a direct and fascinating battle between the two drivers, with a yo-yo effect as they exchanged pace advantages. This evolving situation played into Charles Leclerc’s hands, as he attempted to carefully manage his pace and preserve his tyres to secure a potential podium finish.
Ferrari loses the podium with Leclerc
With 20 laps remaining, third place appeared to be the maximum achievable result for Charles Leclerc, especially considering Max Verstappen’s likely need for another pit stop. Nevertheless, Charles Leclerc continued to close the gap to the Dutch driver, reducing it to just 2.6 seconds with 15 laps to go. Five laps later, he was right on Max Verstappen’s gearbox, applying constant pressure.
Charles Leclerc overtook Max Verstappen on the start-finish straight, but the Red Bull driver immediately retook the position a few corners later in a fierce exchange. With the help of overtake mode and better battery deployment, Charles Leclerc managed to pass him again in Sector 2 with a decisive move. The Red Bull lacked pace and soon came under pressure from Oscar Piastri, who overtook Max Verstappen as well with relative ease.
At that point, the battle for the final podium position came down to Charles Leclerc and Oscar Piastri in the final eight laps of the race. Behind them, Lewis Hamilton was chasing George Russell but did not appear to have the necessary pace to catch him in the closing stages. Bryan Bozzi urged Charles Leclerc to maintain maximum concentration as he pushed the Ferrari SF-26 to its absolute limits.
The decisive moment came in the final two laps, when Oscar Piastri launched a strong and committed attack. Charles Leclerc defended firmly but was eventually overtaken. As Charles Leclerc attempted to prepare a counterattack and regain the position, he lost control of the car, spun, and crashed into the barriers. Although he damaged the suspension, he managed to bring the Ferrari to the finish line, but lost two additional positions to George Russell and Max Verstappen in the process.
It was a bitter and frustrating conclusion, with a sixth-place finish that left a strong sense of disappointment within Ferrari. Lewis Hamilton crossed the line just behind his teammate Charles Leclerc, securing seventh place. Despite the dramatic late twist, it was abundantly clear that Ferrari must significantly improve its power unit performance if it intends to genuinely fight for the Formula 1 world championship against rivals Mercedes and McLaren.
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