The free practice sessions for the 2025 Formula 1 Dutch Grand Prix have revealed a Ferrari team still struggling to find the correct balance of its car at the Circuit Zandvoort. During the opening free practice one session, the two Ferrari cars showed major handling problems, with the front and rear axles behaving in a completely disconnected way. This lack of harmony between the two ends of the car made it very difficult for both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to manage tyre temperatures effectively. It highlighted a serious weakness in keeping the tyres within the correct operating window, an area that has been problematic for Ferrari at various points this season.
The modifications carried out between FP1 and the later FP2 session improved the overall handling of the SF-25, allowing the two Ferrari drivers to feel more comfortable behind the wheel. These adjustments gave both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc a better level of competitiveness when running with higher fuel loads over longer stints. However, despite the progress, the data gathered from these long run simulations was somewhat limited in quantity, meaning that the analysis remains only partially conclusive.
Dutch GP, race pace FP2: Lewis Hamilton shows strong consistency on lap times
To better understand the real level of performance of the Italian cars, it is necessary to carefully analyse the runs carried out with high levels of fuel during both FP1 and FP2. These long run stints, which are designed to simulate race conditions, are essential for teams to gather information not only on speed but also on tyre wear, fuel consumption, and car balance over multiple laps.
During the Dutch afternoon, the Ferrari team was able to collect only a relatively small number of laps in long run conditions. Despite this limited data sample, there are still useful conclusions that can be drawn. Most notably, the average time gap compared to McLaren when running with the same heavy fuel configuration was more than halved between the first and the second session. This improvement demonstrates that the adjustments to the SF-25 were effective and that Ferrari managed to bring the car closer to McLaren in terms of race pace.
Lewis Hamilton, who is in his debut season with Ferrari after a long and successful career with Mercedes, was able to reduce the gap to Lando Norris down to just three tenths of a second. This performance showed clear signs of improvement in lap times and suggested that the car had better potential when compared to the morning session. Among all the drivers analysed during the second free practice, it was the Briton who recorded the most significant progress. Nevertheless, the relatively small number of laps completed by the British driver does not allow for a fully reliable judgement on the Ferrari SF-25’s ability to manage tyre wear over a proper race stint. Ferrari therefore preferred to place greater focus on one-lap performance, an area where the car is still suffering from persistent balance issues that need to be resolved.
Charles Leclerc recorded a lap time identical to that of his team-mate Lewis Hamilton. The Monegasque driver, who is now in his sixth season with Ferrari, carried out a final push-lap simulation during which he first switched the engine to a more aggressive mapping, and then used the soft tyre compound to set a very competitive attack time. However, in the laps that followed, Charles Leclerc was caught up in heavy traffic on track. This prevented him from maintaining continuity with his pace on the soft tyres and meant that the data collected from his run was less complete than desired.
Lando Norris and George Russell were the only two among the leading drivers to extend their long run simulations with very high fuel loads. The British Mercedes driver produced lap times that were remarkably similar to those of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc, a fact that is noteworthy because it shows how close the teams are in this area. Running on harder tyres compared to Lando Norris, George Russell deliberately adopted a more conservative strategy at the beginning of his stint. On the other hand, Lando Norris was able to benefit from the advantage of running on the medium compound, which generally offers more grip and better performance in the short term.
The medium tyre compound has a higher level of flexibility and viscosity, allowing it to better handle lateral sliding and generate heat without suffering from immediate graining. Graining, a phenomenon in which pieces of rubber detach from the tyre surface and reduce grip, is always a concern during practice and race runs. By contrast, as the data revealed, George Russell was able to exploit the lower degradation of the hard compound, also benefitting from a better track position compared to Lando Norris. This allowed him to maintain a more consistent pace throughout his stint.
In the internal battle within McLaren between Lando Norris and his team-mate Oscar Piastri, a rivalry that increasingly has the flavour of a potential world championship fight, the Briton once again appeared better prepared. He was stronger both with high fuel levels during long runs and in terms of single-lap qualifying pace. Across both free practice sessions, the British driver seemed capable of finding a stronger rhythm than Oscar Piastri on identical tyres, regardless of traffic situations. This consistency is an indication that Lando Norris is extracting more from the McLaren car at this stage of the weekend.
Dutch GP, FP1 analysis: Ferrari struggling with an unbalanced car
Looking back at the first free practice session, the gap between the Ferrari drivers and Lando Norris was around seven tenths of a second. The data from FP1 suggests that the lap times of both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were heavily influenced by extremely high fuel loads. In addition, the engine mapping used in FP1 was simulating the early stages of the race. By the seventh lap, both Ferrari drivers switched to what the team calls “mode X”, a more aggressive power unit setting, which allowed them to immediately gain around half a second per lap.
When it came to tyre management during FP1, there did not appear to be major problems for Ferrari. Although both drivers, and particularly Lewis Hamilton, required some steering corrections during their laps, the two Ferrari drivers were able to manage tyre temperatures effectively. Importantly, there was no evidence of a significant performance drop-off, which would have been harmful to long-run pace.
Strong tyre management was also displayed by George Russell and reigning world champion Max Verstappen. These two drivers were the only ones able to significantly improve their lap times over the course of their runs. However, both Russell and Verstappen still lost around half a second per lap compared to Lando Norris, mainly because of a very conservative approach in the opening phase of their simulations. From the team pit walls, both were instructed to carry out a very slow tyre warm-up phase. This was designed to prevent the onset of graining, ensuring that the tyres would last longer during the run.
Ferrari, Mercedes and Red Bull all made the most significant step forward between the two sessions, recovering on average seven tenths of a second in their long run pace from FP1 to FP2. This collective improvement shows that the leading teams are capable of reacting quickly between practice sessions and adapting their cars to changing conditions at Zandvoort.
As Ferrari team principal Frédéric Vasseur has repeatedly reminded, the only points that truly matter are those awarded on Sunday during the Grand Prix itself. Lewis Hamilton, for his part, has also expressed optimism about Ferrari’s chances of moving forward through the field. The pace shown by the Ferrari SF-25 is not poor, and while there are still unanswered questions about tyre management, the team will be aiming to see whether it can be strong enough to fight with Max Verstappen for a podium finish at the Dutch Grand Prix.
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