Ferrari is preparing a significant aerodynamic upgrade for the SF-26 at the 2026 Formula 1 United States Grand Prix, with a redesigned floor intended to address the car’s weakness in high-speed corners. Data gathered by Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc during the recent races in Malaysia and Singapore has helped the Maranello engineers refine the package, which could represent the team’s final major development step of the season.
The Circuit of the Americas has been selected as the ideal venue to introduce the changes, although Ferrari faces a race against time to complete every component. Alongside the new floor, revised sidepods and radiator inlets are planned, with the Scuderia hoping to increase downforce without adding unnecessary aerodynamic drag.
With two triple-header sequences remaining across the final seven weeks of the championship, Ferrari is determined to finish 2026 competitively. The development programme is also important because the solutions introduced in Austin are expected to influence aspects of the team’s 2027 Formula 1 car.
Ferrari’s new SF-26 floor targets high-speed cornering weakness
The central objective of Ferrari’s Austin upgrade is to improve an area where the SF-26 has struggled throughout the season. Although the car has frequently demonstrated excellent performance through slower corners, its competitiveness has been less convincing in faster sections.
Ferrari believes the revised floor can reduce this vulnerability by changing the aerodynamic characteristics of the car. The team’s recent analysis has identified the need to redistribute downforce through an updated aerodynamic profile, allowing the SF-26 to perform more effectively across different corner speeds.
This distinction is particularly important because the current Ferrari has often been among the strongest cars in slow-speed sections, where its downforce characteristics have provided a competitive advantage. Maintaining those strengths while addressing the high-speed deficit is one of the main challenges facing the Maranello technical department.
The planned changes are intended to increase the aerodynamic load available to Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc without creating an equivalent increase in drag. Ferrari also wants to widen the car’s operating window, reducing its sensitivity to the conditions and set-up requirements encountered at different circuits.
The significance of these aerodynamic changes has already emerged in technical analysis of Ferrari’s new SF-26 floor and its potential benefits at Austin, where the relationship between aerodynamic performance and vehicle balance has become a central consideration.
Loic Serra faces race against time to deliver Ferrari’s complete Austin package
Ferrari chassis technical director Loic Serra and his engineering team are working to ensure that the full development package is available for the United States Grand Prix. The floor is expected to form the foundation of the update, but changes to the sidepods and radiator inlets are also part of the planned aerodynamic revision.
However, the sidepods are proving more difficult to deliver within the required timeframe. Ferrari is reportedly accelerating work on the components in an attempt to have them ready for Austin, although their introduction could be delayed until the Mexico City Grand Prix the following weekend.
Such a delay would mean that the SF-26 might initially run with only part of the intended upgrade package before the remaining components become available in Mexico.
The development therefore involves two separate considerations: the performance gain Ferrari expects from the redesigned floor and the additional benefits it hopes to achieve once the broader aerodynamic package is complete.
As previously detailed in Ferrari’s planned Austin floor, sidepod and bodywork changes, this update represents an important final phase of the SF-26’s development programme before attention turns increasingly towards next season.
Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc data helped shape Ferrari’s latest upgrade
Ferrari’s preparation for Austin has been influenced by information collected during the previous two race weekends, at the Bahrain Grand Prix held in Sepang, Malaysia, and the Singapore Grand Prix at Marina Bay.
The performances of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc provided the engineering department with further evidence of how the SF-26 behaves under different circuit conditions. Ferrari believes that data supports the decision to revise the distribution of aerodynamic downforce through a new floor profile.
The Malaysian Grand Prix delivered an encouraging result for both drivers. Lewis Hamilton recovered from the unusual circumstances surrounding the wet-weather race, including the decision to start on slick tyres in the rain, to finish third. Charles Leclerc completed the event in fourth position, giving Ferrari a double top-four finish.
The following race in Singapore produced another strong result for the Monegasque, who finished second. Hamilton, however, ended the Grand Prix in sixth after choosing not to follow Ferrari’s instruction to pit during the Virtual Safety Car period, instead pursuing his own strategy.
The strategic circumstances behind that result were examined in our Ferrari Singapore Grand Prix technical and strategy analysis, which also explored the car’s performance limitations around Marina Bay.
Despite the contrasting outcomes for its drivers, Ferrari considers the information collected across the two weekends valuable for understanding where its current aerodynamic package requires improvement.
Why Circuit of the Americas will be a crucial test for Ferrari
The United States Grand Prix presents a significantly different technical challenge from Singapore. Marina Bay did not place the same demands on the SF-26’s high-speed cornering performance, meaning Ferrari’s encouraging results there did not fully expose the weakness that the new floor is intended to address.
Austin, by contrast, features a demanding sequence of fast corners in the first sector. This section of the Circuit of the Americas could be particularly challenging for Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc if the car continues to struggle when carrying high speeds through changes of direction.
That makes the venue a useful test of whether Ferrari’s aerodynamic revisions have achieved their intended objective. The team will be looking for evidence that the upgraded floor provides greater stability and performance through faster corners without compromising the strengths already demonstrated elsewhere.
Ferrari’s development programme also follows Charles Leclerc’s concerns about the SF-26 losing ground to rival teams, adding further significance to the performance expected from the Austin package.
Ferrari’s Austin upgrades could also influence its 2027 F1 car
Although Ferrari remains focused on securing at least one more Grand Prix victory before the end of 2026, the implications of the latest upgrades extend beyond the current championship.
The aerodynamic developments introduced at the Circuit of the Americas are expected to provide information that could influence Ferrari’s approach to its 2027 car. Understanding how the revised floor and bodywork affect the SF-26’s operating characteristics will therefore be valuable beyond the remaining races of this season.
The immediate priority remains improving the performance available to Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc. Ferrari hopes the changes will deliver more downforce, greater aerodynamic efficiency and a wider operating window, particularly at circuits where the current car’s high-speed limitations have been exposed.
Whether the complete package arrives in Austin or some elements are delayed until Mexico, the coming races will provide an important indication of the effectiveness of Ferrari’s latest development direction.
With the final part of the championship approaching, the Scuderia needs those improvements to translate into performance on the circuit. Austin’s demanding first sector will offer an early opportunity to discover whether the new SF-26 floor can address one of the car’s most persistent vulnerabilities.
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