Ferrari left Zandvoort with fourth and fifth place, but the final result did not fully reflect the performance of the SF-26 during the Dutch Grand Prix. Over the 72 laps of the race, Ferrari’s car showed the pace to fight for the podium and potentially put Lando Norris under serious pressure, yet once again Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were forced to recover from starting positions that left them with too much work to do.
The technical package developed at Maranello during the season has taken significant steps forward, and the latest SF-26 developments introduced around the Zandvoort weekend have contributed to a car that is now extremely competitive over a race distance. There are circuits where Ferrari can exploit its strengths more effectively than at others, but in 2026 that applies to every car on the Formula 1 grid.
Ferrari SF-26 race pace is no longer the main problem
The difficulty for Ferrari is that when the lights go out, Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc are rarely in a position to take control of the race from the front. The qualifying performance deficit is proving extremely costly because, even with excellent race pace, recovering positions is anything but straightforward.
Ferrari can count on one of the fastest qualifying drivers in Formula 1, if not the fastest, but Charles Leclerc has yet to secure a pole position across the first 12 rounds of the season. The Monegasque driver has started from the front row on only three occasions, while Lewis Hamilton has managed it only once, in Barcelona. More coverage of both drivers can be found in the dedicated Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton sections.
That means Ferrari routinely begins races knowing it must recover ground, either by overtaking on track or through strategic decisions. Such a situation inevitably exposes both the team and its drivers to a greater risk of mistakes or small imperfections.
Judging by what was seen at Zandvoort, had both Ferraris been able to run in clean air after starting at the front, even an outstanding Lando Norris could have faced a very difficult afternoon. In many respects, Maranello has reason to be satisfied: the SF-26’s race pace has improved considerably and development has moved in the right direction. Yet the result that ultimately goes into the record books is fourth and fifth place.
Frédéric Vasseur pinpoints Ferrari’s qualifying weakness
For Frédéric Vasseur, the key issue lies less in the outright potential of the car and more in executing qualifying correctly, particularly when preparing the tyres and managing the out-lap. It is an area that becomes even more important when the competitive order is as close as it is in 2026, something the Ferrari team principal had already stressed when outlining Ferrari’s approach to the Dutch Grand Prix weekend.
“The point is that in qualifying the preparation of the out-lap and tyre management matter enormously,” Frédéric Vasseur explained. “This weekend we had a decent approach in Sprint Qualifying, whereas Saturday was a little more difficult with the colder conditions. One detail on the out-lap is enough, and you have to pay a lot of attention to the preparation.
“I think that if there is something we have to learn from this weekend, it is not about the pure potential, but about the execution between Saturday and Sunday. At certain moments of the weekend we were there in terms of performance, but we have to be there all the time.”
That distinction is fundamental for Ferrari. The SF-26 has developed into a car capable of producing very strong long-run pace, but a machine that is competitive on Sunday cannot exploit that advantage fully if its drivers continually begin the Grand Prix behind their main rivals.
Ferrari strategy leaves both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton frustrated
Inevitably, Ferrari’s strategy discussions over the radio also became one of the major talking points of the race. Charles Leclerc was the first to complain, questioning the timing of his second pit stop. Lewis Hamilton then expressed frustration after spending three laps behind his team-mate while running at a quicker pace on fresher tyres.
The decisions were driven by Ferrari’s attempt to create a tyre offset. The idea was to delay a pit stop, establish a difference in tyre age and then exploit that advantage later to make an overtake. It is a strategy that has paid off on many occasions in recent Formula 1 seasons.
In Ferrari’s case, however, the three additional laps Charles Leclerc completed in an attempt to build an offset over George Russell were driven directly ahead of Lewis Hamilton, who at that stage was very quick on fresher tyres. In such circumstances, it was effectively impossible to make a decision without disappointing one of the two Ferrari drivers. The issue also underlined why Ferrari’s approach to potential team orders remains such a delicate subject.
“I’m not disappointed,” Charles Leclerc said. “I just had the feeling that luck wasn’t on our side, with timing that wasn’t exactly ideal. Before the break, I felt I had a bit more luck on my side for two or three races, but then you also get to know the other side of the coin, as happened today. We could have achieved a better result, but the cause is yesterday’s bad qualifying, and that’s what we should focus on.”
Lewis Hamilton, who was also frustrated by the late Virtual Safety Car that most likely cost him third place, was more critical.
“I’m here to win, and it’s difficult when you see that the two Mercedes drivers get the call and carry it out immediately,” Lewis Hamilton said. “They let Kimi through and allowed him to continue his race, while I was on a different strategy, it’s not the same thing. It’s a little difficult, but we have to accept it. We’ll talk about it privately.”
Ferrari has already faced wider questions over how to manage its two drivers when their strategies overlap, particularly as Lewis Hamilton’s form has strengthened the debate over Ferrari team orders.
Hamilton’s ‘guinea pig’ radio message explained by Vasseur
Having a fast car without being able to convert its potential into the expected result inevitably creates frustration. At one stage, Lewis Hamilton asked his engineer whether Ferrari was using him as a “guinea pig”, but the team was actually evaluating whether he could complete the race without making another pit stop.
“Lewis was frustrated because at that moment we didn’t want to communicate the strategy to him,” Frédéric Vasseur later explained, “because we didn’t want to reveal it to our rivals. We wanted to keep him out until the end, and I think that would have been the right choice, while Charles should have stopped.
“We extended it by one lap and there was a little confusion. I’m not worried about that. Everyone will go back to the briefing and have a clear picture of the race.”
The exchange highlighted another consequence of Ferrari starting further back than its underlying race performance would suggest. Instead of controlling events from the front, the Scuderia is repeatedly forced to search for alternative strategies, create tyre offsets and manage interactions between its own cars while simultaneously reacting to Mercedes, McLaren and the other leading contenders.
Ferrari turns to Monza and the new ADUO power unit
Attention will now quickly turn to Monza, where there is considerable anticipation surrounding the debut of the new “ADUO” power unit. The development should provide Ferrari with a small amount of additional help in qualifying, although it is not expected to transform the competitive order.
The Italian Grand Prix will therefore offer another important test for a car whose characteristics currently create an unusual balance between Saturday and Sunday performance. Ferrari is also preparing further developments for its home race, with the team’s Monza power unit plans following the Zandvoort aerodynamic upgrade adding further interest to the next weekend.
The SF-26 is extremely gentle on its tyres during a Grand Prix, an advantage over longer stints. The problem is that it can also be too gentle on the tyres in qualifying, precisely when the driver needs to extract everything from the rubber over a single lap.
If Ferrari can find the right balance in this area and improve the preparation of the tyres for qualifying without sacrificing its increasingly strong race pace, the outlook for the closing stages of the 2026 Formula 1 season could become considerably more encouraging. Zandvoort showed that the performance is there. The challenge now is making sure Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc are in the right position to use it.
Leave a Reply