Ferrari left Monza with a palpable sense of disappointment after a weekend that exposed the limitations of the SF-26 but also raised an increasingly important question over the team’s management of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc. The Italian Grand Prix was significant technically, competitively and symbolically, yet instead of becoming a celebration for the Scuderia and its supporters, Ferrari departed its home circuit with a bitter taste.
The disappointment could be felt during the race, became even clearer when looking back at qualifying and was reinforced by the comments from the drivers and team principal Fred Vasseur. Monza was supposed to be one of the most important weekends of Ferrari’s season, but it ultimately highlighted several areas in which the team still appears to be falling short.
Ferrari’s SF-26 limitations emerge despite ADUO-2 upgrade
From a technical perspective, Ferrari had hoped the introduction of the ADUO-2 Power Unit development would bring the Scuderia closer to Mercedes rather than leave it chasing Red Bull and McLaren. By this stage, however, Ferrari has to confront the reality of its situation.
The SF-26 will remain a car with a competitive chassis and one that is particularly solid at circuits where greater downforce is required, but the engine will continue to represent its principal limitation. Monza placed those weaknesses under particularly severe scrutiny, with the SF-26’s power and straight-line performance limitations becoming especially relevant at the Temple of Speed.
The sporting side of the weekend represented another problem for Ferrari. Since the Hungarian Grand Prix, something has appeared to be missing during race weekends: the extra element that had previously allowed the team to dominate even on circuits that, on paper, seemed more favourable to its rivals.
Ferrari driver management becomes a problem at Monza
The main issue emerging from Monza is not necessarily a mistake from the pit wall, but Ferrari’s driver management, which could develop into a serious problem during the second half of the season. The Temple of Speed was never expected to be the ideal circuit for victory, although the upgrades and the ambitions of Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc had created greater hope heading into the weekend.
Looking more closely at the race, it is impossible to ignore the contact between Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton between Turns 1 and 2. It was a racing incident, certainly, but that is not the way a corner should ideally be approached, particularly at the start of a Grand Prix. The incident has subsequently fuelled a wider debate around the Hamilton-Leclerc first-lap battle at Monza.
The point is not to decide which Ferrari driver was right. Responsibility can be shared because the situation could have been managed considerably better by both. The Italian Grand Prix was not the occasion for Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc to establish superiority over one another, prove who deserved number-one status or demonstrate who was the stronger driver.
Instead, it was an opportunity to work as a team, protect each other and attempt to finish the race not necessarily at the front, but immediately behind Mercedes.
Lewis Hamilton’s prospects of winning the Drivers’ Championship appear unlikely — he is mentioned because he remains ahead in the standings — but the Constructors’ Championship is still at stake. Remaining on track and putting Ferrari in the strongest possible position to defend against McLaren and Red Bull was therefore fundamental.
At Monza more than ever, cooperation was required, yet that scenario still appears difficult to establish inside the Ferrari garage. Again, it was a racing incident, but it undeniably became another missed opportunity.
How Ferrari could manage Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc
Driver management could become one of the defining themes of the second half of Ferrari’s season, and a solution will be required. One possibility would be to establish a clear hierarchy between Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton in an attempt to prevent similar situations from recurring.
It is an option the seven-time world champion has also considered, with Lewis Hamilton suggesting that such an approach could represent the ideal solution. He has mentioned the subject several times in recent days while referring to his experience at Mercedes, where he said there were very precise rules between himself and his team-mate.
Another possibility concerns Fred Vasseur and the entire Ferrari pit wall. The leadership could intervene more decisively with its drivers, establishing that when circumstances require it, certain decisions are simply not open for discussion.
Fred Vasseur has repeatedly stressed that Ferrari will sometimes have to make unpopular decisions that require its drivers to put their individual ambitions aside. Yet he has also said on several occasions that he spoke to them following previous incidents of this kind. That inevitably raises a question: what has actually been resolved? The answer is not difficult to imagine.
Could Ferrari choose a lead driver for each Grand Prix?
There is another potential solution that would avoid imposing a permanent number-one and number-two hierarchy. If Ferrari’s priority is genuinely the team, could the strongest or most relevant driver on a particular weekend become the reference point for that Grand Prix?
Such an approach would ensure that both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc knew their roles. If individual ambitions occasionally have to be put aside, the idea is not entirely unreasonable.
At Monza, for example, Lewis Hamilton was the reference driver, so the team’s strategy and priorities could have revolved around him. Such an approach could help Ferrari avoid conflicting objectives because both drivers would understand how they were expected to operate in the interests of the team and its established targets.
It would also allow Ferrari to avoid permanently designating a first and second driver while maintaining the balance that Fred Vasseur and the team appear keen to preserve. For further updates on the seven-time world champion’s season with the Scuderia, ScuderiaFans also has dedicated Lewis Hamilton Ferrari coverage.
Monza leaves Ferrari facing an uncomfortable reality
Whatever happens next, the 2026 Italian Grand Prix will be remembered as a subdued Monza weekend for Ferrari, one that brought the team’s harsh reality into sharper focus.
As Fred Vasseur has said, there will be circuits later in the calendar that are more favourable to the SF-26. That is true, but it can no longer be used to justify everything Ferrari is lacking in terms of performance.
Budapest also appeared to be a perfect weekend for the Scuderia, as did Zandvoort. When the car itself was not the element that failed to deliver, something else did. That includes the drivers, once again caught up in the pride of not wanting to surrender ground to one another.
The pit wall and the team principal have also fallen short. Walking back statements will not be enough to restore the balance, particularly because the dissatisfaction — if that is the correct way to describe it — inside the Ferrari garage is beginning to become visible.
Ferrari can also move beyond the constant pursuit of an image of perfection, as though it were impossible to acknowledge that something within the team is not working properly. Those ideas belong to the past and are increasingly difficult to sustain today.
Ferrari once again looks to the next Grand Prix for answers
Once again, Ferrari postpones the moment when everything is supposed to come together. Once again, attention shifts towards the next round, waiting for the expected result and for that missing ingredient that even the team itself appears increasingly unable to define.
Should Ferrari wait for circuits that are theoretically more favourable to the SF-26? Certainly, because such tracks objectively remain on the calendar. But as Monza demonstrated, no circuit can truly be favourable if the team itself is not sufficiently united.
The technical development of the SF-26 will remain an important part of Ferrari’s challenge, and the latest developments can be followed through ScuderiaFans’ dedicated Ferrari technical analysis coverage. Yet after the Italian Grand Prix, the question facing the Scuderia extends beyond aerodynamics or Power Unit performance. Managing Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc around a common objective may prove just as important as extracting more speed from the car.
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