Fred Vasseur believes Ferrari have built an encouraging platform for the second half of the 2026 Formula 1 season, but the team principal insists the progress made so far is still “not enough”. After a difficult opening phase, Ferrari have closed ground on Mercedes and shown the pace to fight for podiums and victories, leaving Vasseur determined to keep pushing as the championship resumes after the summer break.
The first half of Ferrari’s 2026 campaign has produced contrasting signals. The SF-26 is still waiting for its first pole position, yet its recent performances suggest the car has become a credible contender at the front. Charles Leclerc won at Silverstone and finished second at Spa, two circuits that appeared on paper to be among the least favourable for the Ferrari package, while Lewis Hamilton had already taken his first historic victory for Maranello in Barcelona.
Fred Vasseur assesses Ferrari’s 2026 progress
With podiums and victories already achieved, the next question is whether Ferrari can develop its challenge into something even more significant. Much of the attention is now on the second half of the season and the possibility of further technical progress, particularly with an evolved power unit expected to play an important role after the summer break.
Asked by Sky to give Ferrari a “rating” at the end of the first half of the championship, which concluded with the Budapest weekend, Fred Vasseur gave a measured assessment. He acknowledged that Ferrari had made too many mistakes, while also highlighting the strength of the team’s recovery after an underwhelming start to the year.
“It’s not bad, but we could have done better,” Fred Vasseur said. “But it’s true that, if we look at last season, we struggled until Belgium and then from Belgium onwards we scored more points than Mercedes. Looking at today’s result, actually we are a little disappointed despite being second and third in qualifying — second and fifth after the penalty given to Lewis Hamilton for impeding Oscar Piastri — which certainly isn’t a disastrous result.”
The comments reflect the balance Ferrari are trying to strike at the halfway point: acknowledging that the SF-26 has become increasingly competitive while recognising that the team has not yet consistently converted its potential into maximum results. Vasseur recently offered a similarly measured mid-season assessment of Ferrari’s 2026 campaign.
Ferrari eye further development after the summer break
Attention now turns to the second half of the championship, which begins in the Netherlands over the weekend of 23 August. Ferrari are hoping to continue their recent upward trend, with expectations also surrounding an updated engine featuring the second ADUO token.
According to the expectations within Maranello, that development could and should help Ferrari reduce part of the performance deficit to its main rivals. The team have also been working to strengthen reliability as they prepare for further power-unit development later in the season.
For Fred Vasseur, however, technical upgrades alone will not be enough. Ferrari must also avoid the execution errors that have prevented the team from fully capitalising on the SF-26’s improved competitiveness.
“Certainly, looking at the last races of this season, we have to continue developing and avoid mistakes, continuing to push because anything is possible,” Fred Vasseur explained. “And we have to continue in the same direction. We’ve made a good start, but it’s not enough.”
Ferrari’s recent results strengthen hopes for the second half
Ferrari’s recent form has provided genuine encouragement. Charles Leclerc’s victory at Silverstone and second place at Spa demonstrated that the SF-26 can perform strongly even at circuits that were expected to expose some of its weaknesses, while Lewis Hamilton’s Barcelona victory showed that Ferrari are capable of converting competitiveness into a race win.
At the same time, the Hungarian Grand Prix underlined why Fred Vasseur remains unwilling to give Ferrari an overly positive assessment. The team entered the weekend with strong expectations but ultimately left Budapest without the result its earlier performance appeared to promise, as detailed in the 2026 Hungarian Grand Prix results.
The second half of the season will therefore be defined by whether Ferrari can combine further development with cleaner execution. The performance trend has improved, the SF-26 has shown it can fight near the front and both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton have already won races, but Vasseur’s message remains clear: Ferrari cannot afford to become satisfied with progress alone.
With Mercedes still setting the benchmark and the championship far from decided, Ferrari intend to keep developing the car and exploiting every opportunity available. For Fred Vasseur, the first half of 2026 has been encouraging enough to justify optimism — but not enough to meet Ferrari’s ultimate ambitions.
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