Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has explained why the Scuderia accepted a 65-place grid penalty for Lewis Hamilton at the 2026 Brazilian Grand Prix, revealing that reliability concerns and the risk of another penalty in Las Vegas influenced the decision to replace the seven-time world champion’s entire power unit.
The late change came after Ferrari discovered a problem during FP3 at Interlagos, forcing the team to abandon its original engine plan before qualifying. Although Lewis Hamilton was subsequently required to start from the back of the grid, the Italian team considered Brazil a more favourable opportunity to absorb the penalty than the following race in Las Vegas.
Why Ferrari accepted Lewis Hamilton’s 65-place Brazilian GP grid penalty
Ferrari arrived at the São Paulo Grand Prix intending to introduce a new internal combustion engine in both cars. That approach was expected to result in a 10-place grid penalty for Charles Leclerc, with Lewis Hamilton initially following the same engine replacement programme.
However, the situation changed when a reliability issue emerged on Hamilton’s SF-26 during the third free practice session. The team had already fitted a new internal combustion engine earlier in the weekend, but doubts about whether that unit could safely be used again forced Ferrari to reconsider its options.
Rather than risk another problem with the existing components, the Maranello team decided to replace Hamilton’s complete power unit before qualifying. The additional changes increased his accumulated grid penalty to 65 places, effectively condemning car number 44 to a back-of-grid start.
For comparison, Charles Leclerc received a 10-place penalty after his internal combustion engine change. The difference between the two Ferrari drivers reflected the more extensive work carried out on Hamilton’s car.
The decision also meant that Lewis Hamilton would have a completely new power unit specification available for the remaining races, an important consideration as Ferrari approached the final stages of the championship.
Fred Vasseur explains reliability concerns behind Ferrari’s engine decision
Fred Vasseur revealed that Ferrari had serious doubts about whether the recently installed engine could be reused without creating further reliability problems.
According to the French team principal, the objective was to avoid experiencing another failure later in the Brazilian Grand Prix weekend and potentially having to accept an additional penalty at the following event in Las Vegas.
Vasseur also explained that the timing of the issue influenced Ferrari’s response. Because the team was between FP3 and qualifying, it could carry out the engine replacement without the same practical disadvantages that would have accompanied a problem emerging later in the weekend.
Consequently, Ferrari chose to accept the immediate grid-position consequences rather than continue with a power unit whose reliability remained uncertain. There was also a strategic reason for selecting Interlagos as the venue for such a significant penalty. The São Paulo circuit offered comparatively favourable circumstances for recovering positions, particularly given the possibility of a wet race.
Las Vegas presented a different challenge. Its long straight and low temperatures were regarded as factors that could make recovering from the back of the grid more difficult, strengthening Ferrari’s preference for taking the penalty in Brazil.
The decision therefore involved more than simply replacing potentially unreliable components. It was also intended to protect Hamilton’s prospects across the remaining Grands Prix rather than expose him to another possible penalty at a less favourable circuit.
Lewis Hamilton gains 11 positions on opening lap but Ferrari recovery stalls
Despite the substantial penalty, Lewis Hamilton immediately demonstrated why Ferrari considered Interlagos a suitable venue for attempting a recovery drive.
The seven-time world champion produced an exceptional opening lap, climbing to ninth position after starting from the back of the grid. His rapid progress initially created the opportunity for a considerably stronger result than his starting position had suggested.
However, that early momentum did not translate into a recovery towards the leading positions. A problem involving tyre pressures compromised the performance of the SF-26 and prevented Hamilton from maintaining the advantage generated by his opening-lap progress. The British driver ultimately finished ninth, the same position he had reached after the first lap. Charles Leclerc crossed the line eighth, leaving Ferrari with both cars outside the leading group despite Hamilton’s impressive start.
The race underlined the limitations that continued to affect the Scuderia, with Ferrari’s underlying SF-26 performance problems at Interlagos proving difficult to overcome even when the drivers gained track position.
Hamilton’s remarkable opening-lap progress and the subsequent inability to improve further also provide an example of how race circumstances can alter a driver’s position. The complete running-order evolution can be explored using the F1 race-position and lap-by-lap progression tracker.
Ferrari’s tyre pressures and strategy mistakes compound Brazilian GP problems
Although Fred Vasseur identified the tyre-pressure issue as an important factor, Ferrari’s difficulties were not limited to the technical performance of its car.
Race strategy also contributed to the disappointing outcome. Lewis Hamilton made the correct decision to switch to dry-weather tyres when track conditions allowed, but the situation became more complicated when rain returned during the closing stages.
The timing of his subsequent stop proved costly. Hamilton remained on track for one lap too long before returning to the pits for intermediates, and he also spun before making the tyre change.
These incidents further disrupted his attempt to recover positions and reinforced the importance of execution during a race in which conditions changed repeatedly.
Tyre management had already emerged as a significant concern for Ferrari. The team’s higher tyre-pressure approach at the Brazilian Grand Prix had consequences for performance, contributing to the challenges faced by the drivers throughout the race.
There was also a contrast between qualifying and the Grand Prix itself. The SF-26 had shown encouraging performance in wet conditions during qualifying, but Ferrari could not reproduce that competitiveness over the race distance.
As a result, neither driver was able to convert the car’s earlier potential into a finish among the leading positions.
Why the Las Vegas Grand Prix influenced Ferrari’s Brazilian GP gamble
The decision to replace Lewis Hamilton’s complete power unit was ultimately linked to Ferrari’s assessment of the remaining championship schedule.
By accepting the consequences at Interlagos, the Scuderia avoided the immediate risk of carrying an uncertain engine into Las Vegas, where recovering from a similar penalty was considered potentially more difficult.
With a completely new power unit available for the remaining races, Hamilton could approach the next events without the same concerns surrounding the components replaced in Brazil. However, the disappointing Brazilian Grand Prix result left Ferrari facing another challenge. Both Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc lost valuable opportunities to strengthen their positions in the Drivers’ Championship, while the team’s performance and execution remained areas requiring improvement.
The next race will present different conditions, with the 2026 Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend introducing the long straight and low temperatures that influenced Ferrari’s original penalty decision.
For Fred Vasseur and his drivers, the objective will now be to make better use of the available machinery while avoiding the technical and strategic difficulties that prevented a stronger result in São Paulo.
Ferrari’s Brazilian Grand Prix engine decision was designed to minimise a potential problem across the remaining races, but Hamilton’s ninth-place finish demonstrated that avoiding further penalties was only one part of the challenge. The Scuderia must also improve its race performance and execution if it is to recover the opportunities lost at Interlagos.
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