The Ferrari team continues to rack up kilometers on the track despite a minor issue in the afternoon that slowed down Lewis Hamilton. The first day of the final pre-season F1 test in Bahrain did not reveal much about the real performance of the teams. Everyone is still focused on developing their respective cars, but the fact that Charles Leclerc posted the third-fastest time of the day (the best time in the morning session) is a positive sign for the Italian team.
At the end of the first test day, Ferrari’s team principal, Frédéric Vasseur, spoke to Sky Sport F1 to review the day’s activities both on and off the track. He also highlighted the importance of political and sporting issues that will play a significant role throughout the season.
Vasseur: “Satisfied with the first day?”
“Satisfied? Yes and no,” Fred Vasseur began. “We shouldn’t be satisfied but instead stay focused on ourselves. So far, we’ve had seven days of testing, and they’ve gone quite well, aside from a small issue today. We’re focused on the process, on improving the car to adapt to the new regulations, and we’re concentrating on ourselves because the regulations are new and fairly difficult to digest. But so far, so good.”
Vasseur comments on F1 Commission meeting
When asked about the F1 Commission’s results, Fred Vasseur replied: “It was a good meeting. It’s always important to discuss things together to find solutions. Now we’re in a rush because the first race is in 10 days. We need to send everything to Australia, and the time is really tight, even for making decisions. There won’t be much time for changes, but that’s true for everyone. We’ll have to make a decision and move forward. I think this could be a great season, but we’ll need to decide as soon as possible.”
Hamilton to drive all day tomorrow
On the second day of testing, Hamilton will drive all day. Fred Vasseur was asked if Hamilton’s feelings about the car were better than last year: “It’s hard to say. Last year, we had everything under control, including the performance of others and fuel loads. Now it’s much harder to understand, and it becomes much more difficult to gauge whether Mercedes has more performance up its sleeve. But the same applies to the other teams as well.”
Will it take 4-5 races to fully understand the new regulations?
Fred Vasseur responded: “Yes, to understand the regulations. To understand the true performance on track, even more so, because the rate of development will be extremely high. Between Barcelona and Bahrain 1, many teams brought different updates, and the same happened between Bahrain 1 and 2. I believe everyone will bring updates to Melbourne. All teams will bring updates frequently. Because of this, I think the situation we’ll find at the beginning of the World Championship will not be the same at the end of the season. And I think that’s a good thing for F1 fans. I, however, prefer to be at the front. In any case, we must continue to push as we are doing today. The road to Abu Dhabi is long.”
Would you like to have 12 Sprint races in the season?
Fred Vasseur also shared his thoughts on the Sprint race format: “I like the Sprint format. I like the idea that every day there is at least one decisive session and two races. I’m a competitor. I enjoy competition more than free practice, but I believe we’ll need to choose the right tracks. Because I don’t think all tracks are suitable for this type of format.”
Frédéric Vasseur has therefore expressed cautious optimism regarding Ferrari’s SF-26 development in Bahrain, while emphasizing that the rapid pace of 2026 technical updates and the complexity of the new regulations will make it impossible to determine the true competitive order until several races into the season.
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