Frédéric Vasseur spoke after what unfolded during Friday’s free practice sessions at the 2026 Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix, addressing the question many observers are asking in Melbourne: is Ferrari really that far behind Mercedes? “We will have to look at the data to…”.
The Ferrari Team Principal explained the key areas the team must focus on in order to recover the apparent gap to Mercedes: “We will have to look at the data to…”. These were the words of Frédéric Vasseur following the Friday practice sessions at Albert Park during the 2026 Australian Grand Prix weekend.
Ferrari working on the SF-26 setup at Albert Park
At Albert Park, the Ferrari team spent the day working extensively on the setup of the SF-26, experimenting with several configuration changes on a circuit that continued to evolve throughout the sessions. The Scuderia also applied Flow-Viz paint in order to analyze airflow around the diffuser area, where an additional technical update had been introduced.
Throughout the day, the team tested all the tire compounds brought to Melbourne by Pirelli, gathering valuable data both in qualifying-style runs and in longer stints designed to simulate race conditions. During the first practice session, Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton set the fastest and second-fastest lap times respectively. However, in the afternoon session the Ferrari drivers finished fourth and fifth.
There is certainly still work to do ahead of the final practice session, as Mercedes — together with McLaren — showed signs that the gap could be quite significant at this stage of the weekend. Despite that, Fred Vasseur, speaking to Sky F1 Italia, preferred to focus on the work the team must carry out in order to optimize overall performance.
Vasseur: “We must keep an open mind and learn every day”
“Overall it was a good starting point. We certainly still have a lot to learn about this new car, for example regarding the delivery of the energy. But it’s the same situation for the other teams as well. We saw large swings in performance from one session to another and even from one lap to the next. This means that tonight we will have to look at the data in order to try to come back even stronger tomorrow. But overall it was a good day.”
Can Ferrari really match Mercedes this weekend? At the moment the answer appears to be no, but heading toward qualifying there will still be opportunities to improve performance and perhaps attempt something different with the setup and race preparation.
Lewis Hamilton appeared particularly comfortable behind the wheel of the SF-26. The driver himself revealed that he had contributed for as long as 14 months to the creation of this new Ferrari single-seater. The British driver seems to be approaching the season with a different mindset, and the Team Principal commented on the situation.
“Does he seem more in sync? Yes, but that’s quite normal given that this is his second year with the team and he has been part of the development throughout the winter. I think for him it’s much easier than last year.”
Finally, Fred Vasseur also addressed the uncertainties that surround the new 2026 Formula 1 regulations. “We are still in the early stages with this generation of cars and we cannot expect to be at the level we reached last year. We must keep our minds completely open, learning every day and continuing to improve more and more.”
Fred Vasseur’s balanced perspective after Friday’s practice highlights that while Mercedes may currently hold a technical edge in energy management, Ferrari is banking on a deep dive into the SF-26’s data to unlock the performance needed for Saturday. With Lewis Hamilton feeling more integrated into the team’s development cycle, the Scuderia is focused on a steep learning curve to ensure they remain a threat as the 2026 season unfolds in Melbourne.
