The Christmas lunch is always the classic end-of-season event for Ferrari, but this year in Maranello there is a strong desire to look ahead. On one hand, the team wants to quickly move on from 2025, and on the other, anticipation is building for the major regulatory overhaul in 2026. Team Principal Frederic Vasseur highlighted the main topics on Ferrari’s agenda for the upcoming season, which will feature the first car developed under the technical supervision of Loïc Serra.
A new era
The SF-25 was the last car developed under Enrico Cardile’s leadership, while its successor will be the first to carry Loïc Serra’s mark, reflecting the new organizational structure Vasseur has implemented. The Team Principal, however, prefers to credit the technical director: “It will be more Loïc Serra’s car. I don’t want to avoid my responsibilities, but when talking about Cardile, Loïc must also be mentioned. Enrico left the team in June 2024 and Loïc joined in October, when the 2025 car was almost finished. That’s why I was disappointed when some journalists blamed Loïc for last season; I think it was unfair. Ultimately, next year’s car will be his first product.”
Testing and early priorities
Ferrari will reveal the new car on January 23, but it will only be a preliminary version, far from the car that will compete in Australia. “I think everyone will do the same,” Fred Vasseur comments. “At this stage, the priority is accumulating mileage, not chasing performance. We need to run to check technical choices for reliability, then work on performance. That’s why I believe all teams will arrive in Barcelona with a version A, not a fully finished car.”
The primary focus will be assessing the reliability of the new power unit: “You all remember 10 or 15 years ago, when there was a huge percentage of retirements in the first races. That means the first goal is to rack up mileage. The priority in Barcelona will be distance, checking reliability, understanding where to improve, and planning responses. If something is discovered in Bahrain, there won’t be time to react before Australia. Accumulating kilometers will undoubtedly be the main objective in Barcelona, more than focusing on performance.”
The trade-off with 2025 development
The decision to enter testing with a “version A” also stems from the desire to maximize gains from the significant wind tunnel data collected, which justified halting SF-25 aerodynamic development last April: “We are still seeing a strong growth rate compared to the 2025 cars. Deciding whether to stop development after 5 or 6 races was tough, but I’m convinced it was the right choice. If anything was underestimated, it was the psychological impact on every team member, including the drivers. We made the decision for the right reasons, to focus on 2026 and do our best next season. On the other hand, it was hard to approach a championship with 20 races remaining knowing no aerodynamic updates would be introduced.”
Fred Vasseur does not believe that halting SF-25 development affected correlation work, stating that there were no significant issues recently: “The correlation between track, CFD, and wind tunnel has been good over the past two years. When starting a new project with new tires, however, everyone must verify correlations, and this will likely be a key focus for the Barcelona tests. It will be more uncertain than the 2025 project, but this applies to all teams.”
An evolving scenario
It seems unlikely that development will stop early in 2026, a year Fred Vasseur expects to see rapid performance escalation, prompting frequent updates on track: “I’m convinced that in 2025 the picture we had in Bahrain testing was almost the same as the last race in Abu Dhabi. Next year, we’ll see a fast development pace throughout the season, more like 2022. This means that whoever is ahead at the start may not remain so by the end or in 2027. Of course, everyone would prefer a strong start.”
Budget constraints will dictate the pace of updates, not wind tunnel capacity. “We’ll need to be smart with the budget to introduce upgrades. Previously, introducing updates early meant benefiting across more races, but under a budget cap, it’s more complex. If four or five updates are introduced in the first races and a floor has to be shipped to Japan or China, half the development budget would be consumed. We’ll have to plan carefully, perhaps doing more work in the wind tunnel and introducing updates by the third or fourth race in Bahrain. This will require daily evaluation of wind tunnel gains versus development costs.”
The risks of new regulations
There is also curiosity and concern about teams potentially exploiting loopholes, which Fred Vasseur considers likely: “Teams have grown significantly in recent years. That means more people are looking for gaps in the regulations. But you also need to consider the FIA’s perspective. Arriving in Australia or Bahrain without some gray-area solutions will be a huge challenge. If a team exploits the regulations cleverly and builds a faster car, that’s fair. But if it’s due to a loophole in the rules, it’s more difficult and dangerous for everyone. This is a sensitive issue for the FIA, but I believe everyone understands the challenge.”
Another risk is that a manufacturer, particularly Mercedes, could gain a technical advantage with the power unit. However, Fred Vasseur emphasizes that maximum power isn’t the only key factor: “I don’t want to focus on competitors, that would be a waste of time. The main indicator is lap time, not absolute power. Next year’s power units involve many factors contributing to performance—driveability, weight, and energy recovery—not just power. We’ll see more later.”
The role of the drivers
In 2026, drivers’ technical contributions will be more important than ever: “There will be a huge opportunity to develop early in the season. Drivers will need to provide input, and this will be even more critical next year. It’s the first time we have such major changes in chassis, engine, and energy management. Energy management can be simulated, but on-track battles, mistakes, and external events are hard to replicate. A fast learning curve in the first races will be crucial. This is part of the drivers’ work and abilities, and I believe it will be more important than ever.”
Ferrari hopes to reinvigorate Lewis Hamilton, who needs to find the right motivation after a difficult 2025. “I think it was a tough season for Lewis, to say the least,” Fred Vasseur comments. “It was a huge change for him after 20 years with Mercedes. I personally underestimated this transition. We’re not doing things worse or better, just differently. It’s not about food or weather, but every piece of software and component is different.”
According to Fred Vasseur, there won’t be a single solution: “Often there are ten things where you’re a few hundredths slower. We have to work on each, one by one. It’s also about mindset and understanding each other. I refer to one side of the garage, while with Charles we know each other well. Here, it’s about understanding exactly what Lewis needs and what he wants to do.”
With sweeping changes on the horizon and a clean slate for all teams, Fred Vasseur’s candid insights underscore Ferrari’s determination to capitalize on the 2026 reset and reclaim a frontrunning position in Formula 1.
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