F1 | Ferrari SF-25 struggles and the roadmap to 2026: Vasseur and Serra reveal plans
With ten races remaining in the 2025 Formula 1 season, the championship picture is increasingly defined by McLaren’s dominance, leaving rivals such as Red Bull and Ferrari to play catch-up. Max Verstappen trails Oscar Piastri by nearly 100 points, with an average of just over 13 points per race—well below the McLaren pair, who consistently score around 20 points per event. Red Bull shows its strongest performance on circuits with medium and high-speed corners, forcing Max Verstappen to often focus on minimizing losses rather than fighting for victory outright.
Upgrades mostly finished across the grid
At Zandvoort, the competition has limited opportunities to make a significant impact. Only occasional race wins or an internal McLaren duel could provide rivals with openings. McLaren’s car works reliably across all tracks, and most teams have completed their major upgrades for the season. Exceptions include midfield outfits such as Haas and Sauber, which plan to introduce targeted performance parts to gain points in the constructors’ championship. Interestingly, Williams—having invested minimally in 2025—continues to defend an excellent fifth place, demonstrating efficiency and resource management.
Piastri vs. Norris: rivalry on the horizon?
While there is not yet a fierce on-track rivalry between Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris, a consistently tight gap could trigger more aggressive battles, particularly with the drivers’ championship at stake. McLaren has not won the drivers’ crown since Lewis Hamilton’s title in 2008, and both drivers may be motivated to push harder as the season progresses.
Ferrari’s challenge: closing the gap and regaining wins
Ferrari remains the leading chaser but sits too far behind in the championship standings, with Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton in fifth and sixth. The team has ten races to attempt a return to victory, particularly if suspension modifications yield improved performance. Since Silverstone, some positive trends have emerged in the SF-25’s performance, suggesting the car may be more competitive in the second half of the season under specific conditions. “We have to manage to put everything together,” emphasizes team principal Frédéric Vasseur.
In Hungary, Leclerc controlled the race for much of the first half before a sudden drop-off in performance. Engineers have identified several contributing factors: precautionary power cuts (approximately half a second lost), the influence of front downforce load, and possibly imperfect differential management between stints. Combined, these factors still do not fully explain the sudden pace drop of up to two seconds per lap behind Lando Norris, a scenario engineers did not anticipate.
Optimizing Hamilton’s window
The no.16 car passed integrity checks for the underfloor and chassis, despite earlier concerns about balance loss. Track monitoring will continue, particularly during Dutch GP free practice, to collect Charles Leclerc’s feedback. Meanwhile, although Hamilton experienced a difficult first half of the season, recent adjustments in car setup and driving approach suggest he is closer to extracting optimal performance from the SF-25. Although the maximum-downforce wing used by Lewis Hamilton in Hungary was suboptimal, the team expects to optimize his preferences soon. In Zandvoort, both drivers are likely to use Leclerc’s Hungary-spec wing to maximize efficiency and performance consistency.
The aerodynamics roadmap for Ferrari 2026
While the 2025 SF-25 continues to evolve and provide valuable data, the main focus of the Ferrari engineers and technicians is now firmly on preparing for the 2026 Formula 1 season. Following the summer break, aerodynamic development is set to intensify under the guidance of Ferrari’s aerodynamics chief, Diego Tondi, following substantial modifications to the front-end design of the car. The next generation of Ferrari cars will be entirely new, featuring a completely reimagined approach to both aerodynamics and suspension design, aimed at providing a major step forward in competitiveness and efficiency.
Technical director Loic Serra has outlined a radical shift in design philosophy for his first true Ferrari project. The 2026 car will feature a revolutionary suspension design that effectively dictates the overall geometry, mechanical balance, and aerodynamic behavior of the vehicle. One of the key objectives is to achieve reduced deformation under lateral load with the new front tires, directly addressing one of the historical limitations of Ferrari’s cars in previous seasons. This approach is intended to improve overall efficiency, optimize downforce distribution across the chassis, and better integrate the characteristics of the next-generation power unit, ensuring the car performs consistently across a variety of circuits.
The integration of this new suspension geometry with the aerodynamic package is absolutely critical for the team. Ferrari aims to maximize aerodynamic efficiency while maintaining stability through high-speed corners, which has been a known weakness of the SF-25 in the 2025 season. Loic Serra and Diego Tondi are collaborating closely to ensure that the 2026 car achieves a harmonious balance between mechanical grip and aerodynamic performance. Ferrari engineers and technicians are also exploring innovative airflow management solutions, including optimized turning vanes, redesigned floor edges, and updated bargeboard concepts. These developments are intended to enhance downforce levels without unnecessarily increasing drag, providing a more efficient overall aerodynamic profile.
For Ferrari, 2026 represents a major gamble and an extraordinary opportunity to rebuild competitiveness from the ground up. With McLaren firmly in control of the current drivers’ and constructors’ championships, the improvements and innovations introduced to the SF-25 and the next-generation car are not just essential for fighting in the present season, but are critical for laying the foundation of a car capable of consistently challenging at the very front of the grid. Early testing suggests that by integrating these aerodynamic improvements with the next-generation power unit, Ferrari could achieve significant gains in both on-track performance and tire management, providing the drivers with a more predictable and competitive package.
In summary, although the 2025 Formula 1 season continues to present significant challenges for Ferrari, the Maranello-based team is actively using every opportunity to close the performance gap, optimize car setups for both Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, and prepare for a crucial leap forward in 2026. The SF-25 remains a platform for development and experimentation, providing engineers with insights that will inform the design of the next-generation car. The real revolution, however, lies ahead, with a vehicle that combines innovative suspension geometry, advanced aerodynamic efficiency, and full integration with a new power unit. This approach is expected to usher in a new era of competitiveness for Ferrari, allowing the team to challenge the front-runners consistently and restore their position among the elite of Formula 1.
